More blog posts

Self Belief Is Crucial In Retirement
And here is how to achieve it . . . . I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again and again… the first casualty in retirement is identity. One day you’re a nurse, police officer, manager, or business owner; the next, you’re a… I hesitate to say a ‘nobody’, but that is...

Challenges You Face When Changing Your Mindset
In my last blog, I wrote about the power of the subconscious mind and why listening to it – and nurturing it – is crucial if we are to lead the life we want to live. The subconscious mind is thoughtful, deep, and powerful. It controls our feelings and emotions, as...

The Real Reason So Many Of Us “Fail” To Change In January
You may have set yourself a myriad of new year’s resolutions to; exercise more, drink less, better yourself… or maybe there was just one small thing you hoped you could change. No matter the length of your list, sticking to our goals in January or at any other time of...

We Need To Talk About . . . Death
It may not be the cheeriest subject to start the month with, but I believe failing to talk about death is doing a disservice to the gift we’ve all been given; that of life. Death is a part of life. It happens every second of every day and will continue to do so,...

Three Reasons Why Boomers Need A Growth Mindset
In my last blog here, I talked about the difference between a fixed and a growth mindset and why a growth mindset is key to a successful retirement. If you’re not sure whether you fit into the fixed or growth category, then do this simple quiz to find out. Before I...

Floundering In Retirement? Your Fixed Mindset May Be To Blame
Are you struggling in retirement? Do you feel lost, lonely, and even, past your best? You’re not alone. Thousands upon thousands of retirees feel the same. Why? Because they have a fixed mindset. How do I know? Because I did. And it almost destroyed me. A fixed...

A Life Of Purposeful Duty And Poise
She served our nation for 70 years and for me, the final image of HM The Queen says it all. Taken just two days before her passing, as she welcomed in her 15th British prime minister, it is now a very poignant image, depicting a frail but determined and dutiful woman...

It’s OK To Love Yourself
Why It’s OK to Love Yourself Unconditionally I love myself. There you go, I’ve said it. Until a few weeks ago, those words would never have entered my head, let alone exited my mouth, but things have changed… for the better. I now believe having genuine love for...

The Ego Has Landed – And The Eagle Has Taken Off
What animal are you? It’s one of those questions you often get asked as a child or in those ‘let’s get to know each other’ cringeworthy team building sessions. And it’s one I’ve never had trouble answering. I’m a chameleon. Yes, an old-world lizard, with a highly...

Trust Your Heart, Not Your Head
Before you read this blog about why you should trust your heart, please listen to this wonderful poem by John O’Donohue. I’ve recorded an audio version for you here. If you’d prefer to read it, here’s the link. Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been telling you...

Riding On The Crest Of A Wave
How learning to surf is like retirement Last week I told you about the incredible time I recently spent at the Modern Elder Academy in Baja, Mexico. The school is the brainchild of Chip Conley and it’s dedicated to helping people, from all walks of life, navigate...

Look Into My Eyes To Search My Soul…
How one simple exercise helped me love myself They say if you want to search someone’s soul, you should look into their eyes and that’s exactly what I did to a stranger for TWENTY-FIVE whole minutes. It was intense to say the least, but absolutely fascinating and...

How To Live Retirement With Passion And Purpose In Five Simple Steps
Many of us spend our working lives dreaming of retirement. We see ourselves living a life of luxury and freedom, doing what we want, when we want. No ties, few responsibilities. Sounds idyllic, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, the reality of retirement today is very...

Retirement – A Fatal Mistake?
Are you making this ultimate retirement mistake? A lack of money, poor health, and having nothing to do; these are the things retirees worry about. How do I know? I’ve been there. I experienced retirement first-hand, and I hated it. Since ‘unretiring’, I’ve spent my...

There Are Many Ways To Discover Your True Purpose…
Retirement courses for everyone! Most of you know my story by now… but for those of you who don’t, I’ll give you a quick synopsis. A few years ago, age 52, I was given just six months to live. Thankfully, the diagnosis was wrong, but I was forced into semi-retirement,...

Daring To Discover Your Purpose Is Worth It
“The biggest lesson I learnt from George is to think differently. George’s course and my conversations with him taught me I need to find my tribe and put myself out there to create opportunities, see what happens and not be afraid of failing.” Dr Richard Sibthorpe is...

This May Hurt, But It’s Worth It…
The importance of change in retirement How often have you heard the phrase ‘no pain, no gain’? It’s wildly overused, but it’s true. Breaking up a relationship, fasting, even sugar-strip waxing… We all do things we know will hurt because, in the end, they make our...

Are You Living A Life Of Purpose Or Simply Filling Time?
Retirement is all about purpose I talk about purpose – a lot. It’s one of my favourite words. Why? Because finding your true purpose can make a monumental difference to the way you live your life. I’m a living example of that. As many of you know, a few years ago I...

Fine Tune The Voice Inside You And Watch Your World Grow
Why a growth mindset is the thing you need most in retirement You retire from work. The first few months are a blast. Your diary, packed with social engagements, catch-ups with colleagues, luxury holidays, and time to yourself. You’ve worked and waited years for this...

Look Closely – Things Aren’t Always What They Seem…
The reason perspective is so important in retirement... I was on the phone to a friend the other night and in the middle of our conversation I spotted the moon, so perfectly round and bright, beaming down from the night sky. Now, I’m no astrologer, but it was...

Willpower Alone Will Not Set You Free
The problem with willpower... I tried so many times to give up smoking, but always failed. Years later, I discovered the reason why. I was relying on willpower alone and that was never going to be enough. I thought I wanted to give up, but deep, deep down I didn’t -...

One Day More… Be A Game-changer
Can you help spread the word? The day has come. Tomorrow my latest book, DARE to Discover Your Purpose hits the shelves and I couldn’t be more excited. Ever since I started my Retirement Rebellion blog back in September 2019, my mission has been to banish the idea...

Fresh Starts, New Beginnings, And A New Chapter For Me
Another book about retirement? Yes, but mine is very different... There are millions of retirement books, so why did I think it would be a good idea to publish another one? 98% of them focus on finances. Mine doesn’t. DARE to Discover Your Purpose is about the rest of...

My Face, Or Not My Face? That Was The Question
Picking the perfect cover for my new retirement book wasn't as easy as I thought... I’m about to publish my tenth book, Dare to Discover Your Purpose and over the years I’ve learned a lot about being an author. Back in the day, I did everything myself. I wrote the...

The Reality Of Retirement In Cartoons
Retirement is no laughing matter... If I had to choose one image to sum up what I do, it would be this… Far too many people see retirement as a reward. The day they pick up their ‘carriage clock’, walk out of their office for the very last time, and into a new...

We All Have A Book In Us
Publishing a book doesn't have to be a fantasy... I love stories. Always have. Although I didn’t like reading much at school. That was because it was forced on me and I’ve never been one to conform! I never imagined I’d become an author, let alone of 10 books, but the...

Let’s rid retirement of shame
There's no shame in retirement... Ask any retired person what they do, and most will respond with, “retired teacher”, “former salesman” or “well, I used to be a doctor, mechanic, cook…” It’s rare for someone to simply say, “I’m retired.” So why is this? Well, the...

Shredding my skin
What can you leave behind in 2021 that no longer serves you? Sitting in my office the other day, my mind wandering aimlessly, I caught sight of something on my wall. My certificates. Documents showcasing my hard work, determination, and years of toil. Framed and...

Make today THE day you find out why
Ready to find your purpose in retirement? It may sound harsh, but I often ask people, “What are you doing here? What are you contributing to this world? What’s your purpose?” The answers are often vague and usually accompanied by a worried and/or startled...

We need to talk about purpose
Purpose - The Real Secret To Retirement Now I know I’ve said this many times, but for those of you who don’t know, when I retired it was sudden. One day I was living a life filled with purpose, the next, I was told that I only had six months to live. Thankfully, that...

Arghhhhh! Why I’m screaming at my screen
Retirement courses: Why they're as important as financial advice Spoiler alert: I’m not one to get mad. I don’t shout, well, not very often. And I like to resolve disagreements in a non-confrontational manner. But this week, I felt the need to scream at my screen and...

It’s The Journey, Not The Arrival, That Counts
Life is a journey - and retirement shouldn't be the final destination A couple of weeks ago, a friend introduced me to a brilliant new podcast – Time of My Life – and as you can imagine from the title, it’s right up my street.It’s the brainchild of journalist Laurence...

The buck stops here – defeating ageism starts with you
Ageism is all around. It’s ingrained culturally, socially, economically. It’s the last acceptable prejudice and, as the UN puts it, “an insidious scourge on society.” You only need to turn on the TV, pick up a newspaper or take public transport to see that. Sadly,...

Money – Why it’s not the answer to a dream retirement
It's all about the pension pot We're often told that to enjoy a healthy retirement, we need to be adding extra pennies into our pension, that saving more or for longer is the answer. In this day and age that advice is, in my opinion, irresponsible and fundamentally...

Stop telling women to work longer – it’s not the answer!
The gender pension gap is real! 17% in just one year - that’s the amount the gender pensions gap in the UK widened in 2020. Of course, these stats made headlines. And of course, COVID had its part to play, but this issue is not new. This shocking disparity is...

Why Do So Many Of Us Sleepwalk Into Retirement?
Let me help you create a retirement with purpose Are you thinking of retiring? Perhaps you just have? Maybe you were spurred on to do so by the craziness of the past couple of years. Whatever your reasons I’d like to ask you a question… How much time have you spent...

Covid chaos! Real proof it’s causing more of us to sleepwalk into retirement
Is COVID creating a retirement crisis? In last week’s blog I looked at the reality of retirement and why it’s so different from the dream us baby boomers have been promised. Retirement today isn’t about long, lazy lunches, rounds of golf and an endless stream of all...

Why the reality of retirement today is far from a dream
Long, lazy lunches, rounds of golf, a spot of yoga and an endless stream of all expenses paid holidays. Is this the kind of retirement you dream of? Whilst many aspire to spend their third stage of life like this, the reality is, few can – or do. COVID aside, it’s...

Advice from the Ancients: What Aurelius taught us about living in the present
This is what Marcus Aurelius taught us about living in the present If you’ve been following my mini-series Advice from the Ancients, you’ll know that I’m fascinated by authors from the distant past, especially those who teach us about later life, how to live it to the...

Are you too scared to retire?
Does retirement scare you? I ask because fear of retirement is something I hear over and over again. Clients often tell me that their work gives them purpose and a sense of identity, something they really can’t imagine life without. My response to their concerns is...

Do you have a retirement plan for your later life?
Do you have a ‘blueprint’ for your later life? The reason I’m asking is because many people don’t… And yet they still expect to live the life they want in retirement. But the problem is, creating such a blueprint takes time and effort. I know many of you have put that...

What’s your retirement personality type?
Want to know how to have the perfect retirement? You need my new quiz! What’s your retirement personality type? Is this something you have ever wondered? I ask because when I’m talking to my clients, I see three distinct types emerging. And they are always fascinated...

Wake up! You’re sleep-walking into retirement (and now it’s official)
Are you sleep-walking into retirement? If you’ve been following my blogs, podcasts and social media posts, you will probably have heard me mention a few times that I believe many of us are ‘sleepwalking’ into retirement. So imagine my delight when I stumbled across an...

Advice from the Ancients: What we can learn from Seneca about life and death
What we can learn from Seneca about life and death Back in April, as part of my ‘mini series’ of video blogs called ‘Advice from the Ancients’, I introduced you to one of my favourite authors, Seneca, and his work ’On the shortness of Life’ (De Brevitate Vitae). To...

Retirement: No time for complacency
Eight ways to prevent complacency creeping in during later life It’s easy to become complacent in retirement: I should know, it happened to me when I semi-retired a while back. It’s one of the reasons I became a ‘retirement rebel’! And I see it in my clients too: when...

Three Secrets to a Daring Retirement
Want to know the secret to a daring retirement? As a baby boomer, retired or not, you know there are things you could, and should, be doing differently in your life. But perhaps you simply haven’t had time to figure out what you should be doing next. That’s why, in...

What is your purpose?
Do you know what your purpose is? I want to talk to you about what your purpose is. Do you really know? If the answer to that is “No” or, “I don’t know”, don't worry… you’re not alone! But consider this: not recognising what your purpose is until the end of your life...

Advice from the Ancients: What Seneca taught us about the shortness of life
What Seneca taught us about the shortness of lifeLast month, I kicked off a new ‘mini series’ of video blogs called ‘Advice from the Ancients’, telling you about some of my favourite authors from the distant past who have influenced my work.I started off with Roman...

Do you have a ‘blueprint’ for your later life?
Do you have a ‘blueprint’ for your later life? The reason I’m asking is because many people don’t… and yet they still expect to live the life they want in retirement. But the problem is, creating such a blueprint takes time and effort. I know many of you have put that...

What exactly is ‘purpose’ – and why is it important?
Why is purpose so important in life?You may already have noticed my fascination with the concept of ‘purpose’ – indeed, my flagship course dares you to discover your own!But what exactly is purpose, and where does the word come from? Well, it originates from ‘purpus’,...

Advice from the Ancients: What Cicero taught us about old age
My passion is inspiring retired or retiring baby boomers to live the life they deserve. And when something is your passion, you live and breathe it. I certainly do, devouring books on the subject of later life and old age, looking for answers… or more questions!I’m...

Are your pensions funds in fact a fantasy?
Are your pensions funds in fact a fantasy?One big issue that comes up time and time again for my clients is not appreciating that they are absolutely correct in worrying about their finances and pensions funds. This is because they know, at a subconscious level that,...

Why uncertainty is good for you – especially in later life
Why uncertainty is good for you We’ve all faced a lot more uncertainty than usual over the last year. And it’s no surprise that for many of us this feeling hasn’t been very welcome, that’s because uncertainty - feeling unsure about what’s happening next in your life...

The changing face of retirement
The changing face of retirementAs we all know, the global pandemic has affected millions of people financially. And not just that, COVID-19 has also changed the way we look at retirement, which is of particular interest to me.This week I read about some new research...

The myth of ‘the good old days’
A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog post about the lockdown declutter that I was having – like many of us are at the moment. As I told you, I’m a firm believer in ‘making space’ for new things in life by clearing out the old.In this blog, I wanted to follow on from that...

What retirement mistakes could you be making?
Have you ever asked yourself this question? It’s something I get asked a lot by my clients. And that’s why I’ve created something brand new which I’m excited to be sharing with you today. It’s a quiz called “What Retirement Mistakes Could You Be Making?“ and you can...

Changing your life can start with a clear out
Like many people during lockdown, I have made use of this extra time at home to do some ‘decluttering’. I’m a firm believer in ‘making space’ for new things in life by clearing out the old. I didn’t learn this from my parents though: my father never threw anything...

Positivity and its life-changing effects on your brain
Positivity and its life-changing effects on your brainI have always thought that positivity was good for the brain. However, I was still taken aback when I read a recent article on the CNN website, titled Negative thinking linked to dementia in later life. This didn’t...

Loneliness – One of the many hazards of retirement
Loneliness: One of the many hazards of retirement I recently read a fascinating article in The Economist, called ‘All the lonely people’. It was actually a review of two books that once again opened the debate on the difference between solitude and loneliness, a theme...

What is ‘andropause’? And how can understanding it help us in retirement?
I’ve been reading recently about ‘andropause’. Have you heard of this term? I’m fascinated with the idea of a ‘male menopause’ and wanted to research if it’s even based on any scientific fact. What I discovered was that although andropause is often called ‘the male...

“Rewrite the software of your mind”: My discovery of PSYCH-K®
“When you rewrite the software of your mind, you change the printout of your life… and the world!” says Rob Williams, the originator of PSYCH-K®. With that kind of introduction, how could I resist finding out more about this ‘profound set of processes’ that’s been...

Why are some people ashamed of being retired?
Last summer, when things were ‘normal’ (before COVID-19 that is), I read an interesting article on the BBC website, called ‘Why we lie about being retired’. It was about shame, and more precisely, about the growing number of people who felt a sense of shame about...

How we deal with lockdown can help us in retirement
If you’ve been following my blogs, you’ll know that every month I like to bring you a new podcast. Well, this month that won’t be happening because, unfortunately, and like many of us, I’ve been in quarantine. I started suffering from symptoms of COVID-19 about two...

Retirement: How its history is relevant in these troubled times
The past can often help us understand the future, and in these uncertain times, I wanted to share with you a little about the history of retirement. I talk about this in some depth in my online program, ‘Dare to discover your purpose’, which is coming soon. When...

Why is retirement bad for your health?
Research from the Institute of Economic Affairs suggests that retirement may initially benefit health – by reducing stress and creating time for other activities, but adverse effects increase as retirement goes on. It found retirement increases the chances of...

Retirement is your final opportunity to discover who you really are
We are all here for a purpose - and our lives have meaning, not just for us but for those close to us - yet, surprisingly, many of us feel disconnected to this idea and for them it doesn’t resonate at all. As I’ve discovered in my life (I even wrote a book about it),...

Three fundamental ways our lives change in retirement
Three fundamental ways our lives change in retirement “What is true in the morning of life is a lie in the afternoon of life”, said Carl Jung, the eminent Swiss psychologist and psychoanalyst of the 20th century. This quote rings especially true when you’re thinking...

A retirement that’s more like winning a lottery? Three ways to help make that happen
When you picture your retirement, what does it look like? No more rude awakenings from your alarm clock… no more commuting to work in traffic or packed like a sardine into a subway train… no more taking orders from your boss.Instead, you’ll be in paradise: basking on...

My American dream
In May 1985, I travelled to New York with my wife Talyn in what was to become my eight-year odyssey in America. I started my first business with my brother Chris, which was a furniture importing company with distribution across interior design showrooms in all major...

The gift of a bone tumor
In January 2007, three separate events collided to create a perfect storm in my life. First, my wife and I had sold our home, and we were in the process of packing to move to a rental. Second, my wife received news that her father had suffered a stroke and was in...

Decision to Litigate
In April 2007, while I was recuperating from my surgery, my brother-in-law approached me to help him sort of out his father’s estate. Back in 2002, their pharmaceutical business had gone into administration (UK version of Chapter 11 in the US) due to cash...