Retirement Rebels: Susan Stone

Retirement Rebels: Susan Stone on why you should never underestimate the power of the mind

Welcome once again to my Retirement Rebel interview series. This month I introduce you to Susan Stone, CHT, PSYCH-K Facilitator, Emotional Intelligence Specialist, Hypnotherapist and ACIM Teacher. You can find out more about her here.

I met Susan via the PSYCH-K network: she is fascinating and I know you are going to be truly inspired by her story about a recent hospital stay. 

Do please enjoy her answers to my quick-fire questions. And in the meantime, if you’re a rebel too, and you’d like to be part of this series yourself, email me at [email protected].

Do you consider yourself retired – and if not, why not? 

No, I am starting a new business with a partner called One Belief a Day, in addition to my own established private practice.

How do your thoughts on retirement differ from most people – in other words, what makes you a retirement rebel? 

After several failed yet necessary attempts, I am extremely lucky to have finally found my life purpose in my work.  I feel so blessed because my field is continuously expanding and something I can do from anywhere and, if I so choose, well into my nineties. 

Do you have a typical day? What does it look like? 

Yes: my day usually includes meditating upon waking, checking/responding to my Facebook sites and then my husband and I go for an hour plus walk on the beach at sunrise. My days are fluid and are filled with client sessions and calls, studying and writing for my new listening series and brainstorming with my business partner.

What’s been your proudest moment since you turned 50? 

I was T-boned by a car last May which gave me a concussion, broke my back and shattered my pelvis in four places. Because it was during Covid-19, I was in the hospital by myself for two surgeries. As you can imagine, every doctor who examined me (and there were several) kept reiterating what a bad accident I had been in. The first hospital didn’t have the adequately trained staff to perform the surgery I needed, so I was transferred to our inner-city trauma hospital. 

I went from a luxury Palm Beach hospital in a newly renovated private room to a decaying, chaotic police station-type atmosphere. X-ray machines didn’t work, elevators were broken, nurse attention was minimal, there was no privacy and everyone was wearing a mask speaking with accents I had a hard time understanding. I was terrified and alone. 

Right before I was put under for the first surgery, I asked the surgeon “If you could talk to my body, what would you tell it to do?”  After several funny looks from him and the nurse anaesthetist, I explained that I work with the subconscious and I can tell my body what to do.  He finally said, “I would ask your bones to line up easily.” I did several PSYCH-K balances even as the drugs to put me to sleep were entering my body. 

In recovery, my surgeon woke me and said:  “Miss Stone, I know you won’t remember this, but your bones lined up perfectly and we didn’t have to do that other invasive procedure.”  I remember smiling to myself and thinking, “You have no idea who I am and what I can do.” I am most proud of my decision to be brave under pressure, take charge and act like the CEO of my healing. I immediately and effectively used the work I was trained in to heal myself in record time.

Do you have a favourite quote that inspires you? 

The best formula for success is to follow your passion, do your best everyday and look for life’s synchronicities.

What’s your favourite social media channel, and what was the last thing you posted on it? 

Facebook: I asked the following question of my Beta Test Group, “What is your favorite thing about abundance?”

If you could tell your 18 year old self one thing, what would it be? 

Be nicer to yourself, mistakes are normal… It’s how humans learn and improve.

When did you last belly-laugh, and what was it about? 

My husband said: “That’s hard, it seems like you laugh all the time”. It was probably two days ago. My husband had gotten his second vaccine and kept moving his arm around all day to combat the stiffness.  While he was watching CNN on TV that night, I noticed he was waving his arm up in the air from a seated position and I said “I know you like Anderson Cooper but I don’t think he can see you waving at him right now”.

Do you have any regrets? 

Yes, several. Mostly, being afraid to speak up for myself when I was in my thirties in the workplace when I was being sexually harassed and/ or discriminated against.

What are your aspirations for retirement – how would you like to see the way the world thinks about life over 50 change? 

People have a great deal to contribute to society and experience after retirement. It is something they should ”blueprint” not only for the benefit of themselves but also for the world. 

My grandfather worked for Henry Ford in the 1920-30’s, designed the first Sherman Tank, and finally was the chief engineer for John Deer. He also worked with Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver, Harvey Firestone, Lee Iacocca, Edsel Ford and Henry Ford II. In retirement, he wrote a book, “The Fords of My Past”, started a trade school and traveled to Japan yearly to address the International Society of Automotive Engineers.  He always sent clippings of local new stories about him and would write in the margins: “Grandpa flunked retirement 101 again”. 

I believe I have much to contribute to my field in the next two decades and I am working to break old paradigms around self-development and healing.