“It’s a new dawn, It’s a new day…and I’m feeling good”

I am beginning the second year of the retirement phase of my life, which by the way I am referencing as the ‘Encore’ phase not retirement; I will address this in a future writing. This verse from Nina Simone is apropos.

I must admit, transitioning to this phase of life was not as easy as I had thought it would be. Please, don’t get me wrong, I was extremely excited on reaching this much anticipated phase of my life following 44 years in corporate. I was very blessed to have had a tremendous run in my corporate lifetime and many special moments and opportunities. There were a few wonderful and significant individuals that became a part of my life and they will be cherished and loved for their impact upon me -and- I can’t express my Thanks and Gratitude to them enough!

Back to the (surprising) challenge to my transition to this phase which we so look forward to reaching. It was such a relief knowing I would no longer experience the “Sunday Scaries,” the never ending email InBox to keep up with, the back-to-back-to-back conference calls/meetings, the tireless and unrealistic expectations of completing projects/initiatives with limited staff and budget, etc. etc. etc. It is marvelous waking up each day knowing You have the day to my schedule and activities and enjoying the day with my wife (Denise) as we see fit.

The challenge begins with the adjustment I had to make from not going that constant, high paced speed with the never ending ‘next meeting/conference’ call dictating your day. Appears simple enough; right?! It was not that easy for me to just hit the switch. Having the day to be all yours, does take an adjustment -and- for me the significant adjustment was to accept it is ok to have this time for yourself and not have to be busy 1000%+ of the time. It’s ok to do nothing and enjoy that moment.

The first lesson is to allow yourself the time to settle in and accept the new purpose of your life and there is nothing to feel guilty about for focusing your attention on yourself. It’s refreshing, nourishing!

The Encore phase is your time, returning to taking care of yourself and defining a new purpose; continuing to seek a better version of yourself for your future -and- guess what, we now have the time to devote to ourself.

Never quit searching, never settle and never give up seeking your greater purpose!