It might seem trivial to have to plan a retirement life with a workbook but take a look at this Atlantic Article https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/08/career-retirement-transition-academic-programs/675085/
"THE NEW OLD AGE
What a new life stage can teach the rest of us about how to find meaning and purpose—before it’s too late

By David Brooks"

Retirement is just like another new phase of life that needs taking a stock of your life. If you have been thinking about it, you have all the finance part taken care of it but there's the emotional adjustment to be made to the "everything is optional" lifestyle. The more things to do, values, habits that you bring to the table -- you will have more to work with and clarify your "encore" life.

This workbook is intended for recent retirees, to help them through the first year of retirement and beyond. I am just over a year away from retirement, so not quite the target audience, but I found it hugely helpful in thinking ahead. To get the most out of the book, it does require active involvement, working through the various exercises which are intended to help you maintain a healthy and balanced lifestyle in retirement.. I found myself completing them in my own journal, rather than in the book itself, since I plan to come back to them later, when I have just retired and probably a year or two into retirement.

Divided into three parts, I found the first part (retirement starts here and now) most useful. It helped me to define a future vision for my retirement. The second part deals with creating meaning and passion, and although some of the exercises were applicable, some will have to wait till I am in retirement. The third part, goals, was the least useful for me right now. That part includes exercises for defining goals, building plans, making/breaking habits, and I am familiar enough with these concepts not to need much of them. But if they are new to you, they would be extremely helpful.

I've read a number of books about retirement, and hence much of the material was not new. But being put into valuable exercise form, I think this is a great addition to the group. I recommend this if you are heading into retirement.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley. I received an advanced reader copy of this book in return for an honest review.

I think this is a great book for someone who does not know what to do with their retirement and after. The different work books on how to live your best life. How to save money on certain items, such as food, etc. Do you have life insurance, a good health insurance (That is one area I think this book should have gone a bit deeper. Retirement for a federal or state government employee, maybe a bit different from others. It provides a good beginning point, but I think more details should be provided because many and I mean, many people are not ready to retire and I think they realize how much is involved.

This is a great workbook for people who want to plan out their retirement. I felt like it was geared toward people who define themselves and their lives by their work, so retirement is a huge life change for them. If you live a life that revolves around your work/career, you may have a more difficult time transitioning into retirement.

Although I'm 5 years into retirement, I found this workbook style book super helpful. Very wholistic without throwing alot of complexity at you. Super tangible in terms of thought process and action items. Highly recommend and will be gifting to a friend who is struggling with retirement!

I have read other books on retirement and was wondering is there more to be said -- well this book definitely answers that question -- YES! This book is intended for the newly retired but I also think it is worth getting before you retire. I am still a few years away after working for many decades and am starting to plan for what's next for me. When you have been working at full-speed, there are many fears about abruptly stopping. I love that this workbook covers all the bases -- from hopes and fears about retirement, finding and reconnecting to your passion (including reflecting on hobbies from our youth). The workbook has plenty of reflection questions and quizzes and I found it to be very helpful to work through the different sections over time. There is a section on thinking about finances but not a major focus which worked well for me because most of the other retirement books out there only focus on the financial aspects and not the personal change journey we will experience as we transition to a new way of being. I highly recommend this book -- and don't wait until you retire to buy it!

Thank you to Netgalley and Zeitgeist for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.