Cathy Liska Kelly was getting ready to retire and worried about how sometimes people experience declining health and capacity when no longer working. A colleague suggested Kelly contact a coach. Kelly was unsure how having a coach applied in this situation and wondered about the return value on the investment.
At a networking event, Kelly met a coach. The coach offered Kelly a free 30-minute coaching session to get a sense of how coaching worked. Kelly enjoyed the free session and discussed the possibility of coaching for the transition from a full time career to retirement.
The coach explained the whole person process of starting with a session asking about goals in all different areas for the big picture. Kelly said that it seemed talking about goals in all areas was irrelevant because after retirement there was not a whole lot to work on. The coach asked Kelly about how the concern over a decline due to retiring was related to goals in different areas. Kelly thought about this and agreed to do a few sessions. The coach declined to take Kelly on as a client because it was not a good fit for Kelly.
After 6 months of retirement, Kelly called the coach again. Kelly shared a new awareness of how not having goals meant not having direction which led to doing little or nothing. Kelly asked to start the coaching relationship and to use the whole person approach. As a result, Kelly discovered interests in a number of areas and personal value in actively pursuing several. Now Kelly is active volunteering and traveling.
