Hello {!firstname}:

Because someone almost always blows the “surprise” in a surprise party in our family, we throw them in a rather unusual way. You know you’re having a party, the date, and time -- everything else is a surprise.

So my sweet Richard threw a rather abbreviated version of the big do he dreamed of giving me for my 60-½ birthday the weekend before last (it’s the economy, silly!) with mostly dear local friends. The big surprise was my cousins from the Midwest who showed up a few days before the party and stayed a few days after. We had a great time hitting all the Berkshire highlights and just hanging out with one another.

The party was a huge success, Richard could quit his day job (oops…he already did!), and a great time was had by all. :-)

So I’ve managed to celebrate my big 6-0 three times so far this year -- on my birthday last winter, again in the spring, and now this summer. Mmmm, any ideas for a bang up celebration this fall?

To your endless possibilities!

Lin Schreiber, Retirement Revolutionary

I haven’t even announced registration for the September Good Vibes Coaching Group (until today!) and already five amazing women have signed up.

The women in the first Good Vibes Coaching Group completed their four month program this week, and they’re all soaring to new, unexpected highs in their lives in big and small ways.

Here’s what happened to Claire yesterday. . .

Just had a great example and I want to share with you all. I attended a networking luncheon and as I was driving home I spaced out and wasn’t paying too much attention to what I was doing or how fast I was driving.

All of a sudden I look in the rear view mirror and there is a police car following me with the lights on. Don’t know how long I was being followed, so I immediately pulled over. I didn’t have a clue how fast I was going!

Mrs. police lady was very polite and when I apologized and asked how fast I was going she told me 48 in a 30 mile zone! Oh well, I guess I deserve a ticket. While she took my paperwork and went back to the cruiser I flood this woman with all the appreciation and love I could muster! I just flowed it until she floated back to my car and told me she was only giving me a warning and to slow it down. I graciously thanked her and slowly went on my way!

Just one more example of the Law of Attraction in action!

Ready to create some magic in your life? Register today!

We’re on target to launch The WOW Zone! live, internet talk radio show on Tuesday, September 29th at 11:00 a.m. ET, and I wanted to give you a sneak peak at the graphics.

Graphics gals Nan Bookless and Liz DeMarco of BookMarc Creative really outdid themselves this time. Don’t you just love it?

Stay tuned for the debut of The WOW Zone! on my VoiceAmerica.com host page, and on RevolutionizeRetirement.com. . . I’m so excited and having so much fun, I can hardly stand it. Oh heck. . . I can stand it!! :-)

What Do You Value?

by Lin Schreiber, Retirement Coach

One of the most powerful tools for determining what you really want in your encore career (and life) is clarifying your personal values. But, what exactly do I mean by values?

I like to think of values as those things that really matter to you -- what lights you up, turns you on, and gets your juices going. Being part of a community is a personal value; so is having fun. Other examples are family, financial freedom, beauty, spirituality, mastery, inspiration, friendship, originality, contribution, and connection.

Your personal values are unique to you. They make life worth living. It’s important to remember that your personal values evolve over time. What you valued in your 20’s is probably very different from what you value now in your 50’s or 60’s.

So, what are your top priorities for this particular time in your life? What ideas and beliefs do you hold most dear that if your life were designed around them, you would be truly fulfilled? What values define how you want to live your life -- every day of your life -- from now on?

To discover your top values, start with my 120+ Personal Values flash card set. While you can print them out on card stock, cut up and use them like flash cards, it works equally as well to print them out on copy paper and use them as a list:

• First Pass. Take some quiet time to go through the list one value at a time, and make a check mark next to any that resonate with you and make you feel good. Don’t worry if you have a lot of check marks. That’s only natural, since you value many things.
   
• Add Your Own. Use the list as a stepping off point and add everything you value that’s not on the list to the blank sheet on the last page. For instance, one thing that was missing from my life for many years that I hold very dear at this point in my life is breathing space -- in my day, my week, my month and my year.
   
• Down to 15-20. Now, go through the list again (your check marks and your additions) and whittle it down to 15-20 values. You may have to do several passes to narrow it down. That’s okay.
   
• The Top 5. Choose the five values that mean the most to you. You’ll notice that you may have two or more similar values on your list like “create” and “design”. Does the idea of one thrill you more than the other? That’s the one to pick. If they both tickle you, then they both stay. It doesn’t matter as long as every value on your list lights you up, turns you on, and/or really gets your juices going.

The fact that you’ve selected only five doesn’t mean the other values on your list aren’t important to you. It’s just that right now in your life, these are what hold the most meaning for you.

But here’s the really big question: How much of the life you’re living right now is aligned with your values? Not so much? Not to worry. Here’s your homework: choose one of your values and create a small goal that honors it. For instance, if “having fun” is one of your values and your life isn’t very fun right now, you might create the goal of doing something fun every week.

Over time, create a goal for each one of your top five values. Start small, and each time you accomplish one of these values goals, up the ante to a larger goal. You’ll discover that when you create goals around your values, you’re literally pulled toward those goals -- it feels easy and fun. When your goals are not aligned with your values, it’ll feel like you’re pushing a boulder up the side of a cliff.

You could simply use your top five values to inform the kind of values-based encore life that would be ideal for you. Or, you could take a big leap and create one goal -- i.e. your encore career– that honors all five of your top personal values, and see what you come up with!
 

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you keep it intact and include this blurb with it:  Certified Retirement Coach Lin Schreiber, author of the popular ABC's of Revolutionizing Retirement, helps self-reliant women reinvent themselves in the next stage of life, formerly known as "retirement."  To claim your copy of her free popular Revolutionize Retirement Starter Kit, visit her site at http://www.RevolutionizeRetirement.com.

WhatsNext.com’s Career Change & Life Balance Guide: Finding the Best Advice & Tools to Make the Switch by Elizabeth Pope.

Yes, I’m profiled in the guide, along with two of my wonderful clients, but that’s not why I’m recommending it. Elizabeth’s done an excellent job of defining life coaching, career counseling, and financial advising, and exploring sorting out priorities and finding the right opportunity. There’s also an excellent resource section included.

Check out my latest blog on RealforMe.com:

Embarking on Your Encore Career: The Empowerment of Change

“When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier." 

~ Roy Disney

Lin Schreiber is a Retirement Revolutionary who loves helping self-reliant women reinvent themselves in the next stage of life, formerly known as "retirement."  Like Lin, her clients have a positive vision for the future, and the idea of riding off into the sunset for the next 30-40 years isn't in the picture.

She is a sought after speaker, Professional Certified Coach and Certified Retirement Coach.  Through her business, Revolutionize Retirement^(TM), she delivers her comprehensive coaching programs to individuals over the phone, and to groups at her Boot Camp live events.  Combining her contagious enthusiasm, non-stop energy, and passion for her subject, Lin creates a fun, dynamic learning environment that energizes and inspires her audiences.

Lin is featured on the PBS series Boomers^(TM): Redefining Life After Fifty, and is the author of The ABC's of Revolutionizing Retirement.

Contact her at  www.RevolutionizeRetirement.com.

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