Rarified Life: a retirement coach framework for high achievers
A better plan for life after work
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What does a retirement coach actually do?
A retirement coach helps you design what you will do, and who you will be, once your career ends.
Rarified Life approaches retirement coaching through Preferment, a research-informed framework that helps high achievers approaching or in retirement redesign life after work around personal values, purpose and meaningful activity. It treats the end of a career as an active new chapter rather than an ending.
Definition
What is Preferment?
Preferment is the Rarified Life framework and platform for life after work. Where conventional retirement is defined by stopping, Preferment is defined by choosing: deciding who you want to be next, and organizing your days around what you value. Rarified Life presents it as an active alternative to conventional retirement, built especially for people whose identity has been tied to demanding careers.
You can explore the framework on its own, through the guides on this site, before deciding whether to go deeper. The full explanation of the Preferment framework walks through each of its six stages.
Why a retirement coach, and not only a financial plan?
Most retirement preparation is about money. That matters, but it answers only one question: can you afford to stop? It says nothing about what Monday morning will feel like when no one needs you at 9am, or how you will answer "So, what do you do?" at a dinner party.
Rarified Life describes the feeling plainly: you spent decades building a career, a reputation and a way of moving through the world, and now you stand in a room nobody prepared you for, with more time than you have ever had and no idea what it is for. A retirement coach, or a framework like Preferment, exists for that room.
By the numbers
What published research says about life after work
- A meta-analysis found 28% of retirees experience depression, with a 40% spike in self-reported depression during the first years after retiring, as reported by lifecoachingcertification.net.
- The same source reports a 30% uptick in retirement coaching demand as baby boomers retire, with coaches addressing identity, purpose and relationships, not just money.
- Retirement coaches typically charge $150-$300 per session, according to the same source.
- Only 14 percent of Americans were confident in their ability to retire comfortably, in EBRI figures cited by the Financial Planning Association (Helman, Copeland and VanDerhei 2012).
"Growth is a journey inward as much as forward, where every step reveals a part of you that was always meant to shine."
What a retirement life coach helps you with
A retirement life coach works on the parts of retirement a spreadsheet cannot reach: identity, motivation, daily structure, relationships and purpose. People search for a life coach for retirement when the finances are settled but the days feel empty, or when they can already see that leaving work will take more of their sense of self than they expected.
Preferment covers the same ground through a defined sequence rather than open-ended sessions. Read the guide to choosing a retirement life coach for typical costs, what certification means, and the questions to ask.
Retirement transition coaching starts before your last day
Retirement transition coaching is about the move itself: the shift from a full calendar and a clear role to a life you design. Rarified Life says you can begin even if your last day at work is still years away, and without waiting for anyone's permission. Starting early lets you test new interests while the structure of work is still in place.
The transition to retirement coaching guide explains when to start and what the process usually covers.
How Preferment works, in six stages
The framework moves in a deliberate order. Each stage builds on the one before, so you are never asked to name a mission before you have untangled who you are from what you did.
Introduction
Take stock of where you are now, and why the old model of retirement was never built for someone like you.
Identity
Separate who you are from what you did for a living.
Motivation
Find what actually moves you, now that a paycheck is not the reason.
Alignment
Match your values and strengths to how you will actually spend your days.
Accountability
Build the structure that turns intention into a lived routine.
Launch
Name your mission for this next chapter, and step into it.
How does Preferment compare with other options?
Each option below is judged on the same five criteria. Many people combine a financial plan with one of the others. The full comparison explains who each option suits.
| Option | Main focus | Format | Length | Cost | Fits best when |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preferment course (Rarified Life) | Identity, motivation, values alignment, accountability and a named mission for life after work | Eight weekly live sessions with Anne van Leynseele, the Preferment book and built-in homework | 8 weeks, fixed start and end | Course description lists $3,000; the same page displays $6000.00. Confirm on rarifiedlife.com | You want a structured path through the non-financial side of retirement with a clear finish line |
| 1:1 retirement coaching | Whatever the client brings, often identity, purpose and relationships | Individual sessions with a coach | Open-ended; varies by coach | Typically $150-$300 per session (lifecoachingcertification.net) | You want attention tailored entirely to your situation and schedule |
| Financial planning | Savings, income, investments and tax | Meetings with a financial adviser | Varies; often ongoing | Varies by adviser and fee model | You need to know whether and when you can afford to retire |
| Self-guided reading | Whatever topics you choose | Books, articles and personal reflection | Self-set | The cost of books | You are self-directed and comfortable without outside accountability |
When you are ready: the 8-week course
Once the framework makes sense to you, Rarified Life offers it as a live, 8-week course led by founder Anne van Leynseele. It includes eight weekly live sessions working through her book Preferment chapter by chapter, the book itself as a companion workbook, and homework between sessions. Rarified Life lists 1:1 coaching as coming soon.
Read the overview of the Preferment 8-week course, or visit the Rarified Life website for current details.
Common questions
- What is a retirement coach?
- A retirement coach helps you plan the non-financial side of leaving work: identity, purpose, structure, relationships and how you will spend your time. A financial planner looks after the money; a retirement coach focuses on the life that money will fund. Rarified Life approaches this through its Preferment framework, which treats life after work as an active new chapter.
- What does a retirement life coach do?
- A retirement life coach works with you on who you are once your job title is gone. Typical topics include separating identity from career, finding new sources of motivation, matching daily life to your values and building routines that last. The Preferment course from Rarified Life covers these topics across six modules over eight weeks.
- What is retirement transition coaching?
- Retirement transition coaching is support for the move from full-time work into what comes next, ideally starting before your last day. It focuses on the shift in identity, routine and purpose rather than money. The Rarified Life Preferment course is built for this transition, and Rarified Life says you can begin even if your last day at work is still years away.
- How much does a retirement coach cost?
- Retirement coaches typically charge $150-$300 per session, according to lifecoachingcertification.net, with group workshops as another common format. Your total depends on how many sessions you need. For comparison, the Rarified Life Preferment course bundles eight weekly live sessions, the Preferment book and guided homework into a single course fee.
- Retirement coach or financial planner: which do I need?
- Many people need both, for different jobs. A financial planner answers whether you can afford to retire; a retirement coach answers what you will do with the time. Rarified Life argues that a financial plan alone does not prepare you for the rest of your life, because money does not answer the question of purpose.
- Can I start before I retire?
- Yes. Rarified Life says you can begin even if your last day at work is still years away, and without waiting for retirement day. Starting early lets you test new interests and routines while you still have the structure of work, which can make the eventual change less abrupt.