Personal Growth

September 30 marked the official date of my retirement.   Although I left the office on June 15 I have been taking unused vacation — an indication of what a workaholic I had become prior to retirement.  Who would accumulate over 3 months of vacation time without an insane devotion to an organization? So after […]

During a yoga class last week, my teacher spoke of the fall equinox and the balance of day and night that occurs with both the spring and fall equinox.  She went on to speak about life balance and the necessity of creating balance in our lives especially during seasonal changes.  She also spoke of the human […]

In the early days of retirement, a frequent comment to me has been “now you have time to relax” or “now you can take it easy”.  I have smiled and agreed.  However, I am learning that relaxation does not come just because you are no longer working.  There are always distractions and there are always […]

Life can only be lived happily ever after on a day-to-day basis. —Ernie J. Zelinski Before finalizing the decision to retire, I spent a great deal of time thinking about how I wanted to live during the post work or third phase of life.  Intentions were framed around happiness and contentment through freedom to pursue […]

In recent posts I have extolled the value of using time wisely and have cited taking courses and learning new skills as a postworksavvy strategy.  There are many ways to gain new skills.   Here is my story about learning new skills to become a blogger. The idea During the last months at work I had […]

As much as we can try to understand the many personal reactions to retirement it is difficult to fully anticipate some of the changes that will be encountered until these changes occur.   The first six weeks of retirement have brought a child-like giddiness and excitement as I have savoured the freedom from a rigid work […]

Career and professional success depends on excellent relationships with clients, vendors, peers, colleagues, stakeholders, and others in your network.  Positive relationships depend on great interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence and social interactions. After leaving the formal world of ‘work’ the same  skills are needed with friends, neighbours, family and others in your post work network.  Maintaining […]

All is not well in postworksavvy Shangrila as I fight a nasty summer cold.  Yes, even happy retired people with plans for summer fun struggle with the aches and pains of colds and flus.  Coughing episodes and sniffles are not part of the plan during sunny hot July weather with World Cup games to watch and beach […]

As the hours passed during the last day at the office I realized again the importance and meaning of the relationships with co-workers.  It was the support and help from so many people who allowed me to be successful at work.  There were conflicting emotions as I pondered the fact that these good-byes would not […]

In a recent yoga class, the focus was on the gate pose known in Sanskrit as Parighasana which is a deep side bend usually performed with one knee on the floor, the opposite leg outstretched and the torso bent toward the outstretched leg.  As we were practicing the pose the yoga teacher spoke about this […]