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The New Rules of Retirement

Let me say something that might sting a little. The retirement you were sold, the one with the gold watch and the quiet garden and the gentle fade into the background, was never really about you, it was about getting out of the way, clearing the desk, making room for the next person in line and somewhere along the way we all just... agreed to it. Well. Not anymore. Because retirement isn’t a finish line, and it isn’t a reward for endurance. It definitely isn’t a polite shuffl

Feb 196 min read

Your Time Portfolio: The Investment Strategy No One Tells You About Before Retirement

For thirty years, David checked his pension statements religiously. He knew his projected retirement income down to the pound. He’d diversified his investments, maxed out his contributions, and planned for inflation. By every financial metric, he’d done everything right. Six months into retirement, he sat in his living room at 10 AM on a Tuesday, financially secure and absolutely miserable. “I just don’t know what to do with myself,” he told me over coffee. “I thought I’d lo

Feb 107 min read

The Frustration No One Warns You About

My father-in-law is one of the sharpest people I know. At 80, he can debate politics, recall details from conversations we had months ago, and spot inconsistencies in arguments before I’ve finished making them. His mind hasn’t left him. But last month, he sat at his kitchen table with a court summons in his hands, and I watched something break. It wasn’t the £100 fine that broke him. It wasn’t even the speeding ticket… he’d owned that mistake immediately, paid it the day the

Feb 46 min read

The Four C's of a Fulfilling Retirement

When it comes to planning retirement or the second half of life, I often say things that surprise people. One such thing came out of my mouth last week when I was in conversation over a coffee with an attendee of a workshop I was delivering called ‘Designing Your Second Act’ “Most people don’t struggle in retirement because they’ve stopped working. They struggle because a whole lot of things they never noticed propping them up suddenly vanish.” Stuff like routine, relevance,

Jan 264 min read

A Christmas Carol of Retirement

Christmas is a funny time. Everyone bangs on about joy and gratitude and slowing down, while simultaneously stress-buying gifts, eating like they’re preparing for hibernation, and arguing with family members they’ve been politely avoiding since 1997. And retirement? Retirement is the same. It’s sold as this magical, peaceful, twinkly destination. But when people actually arrive, it’s often quieter than expected. Weirder, and faintly unsettling, like when the tree lights go ou

Dec 12, 20254 min read

Why We Now Buy Water and Call Walking Exercise — And What It Means for Your Retirement

The Absurdity Dialled Up Imagine walking into a pub in 1975 and announcing you’ve just spent £2.50 on water, you’ d be laughed out the door. Probably followed by someone shouting, “Do you need a lie-down, mate?” And if you bragged about hitting 10,000 steps? Someone would pat your shoulder and ask if you were training for a moon landing. But now? We’ve built entire lifestyles around things our grandparents did without a second thought. We’ve taken life’s simplest acts, drink

Dec 2, 20254 min read

The Things You Miss About Work That You’ll Never Admit Out Loud

There’s a strange moment that happens a few months after you leave work. Someone asks, “Are you enjoying retirement?” And you say the line you’ve rehearsed since Day One: “Yeah, it’s great! Loving the freedom.” But inside? There’s a tiny voice whispering something you’d never dare say in polite company: “God… I actually miss bits of it.” You don’t miss the late nights, the office politics, or Brenda from HR.But you miss things you didn’t realise were holding your life togethe

Nov 17, 20253 min read

Few and Deep: The Retirement Lens That Changes Everything

Retirement is often pitched as the ultimate all-you-can-eat buffet. Travel here, try that, learn this, join them. Do more, see more, be...

Sep 9, 20253 min read

The Pace of Progress Is Breaking Us

We humans are no strangers to change. We have adapted and evolved through ice ages, plagues, wars, revolutions, and the invention of...

Jul 21, 20255 min read

The Fragile Decade: Retirement’s Danger Zone

There’s a chapter in life that rarely gets the attention it deserves. It’s not midlife. It’s not old age. It’s the blurry, emotionally charged, identity-shifting zone that sits five years before and five years after retirement. I call it The Fragile Decade. This is the decade where everything is up for grabs… purpose, routine, identity, relationships, health, and, yes, money.

Jun 20, 20253 min read