Reinvention at any age
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Reinventing yourself after retirement means building your next chapter from the strengths you already have, not starting over from a blank page.
Purpose After Work sees reinvention as a structured process rather than a leap of faith. Preferment from Rarified Life was created by Anne van Leynseele, who has lived four reinventions herself, and is designed to help you run your own.
Start from what you know you are good at, pick one direction to test for 30 days and build a small routine around it. At 70 you bring something younger people cannot: decades of judgment, relationships and pattern recognition. Reinvention at this stage is less about proving yourself and more about choosing where that experience goes.
Keep the first test small and reversible. Mentor one person before launching a program. Write one essay before committing to a book. Volunteer one morning a week before joining a board. Small tests give you real information about what energizes you, without the pressure of getting it right the first time.
Accountability matters more than age. A weekly commitment to someone else, whether a group, a client or a coach, is what turns an idea into a lived routine.
Each move carried something forward: storytelling, strategy, law, building. Reinvention rarely discards the past. It redirects your strengths toward a new problem worth solving.
That is the thinking behind Preferment’s Motivation and Alignment modules: find what actually moves you now, then match your values and strengths to how you spend your days.
List the skills and qualities that made you effective. Ask three people who know you well to add to it.
Pick the direction that both uses those strengths and genuinely interests you. One is enough to start.
Plan specific actions for a month. Preferment's 30-day planner exists for exactly this step.
If the test fits, name your mission for this chapter and commit to it publicly.
If you want a structured room to work this out in, start with the free Rarified Life presentation. Preferment’s view is simple: you do not need a five-year plan, just a place to start figuring it out.
Reinvent yourself at 70 by starting from your strengths, not from a blank page. List what people have always come to you for, pick one direction to test for 30 days and build a small routine around it. Anne van Leynseele has lived four reinventions across film, law, government and farming.
More answers in the FAQYes. Retirement is often the first time in decades that you have the time and freedom to choose your work and projects for their own sake. Reinvention works best with structure: a clear sense of identity, a reason that moves you and a routine that holds you accountable.
More answers in the FAQAnswer with what you are doing and why, not with your old title. For example: "I'm building a mentoring program for young lawyers" or "I'm writing a book about my years in film." The free presentation focuses on getting a real answer to that question in 8 weeks.
More answers in the FAQYes, many people retire at 63. Social Security benefits taken before full retirement age, which is 67 for people born in 1960 or later, are permanently reduced, and Medicare does not start until 65, so plan health coverage for the gap. Check your own figures at ssa.gov.
More answers in the FAQTo retire at 55 you usually need savings to bridge the years before Social Security, which starts at 62 at the earliest, and Medicare, which starts at 65. Plan health coverage and income first with a financial professional. Then plan your time: an early retirement means more years to fill with purpose.
More answers in the FAQPreferment was created by its founder and built on a book. The founder built and sold a Los Angeles film and television production company, advised Fortune 100 companies on digital strategy across three continents, served as an Attorney Advisor in the Obama Administration, and co-owns an award-winning chocolate farm on the Big Island of Hawaii.
More answers in the FAQQuestions about the free webinar or the Preferment course go straight to the Rarified Life team, with phone support answered as soon as possible.
