By: ELOISE WALTON
WITH MORE than 3.3 million Britons expected to retire abroad by 2050 and Portugal having been rated by two independent surveys as the third most popular destination in the world, many realise before long that they have fallen into the retirement trap, leaving them without a sense of purpose in life.
To combat this downturn in retired people’s morale and give them a new lease of life, professional coach Stephanie Philp has flown in from her home in New Zealand to give her first course in the Algarve.
The Hotel Garbe in Armação de Pêra will be hosting Stephanie’s first two-day course in Portugal on November 11 and 12, entitled What’s Next, aimed at retired residents who have bought into the retirement myth.
“Following the baby boom, governments introduced retirement to combat the predicted lack of jobs for the young in the future, which has led to a generation of people expecting retirement at a certain age,” said Stephanie. “The problem is that we are meant to keep working, not necessarily in a job but with something that sustains us and gives us purpose.”
Inspiring
With a background in human resources management, Stephanie Philp heard about Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) in 1990 and was completely enthralled, later taking her Practitioner training in 1994.
“The work that I do is like a detective process, which involves fun activities aimed at finding out people’s dreams and talents,” said Stephanie. “In the end, we pull all of the threads together, and people go away from courses and sessions feeling very positive and inspired to achieve their newfound goals.”
According to Stephanie, many people look forward to retirement, and even early retirement, only to realise when they get there that it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. “People suddenly find themselves living a holiday lifestyle, which can lead to excessive drinking and a subsequent lack of confidence” said Stephanie. “This can lead to a vicious cycle of not knowing what to do next, going round in circles and losing more confidence in oneself.”
This specific course aims to inspire people to do something purposeful with their lives, whether it is going back to employment or explore a talent such as writing or other hobbies, as well as restore their self confidence, thereby reversing the vicious cycle.
“All that people need to bring with them is an open mind and a sense of fun,” said Stephanie.
After the course, participants will have the option of being coached by professional coach, Catherine Marechal. “This will help people to continue the momentum of the inspiration gained during the course and achieve their goals,” said Stephanie.
For more information about the What’s Next course, please visit the website, available in English, at www.metamorphosis.co.nz or contact Julie Adcock on 289 842 462 or email [email protected]
