Presentations, Seminars, and Workshops

Retirement

Free at last!  Now what?

According to the Life Events Scale which ranks forty-two life events from most stressful (death of a spouse) to least stressful (getting a parking ticket), retirement ranks tenth.

Topics in this seminar include:

• How to create a support system
• Ways to maintain a sense of worth:  establishing a new identity after retirement
• Bored to death is not just a figure of speech
• The importance of now
• “Boomerang” kids:  what to do when the nest won’t stay empty
• How to reject negative attitudes about aging - especially your own

Relationships

Do I Know You?

We spend our early lives together raising kids, establishing careers and creating homes.  We stay so busy with daily activities that it is not unusual for couples to interact only a few hours per week and even that snippet of time is often devoted to problem solving. When we retire and have unstructured choices about how to spend our time, we may feel as if we are living with a stranger.

Topics in this seminar include:

• How to resolve conflicts about $$$
• Finding equality:  Rethinking “traditional” chores and duties
• Overcoming resentment
• Reconciling dreams and reality
• What to do when one wants to travel the world and the other wont travel farther than the couch

Single Again

Whether we lose a life partner through death or through divorce, as our age increases so does the possibility we will find ourselves living alone.

Topics in this seminar include:

• Dating after 50:  the agony and the ecstasy
• Intimacy:  the first time never gets easier
• Things to consider before remarrying
• Dealing with resistance from your “kids”

Personal Growth and Development

Enough!

You have choices.  And that’s enough said about this seminar.

Topics in this seminar include:

• Waiting
• Depending on other people
• Expecting someone to change
• Clutter
• Time invested
• Negative thinking
• Abuse
• Eating too much
• Drinking too much
• Saying too much
• Procrastinating
• Being afraid
• Being disorganized
• Worrying
• Time spent in the past
• Time spent in the future

Aging and Eldercare

When Will it be My Turn?

When will it be my turn to:

1. Care for my own aging parents and/or spouse?  (Anticipating caregiving)
2. Do what I want to do?  (The search for meaning and personal fulfillment)
3. Need help caring for myself?  (Anticipating our own aging) 

The goals of this seminar are:

• To dispel myths about aging
• To change attitude from one of hopelessness and helplessness to one of hopefulness and strength
• To learn ways to better “fill our cups” so they remain full for others as well as ourselves

Caregiver Support Group

This workshop is divided into six sessions and can be offered in a variety of formats.

Session 1:  The Search for Meaning:  Keeping a Full Cup

Discussion of wellness and the need for appropriate self-care for the caregiver.

Session 2:  Guilt:  The Tie That Binds…And Gags

Teaches coping skills that improve handling of emotionally charged situations.

Session 3:  Options

Assessment of personal, familial and community resources for eldercare.

Session 4:  Getting Off the Family Merry-Go-Round

Identifies the effects of illness and long-term disability on family relationships.

Session 5:  Games Old People Play

Participants will learn to distinguish normal from pathological aging and ways to cope with unreasonable behaviors.

Session 6:  A Great Age

Increased knowledge of normal aging better prepares us for our own aging and increases empathy for family members who have arrived at that stage before us.

Life Stories

Writing Your Life Story

Sometimes all we need to write our stories is a gentle push.

This workshop will cover:

• It’s your story: tell it your way
• Ways to organize your story
• Getting it on paper:  Keeping a writing schedule
• Dealing with distractions
• If in doubt, take it out
• How to spice things up with description and dialogue

Financial Literacy

Investing Starting From Scratch

If you know little (or nothing) about investing or if you are struggling and frustrated with financial jargon, the place to start is at the beginning.

In this workshop you will learn:

• What assets and liabilities are 
• How to calculate your net worth 
• What a portfolio is 
• The two ways (yes, only two) to make money from investing 
• Your investment choices and things to consider before making them 
• Why the stock market goes up and down so much 
• Why “Don’t keep all your eggs in one basket” is still good advice 
• Why there’s no such thing as a safe investment 
• Why not investing is also risky 
• Compounding:  The power of a penny

The Times They Are A-Changin’

Do you ever wonder how planning for retirement got so complicated?  If you don’t remember your parents dealing with this - you’re right - things are different now.

In this workshop you will learn:

• What happened to “traditional” retirement 
• That “traditional” retirement is a myth 
• Where 401(k) s came from 
• The difference between a defined benefit plan (the way things used to be) and defined contribution plans (like 401(k) s) 
• The impact Baby Boomers are likely to have as they begin to retire 
• Why it is risky to depend on Social Security for retirement funding 
• Why women are at greater risk than men are 

Getting Out - and Staying Out - of Debt

Our consumer-driven culture has made America into a nation of debtors.  If you are drowning in debt or struggling to plug the holes in your bucket, this workshop is for you.

In this workshop you will learn:

• How to create your own debt payment plan 
• How to deal with creditors 
• Why borrowing from your retirement plan is a terrible idea 
• How to monitor your credit 
• Why you do not want a big tax refund check 
• How to stay out of debt 
• What your children really want