Preparing for retirement
Preparing well for retirement means sorting out the paperwork, but also thinking about how you will spend your time, keep your relationships and give meaning to this new stage. The transition tends to feel calmer when it has been thought through a year or two ahead, starting from simple questions: what will I miss, what do I finally want to do, what would I like to pass on? This guide helps you answer them, one step at a time.
Why support matters at this moment
Work gives shape to the day, feeds a sense of identity and provides much of our social life. When all of that stops on the same day, many people feel an unexpected emptiness, even after looking forward to the moment for years. Having support helps you step back from your career, name what you are leaving and what you want to build, rather than letting the weeks fill up by chance. It is also a chance to tell the story of your working life and keep a record of it.
Signs that support would help you
- You feel uneasy about the first Monday without work, without quite knowing why.
- You find it hard to describe yourself other than through your job.
- You worry that your days will feel empty, or that you will spread yourself too thin.
- You have not yet talked with your partner about how you will share this new time together.
- You would like to pass on your experience but are unsure what form that could take.
Our advice, step by step
Start thinking about it a year or two ahead
Beyond the paperwork, ask yourself what really sustains you in your current job: contact with people, solving problems, feeling useful. Those needs do not vanish when you retire, so it helps to know in advance how you will meet them in other ways.
Take stock of your career
Write down the main stages of your working life, the people who mattered, the achievements and the difficult times. This helps you close a chapter with gratitude, and often reveals skills you can put to use elsewhere.
Create a new rhythm
The first weeks often feel like a holiday, and then the lack of structure can start to weigh on you. Give yourself a few regular anchors in the week, such as an activity, a commitment or a standing arrangement, while leaving room for the unexpected.
Keep up and renew your relationships
Your professional circle shrinks quickly once you leave. Stay in touch with the colleagues who matter to you, and open yourself to new circles: a local association, volunteering, a workshop or a club. Relationships grow more easily when you commit to something over time.
Talk it through as a couple and as a family
Retirement shifts the balance at home: more time in the house, new expectations, availability for grandchildren or for an ageing parent. Be clear about what you want and where your limits are before habits settle in by default.
Mark the transition
A leaving do, messages from colleagues, a collection of memories: marking the moment helps you turn the page. What people say about your career that day has real value and deserves to be kept.
Choose how you want to pass things on
Your experience can be useful to others: mentoring a colleague before you leave, volunteering, or writing your story for your children or grandchildren. Deciding what you want to pass on often gives direction to your first years of retirement.
Filomy by your side, at every moment that matters
The online guest book collects messages, photos, videos and voice notes from colleagues past and present, by link, QR code or WhatsApp, with no app or account. Contributions can then be printed as cards or a book.
Online guest book →The memory book lets several contributors tell the story of a career, or a life, chapter by chapter, and can then be printed.
Memory book →The free time capsule delivers a message written today in 1, 5 or 10 years: a place to set down your intentions as a new retiree and read them again later.
Time capsule →The Family wall gathers photos and news all year round, easy for older relatives to view and with no account needed for family members (by subscription), to stay close to children and grandchildren.
Family wall →
A tailored path
To go further, Olivier Paris, a coach and biographer, builds personalised programmes to help you prepare for and live the move into retirement. Trained in narrative storytelling, therapeutic writing and coaching, he helps you look back over your working life, draw out what matters to you and imagine what comes next. He also runs « life story » writing workshops in Marseille and the wider PACA region.
Build my path with Olivier →Filomy partner · coach and biographer · life-story writing workshops in Marseille and the PACA region
Frequently asked questions
When should you start preparing for retirement?
For the administrative side, contact your pension providers several months ahead. For the personal side (rhythm, plans, relationships), starting a year or two before you leave gives you time to reflect without pressure and to try out a few activities.
Is it normal to struggle at the start of retirement?
Yes, a period of drifting is common: losing your bearings, feeling less useful, missing colleagues. It often eases once you find a rhythm and some commitments. If the low mood persists or gets worse, talk to your GP or another health professional.
What can a coach do to help you prepare for retirement?
A coach does not replace a pensions adviser for questions about entitlements. They help you clarify what you want this stage to look like, identify your resources and build a plan that suits you. Coaching is not therapy: it starts from your goals and your own path.
How can you keep a record of your career?
You can gather colleagues' messages in an online guest book when you leave, then tell the main stages of your career in a memory book, printed for your family.