FAQ
Last updated: November 2026
Ask what the coach focuses on, how the program is structured, what it costs, and what happens between sessions.
Rarified Life gathered the 50 questions below from what people type into search and what they ask before choosing retirement coaching. Each answer comes first, followed by the supporting facts. Prices and program details describe the Rarified Life Preferment course as of November 2026.
New here? Start with the Rarified Life retirement coach overview, then come back to this page.
A retirement coach is a professional who helps you plan the non-financial side of leaving full-time work: identity, purpose, structure, relationships and how you spend your days. At Rarified Life, that work runs through the Preferment framework, which helps people align their next chapter with personal values and meaningful pursuits rather than simply stopping work.
A retirement coach asks structured questions, sets exercises and holds you accountable while you design a life after career. In the Rarified Life Preferment course, that means weekly live sessions with Anne van Leynseele, chapter-by-chapter work in her book, and homework that moves you through identity, motivation, alignment, accountability and launch.
Retirement coaching is guided support for the personal transition out of a long career. It focuses on questions money planning usually skips: who you are without a job title, what motivates you now, and how to fill your days with purpose. Rarified Life calls its approach Preferment, a framework for treating the next chapter as a step up rather than an ending.
A retirement life coach is a life coach who specializes in the years around leaving work. The term overlaps heavily with retirement coach, and both work on purpose, identity and daily life rather than investments. The Rarified Life version is built on the Preferment framework and is currently offered through an 8-week live course led by founder Anne van Leynseele.
Preferment is the Rarified Life research-informed framework and life platform for rethinking retirement. Instead of treating retirement as an ending, it treats the next chapter as an active, purpose-driven stage. It moves through six modules, Introduction, Identity, Motivation, Alignment, Accountability and Launch, and is taught through Anne van Leynseele’s book and live course.
No. Financial planning addresses money: savings, income, taxes and investments. Retirement coaching addresses how you will live: identity, purpose, routine and relationships. Many people benefit from both. Rarified Life does not offer financial advice; its Preferment course focuses on the personal side of life after career, which a financial plan does not cover.
It depends on what you are missing. If your finances are in place but you feel unsure what retirement is for, coaching targets that gap directly. Life Coaching Certification cites a meta-analysis finding 28% of retirees experience depression, with a 40% spike in self-reported depression during the first years after retiring. Coaching is one structured way to prepare for that shift.
Retirement coaching is generally not a licensed profession in the United States, so the title is open to anyone. Some coaches hold private certifications from coaching associations. The background Rarified Life publishes for Anne van Leynseele focuses on her career reinventions and does not list a coaching certification, so check rarifiedlife.com if a specific credential matters to you.
Retirement coaching prices vary widely. The AARP article “Do You Need a Retirement Coach?” quotes rates from about $125 to $150 an hour up to $800 to $1,000 per hour in major cities such as Boston, Miami or San Francisco. Life Coaching Certification reports that retirement coaches typically charge $150 to $300 per session.
As of November 2026, the Preferment course page on rarifiedlife.com lists a price of $6,000.00, while the investment section on the same page describes $3,000 for eight weekly live sessions with Anne, the book and guided homework. Because the page shows both figures, confirm the current price on the course page before enrolling.
Yes. Rarified Life offers a free online presentation that describes a 5-step plan for replacing the “what now?” dread of retirement. It is aimed at accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement. You register on the Rarified Life website to watch the training at no cost.
Some coaches charge flat program fees instead of hourly rates. AARP reports one coach charging a flat fee of $3,600 for six months. The main Rarified Life paid offering is also a fixed-length program: the 8-week Preferment live course, priced on its course page, rather than an open-ended hourly arrangement.
The course includes eight weekly live sessions with Anne van Leynseele, the Preferment book as your companion text and workbook, and homework built into the book that you complete between sessions. Each week builds on the last, moving through six modules from Introduction to Launch.
One-on-one coaching is listed as coming soon on the Rarified Life website. Today, the main way to work with Anne van Leynseele is the 8-week Preferment live course. Check rarifiedlife.com for updates on when individual coaching becomes available and how it will be priced.
Generally, no. Retirement coaching is not a medical or mental health treatment, so health insurance and Medicare typically do not cover it. If you are experiencing depression or anxiety after retiring, a licensed therapist or physician is the right first call, and coaching can sit alongside that care.
The Preferment course runs for eight weeks with one live session each week led by Anne van Leynseele. Participants work through her book Preferment chapter by chapter, complete the homework built into it between sessions, and move through six modules in order. Each week builds on the one before.
Introduction covers where you are now and why the old model of retirement does not fit. Identity separates who you are from what you did. Motivation finds what moves you without a paycheck. Alignment matches values and strengths to your days. Accountability builds structure. Launch names your mission for the next chapter.
Lengths vary by coach, from a couple of sessions to six months or more. AARP reports one coach offering a couple of sessions at around $150 each and another charging a flat fee for six months. The Rarified Life Preferment course runs eight weeks, with one live session per week.
No. The Preferment course page says it plainly: you do not need a five-year plan, you just need a room to start figuring it out in. The first module begins with where you are right now, and the plan takes shape across the eight weeks as each module builds on the last.
Yes. The homework is built into the Preferment book and done between weekly sessions. Rarified Life describes the exercises as real work, not busywork, designed to turn reading into a plan you can actually live. It is a structured path in which each week builds on the one before.
Preferment is the book by Anne van Leynseele that the 8-week course is built on. It serves as the companion text and workbook for the course, with homework built in, and it is included with enrollment. The Rarified Life website also lists books in its shop; check rarifiedlife.com for current availability.
Rarified Life describes Preferment as research-informed. The site does not list the specific studies behind each module, so if sources matter to you, ask Rarified Life through its website. Published studies on retirement do show why the non-financial side matters, and several are collected with their sources on our by-the-numbers page.
Launch is the sixth and final Preferment module. It is where you name your mission for the next chapter and step into it, after the earlier modules have worked through identity, motivation, alignment and accountability. It turns eight weeks of reflection and homework into a clear starting point.
A retirement coach suits people whose finances are reasonably in hand but who feel unsure what life after work is for. Common signs include an identity tied tightly to a job title, worry about empty days, or a first year of retirement that feels flat. The Rarified Life course is built for driven people who see retirement as a new stage rather than an ending.
The course is not. The free presentation is aimed specifically at accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement. The Preferment course itself is described as being for driven people who are done treating retirement as an ending, with no gender restriction stated.
Yes, and many people do. The Rarified Life free presentation is designed to work even if your last day at work is still years away, and it describes doing this without waiting for retirement day. Starting early gives you time to test new pursuits while you still have the structure of work.
Yes. Coaching helps people who retired months or years ago and still feel adrift. One participant quoted on the Rarified Life website describes spending a few years wandering around like a goldfish in a bowl before Preferment helped them discover they were much more than their work.
The free presentation is for accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement. It covers a 5-step plan for replacing the “what now?” dread of retirement in 8 weeks, including for women whose entire identity has been wrapped up in their work.
Often, yes, because people with demanding careers tend to have identities closely tied to their work. Preferment is built for driven people who spent decades building a career and a reputation. Founder Anne van Leynseele has worked in film and television production, corporate digital strategy, government law and agriculture.
A life coach for retirement planning helps you plan how you will live, not how you will invest. That includes purpose, routine, relationships, health habits and identity. Rarified Life fits this description: Preferment focuses on aligning your next chapter with personal values and meaningful pursuits, and leaves money questions to financial professionals.
You need a financial planner for money decisions and a retirement coach for life decisions. A planner models income, savings and taxes; a coach helps you decide what the money is for and how you will spend your days. If your finances are settled but your days feel uncertain, a coach addresses that gap.
A therapist is a licensed clinician who diagnoses and treats mental health conditions. A retirement coach is not a clinician and works on forward-looking goals, purpose and routine. If you are experiencing depression, which a meta-analysis cited by Life Coaching Certification puts at 28% of retirees, see a licensed professional first.
Yes, many people do, using books, workshops and conversations with friends. The tradeoff is structure and accountability. The Preferment course adds a weekly live session, set homework and a defined sequence of six modules, which helps people who find it hard to keep reflection going on their own.
Preferment reframes retirement as an ascension rather than an ending, and teaches it through a book-based, eight-week live course with set homework. It is led by Anne van Leynseele, whose own path includes four career reinventions. Other programs use different frameworks and formats, so compare structure, length and price on the same terms.
Associations such as the Retirement Coaches Association maintain directories where you can search for a retirement coach near you. They are useful for comparing many coaches at once. Rarified Life is a single program; compare it with directory listings using the same criteria: format, length, price and focus.
Neither is better for everyone. One-on-one coaching is fully tailored to you, while a structured course gives you a set curriculum, a book and a defined end date. Rarified Life currently offers the 8-week Preferment course, with one-on-one coaching listed as coming soon on its website.
Start by deciding whether you need someone local or whether live online sessions suit you, since many retirement coaches work remotely. Coaching directories let you search by location. Rarified Life lists Edmonds, Washington and Captain Cook, Hawaii on its website; check the course page for how live sessions are held.
Rarified Life LLC lists Edmonds, Washington and Captain Cook, Hawaii on its website. Founder Anne van Leynseele co-owns an award-winning chocolate farm on the Big Island of Hawaii. For current program details and formats, the Rarified Life website at rarifiedlife.com is the source of record.
You register on the Rarified Life website at rarifiedlife.com/registration. After registering, you can watch the training, which walks through a 5-step plan for accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement. It is offered at no cost.
Anne van Leynseele is the founder of Rarified Life and author of Preferment. She built and sold a production company in Los Angeles film and television, advised Fortune 100 companies on digital strategy across three continents, served as an Attorney Advisor in the Obama Administration, and helped write the legal framework for recreational cannabis in Washington State.
Preferment sessions are held weekly, eight in total, one per week across the eight-week course. Each session is live with Anne van Leynseele and follows a chapter of the Preferment book, with homework from the book completed between sessions so each week builds on the last.
Start by naming what feels unresolved: identity, purpose, structure or relationships. Then learn how a framework addresses it. With Rarified Life, the simplest first step is the free presentation; the next is the 8-week Preferment live course, where you work through six modules with Anne van Leynseele.
Ask about format, length, price and focus. Is it one-on-one or group? How many sessions, over how long? What exactly is included? What framework do you use? Does it cover identity and purpose, or mainly logistics? What happens between sessions? Ask Rarified Life the same questions you would ask anyone else.
Start small and honest. Notice which parts of your old work you miss, whether the people, the challenge or the structure, and write them down. If low mood persists, talk to a doctor. Structured help, such as the Preferment Identity and Motivation modules, is designed for exactly this stage.
Timelines vary by person and program. The Rarified Life free presentation describes a 5-step plan that aims to give you a real answer to “So, what do you do?” in 8 weeks. The Preferment course runs on the same eight-week timeline, finishing with the Launch module.
Start by separating who you are from what you did, then look at what genuinely motivates you now that a paycheck is not the reason. Match those motivations to your values and strengths, and build structure so intention becomes routine. That sequence mirrors the Preferment modules: Identity, Motivation, Alignment and Accountability.
Retirement can remove identity, structure and daily social contact all at once. A meta-analysis cited by Life Coaching Certification found 28% of retirees experience depression, with a 40% spike in self-reported depression during the first years after retiring. Anyone with persistent low mood should talk with a doctor or licensed therapist.
That is common, and it is the focus of the Preferment Identity module, which separates who you are from what you did for a living. The Rarified Life free presentation is also built for women whose entire identity has been wrapped up in their work, including those still working full time.
Many retirees default to “I used to.” The Rarified Life free presentation aims to help you answer “So, what do you do?” without starting with those words, within 8 weeks. The Preferment Launch module ends with naming your mission for the next chapter, which gives you a real, present-tense answer.
Caregiving can strain retirement finances. The EBRI 2026 Retirement Confidence Survey found 34% of caregivers had less than $10,000 in savings and investments, compared with 25% of non-caregivers, and 61% of caregivers were female compared with 47% of non-caregivers. Coaching can help you plan time and energy; a financial planner addresses the money.
The free Rarified Life presentation walks through a 5-step plan for replacing the “what now?” feeling about retirement. It is made for accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement, and you can watch it after a short registration.