There are some baby boomers who do not equate retirement only with playing golf and traveling. There are some boomers who want to do more in retirement than merely enjoy the fruits of their labor.
It is important, yes, to be financially secure and to plan properly for retirement, says Joseph Sturniolo, an RIA and founder of Denver-based Joseph S. Sturniolo & Associates, but the period after working full time can and should also be an inspirational phase of life, one in which people should dare to discover, or rediscover, their passions and see them to fruition. "About 10 years ago, I realized that financial planning wasn't all that I wanted to do for my clients," Sturniolo says. "While they were likely to be prepared financially for their retirement lives, I wanted them to also have something of value, something that would give purpose to their lives."
Spurred by client interest and his own questioning, Sturniolo, a rep with Geneos Wealth Management, thus created what he calls "The Transition Formula," a program designed to steer interested clients toward a deeper, richer quality of life in retirement by unlocking their passions and improving the lives of others.
The program has three stages: The "Life-Vision Articulator" phase, in which clients are guided toward creating a direction for their lives; the "Financial Life Strategist Phase," where they improve the efficiency of their resources through careful financial planning; and finally, the "ROAR" phase, in which clients allow their passions to guide their activities.
Thus far, clients who have participated in ROAR (www.roar-in.com)–a three-day workshop with a fee separate from Sturniolo's other services–have built a community shelter for battered women, developed a hands-on program for foster children, and created an organization for orphans in Africa.
