As a former university lecturer, writing this my fifth book came relatively easily. Distilling the most valuable insights of my journey from benefit single mother to non-traditionally retired property investor and business owner was much harder.

There is little doubt that we are living longer and the concept of retirement needs redefining. Unlike our grandparents, who collected their pension for a few years before passing away, we have got decades worth of productive life, and a fair share of fun, to plan for.

I recognised through personal experience that our futures are bounded only by our imaginations, and limited by our power to finance our dreams. I want to help readers identify their ideal ‘fourth age’ that period when they stop working and start experiencing their full potential, now when they still have time.

The immediate goal of the book is to help business owners and employees alike realise they can shape their futures and not conform to a traditional retirement, often of boredom, loneliness or even elder-poverty. It’s no wonder so many people dread or are resistant to the ideal of “retirement”.

The book provides the practical steps to help the reader imagine their potential future, but then avoids the dry and off-putting process of being forced to save. It is still about living life now but with a clearer purpose in place.

The end result for the reader will be the creation of a life style in which they can relax and spend time and money on what matters to them, safe in the knowledge that their overheads are taken care of, and they have a contingency fund for when they need more care.

On a practical level writing a book raises your profile, building credibility and attracting your ideal clients. On a personal and business level the writing process clarifies your thoughts, extracts your insights and helps you create a better solution for your reader.

It took a dramatic shift in my life, brought on through the early onset of arthritis and 4 subsequent major operations in 2018, to realise that we all need to prepare for our older age now before it’s too late. It was only through the process of writing the book that I have been able to articulate this concept of a Non-Traditional Retirement. This is an opportunity to change the dialogue and I hope redefine the future to one where everyone can create a positive legacy rather than stress over the balance of the Wills.