Book Review: Encore by Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons

Reviewed by Kathy L. Brown

Accessible, practical, and important—a terrific guide for corporate retirees

Encore guides the reader toward their own unique, personalized plan for a fulfilling transition to the next chapter of their life: retirement.

The personal story of Encore follows the author moving from an exciting but high-stress career in corporate law to more family-friendly work. But it wasn’t easy for her. 

“As I began to unpack all this during early-morning meetings with my French press and my journal, I could see that I had conflated who I was with what I had accomplished. I had merged the external proof of my success with my sense of self-worth…a ‘human doing’ instead of a human being.” 

In studying social psychology about making successful career and lifestyle changes, she found a new calling. She realized that her life’s mission was helping others make career transitions and that what she had learned could assist retirees. Thus, her counseling business was born. 

This book will empower its readers to control every aspect of their departure from corporate life: 

• assuring their legacy at their former company 
• planning retirement projects that sing to them 
• deciding where to live
• coordinating their retirement with other family members 

Encore explores the anxiety and even anger many people feel toward the idea of retirement and the identity crisis that can hit the high achiever separated from their most important descriptor: job title. 

“When we experience a significant loss, especially one we do not choose or control, we often chafe under a sense of injustice that something we treasure has been taken away from us. This sort of loss can manifest in angry feeling like resentment, frustration, or even rage, as we struggle to come to terms with the unfairness of the situation.” 

The book’s audience finds purpose in working hard on important projects. Encore explores how retirement can continue to fulfill that core desire. The book wraps up with a six-month (but customizable) checklist of practical matters to help the soon-to-be retiree stage a graceful exit.

The tone and style of Encore is conversational and engaging. The author shares her personal experiences as well as gives examples from composite “typical” clients and a few actual clients who agreed to be identified. These testimonials validate the research-based advice and clarify how the methods described will play out in real life.

While the reader can examine their own deepest desires and aspirations using discernment questions asked of the author’s clients, there were times when I wished for some workbook sections with guided activities, journaling, or discussion prompts.

The book is geared toward a rare type of retiree: they were invested in their corporate culture and accustomed to high-stakes endeavors. But that makes it all that more effective for its audience. These people worked long hours for many years—not in dead-end jobs or physically difficult labor—but rather on exciting, mentally challenging, high-stakes projects. For which they were well-remunerated. Thus, the book doesn’t address the economic concerns of the typical retiree. And while wealthy retirees can and do have health issues and obligations to their aging parents, children, and grandchildren, those challenges are not Encore’s focus. 

Readers interested in creatively strategizing their next stage of life will find this book most helpful. Encore’s optimistic attitude and career counseling information will be useful to just about everyone.  

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