The What Now?Workshop
A couple in their sixties looking out over an open landscape at sunrise

Retirement workshops nationwide — for individuals and employers

Retirement Workshops in South Africa

You were somebody at work. Now the days are long and quiet.

What now?

You were prepared financially. Nobody prepared you emotionally for losing your title, your routine and your people in the same week. Across two 3-hour sessions, with others in exactly the same position, you start rebuilding a life that feels like yours again.

Choose your starting point+27 62 230 4940

Two ways in

Where are you standing right now?

The work is the same. What differs is who it is built around, how it is delivered and how it is priced.

What Kara offers

Six ways to do this work

Workshops, retreats, talks and one-on-one sessions — for individuals and for employers preparing retiring staff. Everything runs nationally, most often in Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Does this sound like you?

Retirement doesn’t only take away your job.

It takes your routine, your status, your daily company and your sense of being needed. Having enough money to retire and knowing how to live well in retirement are two very different things. These are the five things people tell us about most — and what we do about each one.

  • Identity

    “I was somebody at work. Now I'm nobody.”

    We separate who you are from what you did, and rebuild an identity that doesn't depend on a job title.

  • Structure

    “The days are long and they all look the same.”

    You leave with a realistic weekly shape of your own making — not a timetable someone handed you.

  • Purpose

    “I don't feel useful anymore.”

    We look at where your experience is genuinely needed, and how to contribute again without going back to work.

  • Relationships

    “We're together 24/7 and it's harder than we expected.”

    Honest tools for renegotiating space, routine and expectations at home after decades of separate days.

  • Isolation

    “I've lost my people, not just my job.”

    How to rebuild a social circle as an adult — and a room full of people doing the same thing on the day.

Retirement is not the end of your story. It is the beginning of a new chapter.

Kara Packman facilitating a What Now? Workshop session

Kara Packman — Master Neuro Linguistics Programming Practitioner

Who you’ll be spending the day with

About Kara Packman

Retirement should be the beginning of living well — not the beginning of feeling lost.

I'm Kara Packman, a Master Neuro Linguistics Programming Practitioner, and my work is with people moving through one of life's biggest transitions: retirement.

Most people spend decades preparing for retirement financially. Very little prepares us for the questions that arrive afterwards.

  • Who am I now?
  • What gives my life meaning?
  • Where do I fit?
  • What do I do with all this time?
  • What does a good life look like now?

Those questions deserve as much attention as the financial ones. My work is about helping people rediscover themselves beyond the roles, titles, routines and responsibilities that may have defined them for years. Retirement doesn't mean you stop being who you are — it means you have room to discover more of who you can be.

As a Master Neuro Linguistics Programming Practitioner, I use these principles to help people recognise the patterns, beliefs and ways of thinking that shape how they experience this next chapter. The approach is practical, thought-provoking and human. It isn't about telling you who to become; it's about making space to ask better questions, see new possibilities and choose the life you want to live.

Through workshops, talks, retreats and honest conversation, I help people work through the real shifts of retirement — identity, relationships, purpose, contribution, routine and change.

I believe you deserve to live well.

  • Not simply to retire well financially.
  • Not simply to keep busy.
  • Not simply to fill the hours.
  • But to have a life that still feels meaningful, connected, purposeful and uniquely yours.

You haven't spent your life becoming someone just to stop being that person when you retire. You are still you — and this may be your chance to finally discover what that means.

Speak to Kara

On YouTube

Words With The Wise

Words with the Wise is a YouTube channel focused on the real side of retirement and major life transition. Through honest conversations, practical guidance, personal development tools, and everyday insights, the channel helps people navigate life beyond work with greater purpose, confidence, connection, and enjoyment.

Learning how to truly live — not just retire.

Watch the channel

Topics covered

  • Identity
  • Lifestyle
  • Relationships
  • Wellbeing
  • Self-awareness
  • Living well

Because you still matter. You still have so much to contribute. And you deserve to live well for all of your days.

Before you book

Questions people ask

What actually happens?
Two 3-hour sessions across two days, in a small group. We work through the things that unsettle people most after work ends — identity, purpose and meaning, structure, home life and social connection — using practical exercises rather than lectures. You leave with notes, tools and a clear shape for your next few months.
Why two days instead of one?
Because it is a lot to process. Identity, purpose and managing your connections are heavy subjects, and covering them in one sitting is emotionally overwhelming for most people. Splitting the work over two days gives you a night to sit with the first half before we go deeper — that is where the real shifts happen.
Do I come alone or with my partner?
Either works. Many people come on their own; couples often come together because the change affects both of them. Tell us which you'd prefer when you enquire.
Is this therapy or counselling?
No. It's a practical personal development workshop. There is space for honesty, but the focus is on what you do next, not on clinical treatment. Kara is not a therapist or counsellor and does not offer therapy, counselling, diagnosis or clinical opinion.
What does it cost as an individual?
Promotional specials are available for individuals — ask us for the current rate when you enquire. The rate covers both sessions, materials and refreshments.
How is corporate pricing worked out?
Corporate workshops are quoted on demand and priced in bands by group size rather than per head: R18,000 for up to 10 people, R26,000 for 11–20, R33,000 for 21–30, R45,000 for 31–50, and a volume rate above that. Every band covers the full programme on site. Tell us your numbers in your enquiry and we'll come back with the band and a written quote.
Why is it quoted on demand rather than a fixed list price?
Because two things change the real cost of running it: how many people you are putting through, and where they are. Once we know your headcount, your location and how you want the two sessions scheduled around shifts or diaries, we can quote firmly against a band instead of padding a public price to cover every scenario.
What does the fee include?
Professionally facilitated onsite workshop, guided discussions and practical exercises, emotional wellbeing and retirement transition tools, printed or digital participant materials, interactive reflection activities, and facilitated Q&A. Programme design and preparation around your group are included. Venue, catering and travel outside Gauteng are quoted separately where they apply.
How does group size affect the rate?
It lowers it. Almost all of the cost is fixed — preparation, programme design, travel and two facilitated days cost the same whether eight people are in the room or thirty — so each additional person absorbs part of a cost already committed. Ten people works out at R1,800 each; thirty is roughly R1,100 each for identical content, facilitation and materials. Above ten you move into the next band rather than paying a per-person add-on.
Where does it take place?
Open workshops run nationally, most often at venues around Johannesburg and Pretoria. Corporate workshops are run on site at your own offices or venue.
How big is the group?
Open groups are capped at 30 people so there is still room for honest conversation. Corporate and organisational groups can be any size — we shape the sessions around your numbers.
We're an employer. What does this look like for our staff?
You already prepare people financially for retirement; this prepares them emotionally. We run the same programme on site at your offices, as two 3-hour sessions across two days, for any group size. For management, executives and long-standing employees, the five-day Retreat Experience takes the same work further at four and five star venues.
How do I book?
Send the enquiry form on this page, or call or WhatsApp +27 62 230 4940. We'll confirm your seat and payment details.
How does payment work?
There is no online checkout. Once we've confirmed your seat, we email you an invoice with our banking details and a reference. Payment is by electronic bank transfer (EFT) in South African Rand, and your place is held once it reflects. Any questions about an invoice, email wave@karapackman.co.za.
How does payment and invoicing work?
Nothing is paid on the website. We send a written quote for your band, and on acceptance we invoice your company on your usual purchase order or reference, payable by EFT in South African Rand. Terms and any deposit are set out on the quote. Send billing details or PO requirements to wave@karapackman.co.za.
How is the Retreat Experience different?
The retreat runs five days at four and five star venues only — arrive Monday, leave Friday morning. Mornings are workshop sessions, with optional Pilates or yoga beforehand; afternoons are experiences that anchor the work — one-on-one sessions, animal interactions such as elephants, kayaking, hiking, safari drives and spa time. It's offered to corporates at management and executive level and to long-standing employees, and to individuals in the same format.
I'm not retired yet — is it too early?
No. People approaching retirement often get the most out of it, because they arrive with a plan instead of a gap.

Get in touch

Tell us who this is for.

Whether it is a seat for yourself or a programme for your staff, send us your details and we'll come back with dates, format and cost. No obligation, no pressure.

Call+27 62 230 4940WhatsAppMessage usEmailwave@karapackman.co.zaYouTubeWords with the Wise
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Enquire about a seat

Tell us a little and we’ll come back to you with dates, venue and cost. No obligation.

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