Leisure and Recreation

Travel, golf, college classes, new friends, cruising, hiking, new interests, spas, reading the classics, exercise, motor homes, the grandkids and great-grandkids, second (and third) homes, etc., etc., etc.—you get the picture.

Boomers will redefine retirement, just as we redefined or greatly impacted all other facets of life. Solid dedication to the first two growth industries discussed above will provide greater flexibility than ever before to enjoy life in our Golden Years.

Boomers will travel the world as no group before them. The sharp rise in ownership of additional homes, timeshares, motor homes, etc. will continue.

More options will also be available for Boomers and older retirees to live close to downtown areas in larger cities as a means of having close access to museums, shopping, the theater, and restaurants.  Boomers will take advantage of such close proximity, while leaving the yard work or snow shoveling to someone else.

One major change that is now underway and will escalate in coming years in a big way is the idea of bridging between full-time employment and retirement.  Too many of us have seen a parent, family friend, or neighbor be forced to retire at age 65, when staying on the job was desirable.

Too many of us have seen skilled workers forced out at 65, only to soon re-emerge as a greeter at Wal-Mart or as one serving fries at a burger joint—not so in coming years.

Roughly 85% of Boomers say we never want to “retire,” but instead engage in a process where we work fewer hours in our skills area.  The reality today of the slowest projected growth of the U.S. labor force in history over the next 30 years will give older workers more bargaining clout than ever before.

Millions of Boomers will politely “inform” their employers that as they approach age 65 they will wish to work perhaps three days weekly, or only mornings, or two weeks on and two weeks off, for as long as they choose. Intelligent employers, facing the loss of valued employees, and with limited ability to easily replace talented workers leaving the company, will quietly agree to reasonable worker requests.

Those companies and public sector employers who wish to remain viable and competitive will by necessity soon modify their approach to flexible hours and part-time employment, even for senior people within the organization.  Those that do not will simply cease to exist.