Creating a Career to Match Life’s Ages and Stages

Boomers are leaving behind the traditional image of retirement, the last third of life defined by saying goodbye to the workplace forever. We’re moving into a post-retirement era, less a model of disengagement from work and neighborhood to one of engagement in work and community. The returns on working longer are financial and emotional. Work represents both an income and a social environment. The logic of boomer engagement in the workplace is so powerful that it is likely to sweep aside many legal barriers and corporate practices that conspire to keep older workers from achieving their full potential.

The boomer realization that we’re working longer will also profoundly shape how younger generations think about their careers and their jobs. They’ll learn from boomers that they have time to experiment, to try different careers, to alternate the rhythm of their lives, sometimes pushing themselves deep into their careers and at other times exploring other meaningful opportunities.