What do baby boomers hate about being baby boomers?
Their age.
“Arthritis,” “aches and pains, “facing mortality,” were some of the comments tossed out by a focus group composed of nine 50- and 60-somethings.
What do they love about being boomers?
Their age.
They have lived through at least six decades straddling two centuries and two millennia.
“I love living through the history. We were shaped by the wisdom of our experience,” said David Loar, a 67-year-old retired pastor.
The focus group was one of four hosted by the Akron Beacon Journal and Leadership Akron and funded by the Knight Foundation. Along with representatives from Generation X (currently ages 36-50) and millennials (18-35), the groups shared how they view themselves and each other, with a special focus on exploring who will lead our communities, businesses and nonprofits in the coming years.
Participants were granted anonymity to encourage openness, and some agreed to be named. The sessions were facilitated by researcher Alice Rodgers.
While some young movers and shakers are anxious for the country’s ruling generation to ride off into the sunset, retirement is still just a dream for most boomers.
It will take another 14 years before they all pass the Medicare age of 65, and concerns about the stability of Social Security and escalating health care costs may delay retirement even longer.
In the meantime, the workforce will have to keep juggling what is arguably the widest generation gap in human history.
Its oldest workers grew up when TVs were black and white with five channels, phones never left the room to which they were attached, and it was impossible to bake a potato in less than an hour. Its youngest workers only know a life where Earth’s collective knowledge is carried in their pockets.
Boomers admit they might be moving a bit slow in the fast-paced world.
If someone proposes forming a six-month committee to study something, you can bet it’s a boomer. The generation’s need to consider every possible outcome before formulating a step-by-step plan for progress tests the patience of younger folks.
“We think much longer than younger people do, almost to the point of analysis paralysis,” said a nonprofit officer. “The younger generation, they’re quick to just go find an answer on the computer and we’re still in meetings. We’ll meet to death.”
Still, there is much value in having a generation that insists on thinking things through before acting.
Loar thinks of his parents living through the Depression and World War II, as well as his generation’s own tumultuous Vietnam era.
“That’s probably why we look at the risks. We see what the pitfalls are,” Loar said.
Boomers were the first to begin tolerating divorce, homosexuality and interracial marriage.
They worshipped rock ’n’ roll, fought the establishment, protested war and preached free love.
They also marched for civil rights and fought for women’s equality, although they ultimately fell far short of Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of integration and left many glass ceilings unshattered.
Their own social circles tend to be homogenous, and the boomer-dominated world still is overwhelmingly powered by white males.
Still, they’d like a little credit for the diverse relationships and broad opportunities that young people enjoy today.
“All the things kids can do now is a result of people fighting to change” laws and perceptions decades ago, an attorney said.
Retirement may be years away for most boomers, but it’s definitely on their minds. And when they do walk away from their posts, the region may find itself with a new volunteer force.
“Most of us will have an opportunity to retire while we’re still healthy, so legacy becomes an issue. You’ve done the job, you’ve raised a family, now you start thinking more about what do I leave behind,” said Horace Highland, a 62-year-old health insurance manager.
As the last generation where many have pensions to supplement their incomes, “we’ll be able to do things just out of a passion for it because we no longer have to worry about whether this is going to sustain our lifestyle,” he said.
And with no further need to pad resumes, they’ll dirty their hands.
“Working in the nonprofit world, oftentimes a volunteer will say I want to give back, but I don’t want to do what I did professionally. I don’t want to help you make decisions. I want to pack food bags,” said a consultant.
Gen X about boomers
America’s 75 million boomers are in the economic and social driver’s seat. So what will happen when they leave?
Gen X can’t wait to find out. Sooner than later, please.
“As soon as they’re gone, the landscape is going to change,” said a county court worker.
The country’s 36- to 50-year-olds have been paying their dues for years. Especially for those pushing the age of 50, there’s a fear that boomers won’t leave fast enough to make the most of their own careers.
“The closer you get [in age] to the baby boomer generation, the less opportunity there is for people to step up,” said an IT manager.
Meanwhile, organizations will continue to be run the boomer way: “Slowly.” “Only at the top levels.” “With their close friends, golfing.”
Once that generation’s bubble bursts, there will be more diversity in the workplace, board rooms and executive suites.
There also will be a dramatic social shift, Gen X believes.
“Younger people don’t like all the separations that we made and lived by,” said the county court worker. “Race. Gender. Sexuality. And they’re not so impressed with what we’ve done with religion.”
Many older leaders are reaching the age where they are starting to hand off duties, and that’s a good thing.
“I think baby boomers are fulfilled by delegating to someone new, being able to say I recommended this Generation X person,” said a construction company executive.
They hold their own mentors in high esteem.
“Those are some of the most inspiring boomers,” said a partner in a law firm. “The ones taking great pleasure in bringing others along, and really not wanting credit for it.”
But they also see a generation replete with people afraid to give up control.
They seem most resentful of potential retirees who “double dip,” officially stepping down in order to collect a pension and then being rehired in the same role to collect a second income — presumably denying advancement to a Gen X waiting in the wings.
“I find it amazing that someone would talk about succession plans and leadership while they grab a paycheck and then come back to collect another one,” one participant said.
What millennials think
Millennials, the majority of whom are the children of boomers, see their parents as workaholics, a generation that sacrificed family for long hours at work. They wonder if that dedication to employer might cause them to delay retirement.
But unlike Generation X, millennials aren’t all that eager to see them go.
“We need their guidance still,” said a UA graduate and performing artist.
They would, however, like boomers to stop seeing them as “kids” in the workplace.
One focus group member said he appreciated the hand-holding when he was 18, but now that he’s more experienced, “I have ideas that are more valid and have been thought about, and I feel like sometimes that gets taken for granted.”
Some millennial managers have found acceptance among their parents’ peers. One IT leader said the majority of his 17 subordinates are older than 50 and “we work together extremely well. I don’t know if we’re exactly the norm, and there was definitely apprehension at first ... but they seem to be fine with it.”
Older supervisors, however, are viewed as less collaborative, perhaps driven by pride or fear of becoming obsolete.
They may see a “27-year-old kid coming in and think, ‘They’re going to tell me what I know, what I should do?’ I understand it at times, but maybe leave your pride at the door a little bit, and let’s collaborate a little bit more, because I’m pretty smart,” one focus group member said.
Lack of collaboration means young millennials are often told what to do instead of being valued.
Boomers “are making decisions for things that they’re not actually doing the work in, and so that’s frustrating because I don’t really think they have a true understanding of what’s going on,” a public accountant said.
They also are in total agreement with boomers’ own self-assessment that they move too slowly.
“Got to make a committee about the committee. And now a meeting. And now a meeting about the meeting,” one millennial said with a chuckle.
“And 50 emails,” said another.
The millennials said there are boomers in their lives who achieved great things, and that inspires them. One hospital worker said he hopes he can become “half the man” his boss is. But they also asked for more mentoring.
“Just teach us,” said one nonprofit program director. “Be open to sharing your experiences and knowledge, because eventually you’re not going to be here.”
Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.