Baby Boomers Come of Age

Their are 78 million baby boomers — defined as individuals born between 1946 and 1964.

This is a generation with a rich history, and some say, one of the most interesting generations that has walked the landscape of the American lexicon.

As young children in a post-World War II environment, this generation was part of the positive spirit in this country. Baby boomers at a young age heard slogans such as, "So goes General Motors, so goes the country."

This is a generation that saw the rise of Camelot and the heartbreak of the Kennedy assassination. This was a generation that was witness to massive cultural change during their college years.

This is the generation that helped usher in women's rights, the dawning of the technology explosion, and who are now redefining the way the golden years should be lived.

It is with this back drop that this blog begins. For this is a blog about the baby boomer generation, written by a baby boomer.

Here, in this space, I will chronicle the all the hopes, dreams, goals, and flaws of this important generation.

The mission will be to take up issues germane to the baby boomer generation in the 21st century. The overarching vision, is that baby boomers will benefit from the read, and those interested in the baby boomer generation will take notice.

The blog will read as if a baby boomer is talking with you across your kitchen table.

So let us begin the process, with a discussion , or better a question: Are baby boomers ready for retirement ?

This scribe would say, in most cases no.

Some baby boomers have done all the right things: They have worked hard, saved well, and invested wisely. But others, as they have lived their lives, have bonded with plastic.

Live now, pay later became the mantra of many. Now, baby boomers are working longer, and trying to see where their security will be found.

Their are some boomers who live in Chicago and spend winters in Sarasota, Fla. These are the baby boomers of Lake Forrest, Ill.

The boomers of Wellesley, Mass., have not missed a beat, as they maintain the house on the Cape. But their are other boomers like the couple from Ohio, who have student loans incurred by the education of their children.

They are baby boomers who suffered during the Great Recession, that we as a country endured. The baby boomer who is caring for their elderly parents, and who are struggling with depleted savings, cry out, Is there anybody willing to listen and help?

I leave you with this thought: Baby boomers have always been resilient; they will find a way. They will start a second career, trying to make up for past financial missteps, and they will look to the future with enthusiasm, even though the prospects are not bright at the moment.

You can read more in my book, "In Search of the Baby Boomer Generation."

Rick Bava founded and was CEO of the Bava Group, which became the premier communications consulting firm serving the Fortune 500 community. Bava became known for his popular blog columns “Rick Bava on the Baby Boomer Generation.”  He is the author of "In Search of the Baby Boomer Generation." For more of his reports, Go Here Now.