· Boomers (1946-1964)
- Ambitious
- Strong work ethic
- Loyal to careers and employers
- Optimistic
- Tendency to be workaholics
- Personal gratification
- Largest segment of workforce
- Heroes
- Gandhi
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Mother Theresa
- President John F. Kennedy
- Jacqueline Kennedy
- Senator Robert F. Kennedy
- Defining Events
- Vietnam War
- Woodstock
- Women’s Rights
- Watergate
- Civil Rights Movement
- Birth of Television
- Assassinations of:
- John F. Kennedy,
- Robert F. Kennedy
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Boomers grew up in a time of dramatic social change. It is possible to divide this generation into two subsets.
- Born prior to 1956: Cuban Missile crisis, assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., walk on the moon, Vietnam draft, anti-war protests, civil rights movements, riots, and Woodstock are events that epitomized the dramatic cultural changes of the 1960’s.
As a result this subset has a free-spirited, social cause oriented, experimental and individualistic tendencies.
- Born 1956-1964: Watergate, Nixon’s resignation, the oil embargo, raging inflation, gas shortages, the Cold War, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and Live Aid are the events that created this subset of Boomers to be less optimistic, have a tendency to distrust government, and possess a more cynical viewpoint.
Boomers have no intention to retire and see themselves as moving to a place where they work not because they have the financial need but the desire to work as a way to achieve personal fulfillment. With recent market challenges that have led to a shift in Boomer employment statistics, it may not be financially possible to retire. Many of the Boomers are approaching retirement with significant amounts of debt. Much of that may be in credit cards as Boomers do have a tendency to spend beyond what they earn as well as had to face periods of long-term unemployment which has created a need to dip into retirement funds. In addition, many issues that revolve around governmental programs such as Social Security, Medicare, healthcare, etc. have created a sense of unrest for the Boomers as they near retirement. I (Mary) will speak for myself, as a Boomer in subset #2, the future for the Boomers does seem a bit unclear as our time horizon shrinks day by day.
Excerpt from “10 Answer Keys, Communicating with the 5 Generations in the Workplace”
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