Was The Great Recession The End of It?
Boomers And Recession
Though we are told, by many sources, that we are slowly and painfully making our way out of the Great Recession, a few voices are being raised in alarm. They predict a very slow recovery or, worse yet, a second recession to top off the first one. There is nothing like being kicked when we are down.
We, as baby boomers, are finally starting to recall some of the sage advice that the “greatest generation” gave us. We are responding to the situation by trying to take up more frugal habits, cutting down debt, and scrambling to save more. However, just now, this is not easy. Of course, it never really was.
- Experts already warned us we were not saving enough for retirement.
- The money we did save is earning less, and sometimes, it has really dropped in value.
- Houses are not rising in value, and sometimes the value is plunging. They are not the automatic “asset of last resort” we had expected them to be.
- Our instinct to just work longer or work more in order to make up for shortfalls is not really working out because of a tight job market, especially for older workers.
These economic woes make us much less likely to spend, especially on things we can live without. The electric bill has to be paid, but maybe we can stand the heat with the thermostat turned up to 79 degrees instead of 75 degrees. We need clothese, but last year’s outfits can still keep us covered. A free walk in the park is a lot cheaper form of exercise than a membership at the gym.
Not all of these changes are bad, but here is the reality. Since boomers are a large segment of the population, and we are not spending money, business can decline again for the whole population!
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Along those same lines, with job losses as we have been experiencing in this recession, more baby boomers are taking a second look at their careers and wondering if this is all there is. Daily repetition, doing what someone else wants, little satisfaction, how long do we really want to keep this up? Some may take this time to start a business of their own to follow a passion that has been ignored due to work. It takes time to get a business off the ground potentially adding to the short term recession but hopefully down the road resulting in a more satisfied and actively contributing member of society. LoveBeingRetired.com
I agree that sometimes change is good. But so many boomers are trying to ignore the change.