Visions of retirement 2

Workers Are Dreaming of an Active Retirement. Travelling (67 percent) is workers’ most frequently cited retirement dream, followed by spending more time with family and friends (57 percent) and pursuing hobbies (48 percent). A noteworthy 30 percent of workers dream of doing some form of paid work in retirement such as pursuing an encore career (13 percent), starting a business (13 percent), and/or continuing to work in the same field (11 percent). One in four workers (26 percent) dreams of spending their retirement doing volunteer work.

Workers Across Generations Share Similar Retirement Dreams. Workers’ top three retirement dreams –travelling, spending more time with family and friends, and pursuing hobbies –are common across the generations. However, some retirement dreams differ across generations. Baby Boomers (31 percent) are more likely to dream of doing volunteer work, compared with Generation X (25 percent), and Millennials (23 percent). Millennials (34 percent) are more likely to dream of working in retirement (e.g., pursuing an encore career, starting a business, continue working in the same field), compared with Baby Boomers (26 percent) and Generation X (25 percent).

Retirement Fears Range from Financial to Health-Related. The most frequently cited retirement fears are outliving savings and investments (48 percent), a reduction in or elimination of Social Security (44 percent), declining health that requires long-term care (41 percent), and not being able to meet the family’s basic financial needs (40 percent). Approximately one-third of workers fear a lack of access to adequate and affordable healthcare (34 percent) and cognitive decline/dementia/ Alzheimer’s Disease (32 percent). Other fears include feeling isolated and alone (20 percent), finding meaningful ways to spend time and stay involved (20 percent), and being laid off –not being able to retire on their own terms (18 percent).

Retirement Fears Are Shared Across Generations. Across generations, workers share the same top retirement fear: outliving savings and investments. Other fears vary by generation, such as the fear of a reduction in or elimination of Social Security, which is more frequently cited by Baby Boomers (49 percent) and Generation X (48 percent) than by Millennials (39 percent). Baby Boomers are more likely to cite a fear of declining health that requires long-term care (49 percent) than Generation X (41 percent) and Millennials (36 percent). Not being able to meet the family’s basic financial needs is a retirement fear more likely cited by Millennials and Generation X (both 43 percent) compared with Baby Boomers (32 percent).