Learn the new vocabulary for boomers

It is a big number, but we are used to it and know what it means, just as we know what a baby boomer is. But it is the word "retirement" that trips us up, because it is not what it used to be, and that's good news.

Boomers are going to redefine "retirement," being less likely to retire at 65 to the golf course, fishing boat or La-Z-Boy recliner as did their parents' generation. Sixty-five is the new 45 (OK, maybe 55) for many people who plan to remain as active in retirement as in their pre-retirement years.

While some people will need to continue earning an income to maintain their lifestyle, others will have family obligations — whether it is caring for parents, supporting "his, hers and ours" families, or a desire to play a prominent role in grandchildren's lives.

For financial planners, this will mean recognizing that boomer retirees will have more options to consider and being prepared to offer planning strategies that fit the retirement reality. The first step is to learn the new vocabulary that describes boomers' twist on traditional retirement, both for your own sake and so that you can introduce the terms and concepts to your pre-retiree clients.

• "Sandwich generation": This refers to boomers who are pressured by the needs of aging parents requiring care and adult children in whose lives they continue to play an active role. Maybe it is grown children living at home and requiring financial support, or providing regular or intermittent day care for the grandchildren.

• "Boomerang entrepreneur": Boomers in retirement may want to satisfy unfulfilled entrepreneurial yearnings. So they retire from one career job and start their own business. The boomerang effect is also seen when an entrepreneur retires from one business they started, only to start another.

• "Jhobbie": This is the phenomenon of turning your hobby into a job during your retirement. Did you collect model trains or Hot Wheels cars? Now in retirement, you are an eBay power seller whose electronic storefront sells such trains and cars. Or, more typically, you are the scratch golfer who works part time at the pro shop or maybe even does a little caddying.

• "Playcheck": Many retirees take temporary or part-time work to fund the hobbies and trips they want to enjoy during retirement. Take my sister, who is retired from a warehouse job and wanted to go skiing in Colorado. Her husband was concerned about the expense, so she went back to work at the plant for eight weeks during the pre-Christmas rush. No worries about the cost of the ski trip — her playcheck covered it.

• "Phased retirement": This option may turn out to be the most popular. Over the next 20 years, there will be more jobs created in the U.S. economy than we have people to fill them.

With boomers migrating out of the work force, employers may find it difficult to replace retiring employees and fill the new positions. The solution will be to offer retirees a middle-ground choice — still working but on their terms and their schedule.

Advisers should help clients consider these options, especially those who assume that the traditional path is the only one available to them. One way to help would be to put together a resource network of non-financial advisers. The sandwich generation needs elder care and health care expertise.

The boomerang entrepreneur needs support from a family business expert, be-cause working with one's kids is quite different from working with employees.

Clients with jhobbies may need basic business advice on taxes, business structure and bookkeeping. You might connect with temporary agencies, which can place your retired clients in short-term jobs that match their skills and deliver a playcheck.

Advisers can also support clients in negotiating with employers about alternative work arrangements, helping them prepare a proposed phased retirement and sell the benefits of retaining their expertise and historical knowledge in the business, while providing the lifestyle flexibility the retiree desires. And finally, advisers need to modify what their clients need to live on, based on the real income that comes from jhobbies, playchecks and boomerang businesses.

Much like cars, today's retirement is "not your father's Oldsmobile." We've moved on to the hybrids — and this is just the beginning.

Kirk Hulett is senior vice president for strategy and practice management at Securities America Inc. in Omaha, Neb.