The retirement your parents or grandparents imagined may not be the one you’re walking into.

For decades, retirement had a familiar script: work for a long time, retire around 65, and slow down. But over the last 75 years, nearly every part of that picture has changed.

Today, retirement is less like crossing a finish line and more like opening a new chapter . The question is no longer just, “Can I retire?” It’s also, “What do I want retirement to mean?”

In 1950, average U.S. life expectancy was only about 68 years old.¹ Many Americans never experienced decades of retirement because fewer people lived long beyond traditional retirement age.

That’s part of why retirement was often viewed as a brief final chapter after a lifetime of work. Pensions were more common, expectations were simpler, and “rest” became the defining image of retirement itself.

Then retirement started looking a little sunnier.

Sun City, Arizona opened on January 1, 1960, and helped popularize the idea of the “active retiree.”² Retirement was no longer just about slowing down. It became about leisure, hobbies, neighbors, golf carts, and a new kind of later-life freedom.

Suddenly, retirement looked less like slowing down and more like starting afresh.

For years, many workers counted on employer pensions to help fund retirement. Then the system started to change.

The 401(k) provision was added to the tax code through the Revenue Act of 1978.³ By the 1980s, retirement planning was shifting more responsibility from employers to individuals.

The question was no longer “What will my company provide?” but “What do I need to prepare?”

Life expectancy at 65 kept climbing, while many people still retired around the same age.⁴ The result? Retirement could stretch much longer than it did for earlier generations.

Over time, trillions of dollars flowed into 401(k) plans, cementing the shift toward self-funded retirement. Meanwhile, retirement was becoming a life stage that could last 20, 25, or even 30 years.

Longer retirements created bigger questions about purpose and sustainability.

Today, retirement can include part-time work, caregiving, volunteering, consulting, passion projects, and encore careers.

More than 1 in 4 Americans between the age of 65 and 74 work today, significantly higher than from about 30 years ago.⁵ For some, work is financial. For others, it’s for the social connection or an energizing hobby.

So instead of following a single blueprint, people are designing retirements around their own priorities.

The retirement your parents planned for may not match the one you experience.

That’s not a bad thing. It just means today’s retirement planning needs room for more than numbers. It needs room for time, purpose, family, health, work, rest, and whatever else you want this next chapter to hold.

What could your version look like?

Risk Disclosure: Investing involves risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

This material is for information purposes only and is not intended as an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security. The content is developed from sources believed to be providing accurate information; no warranty, expressed or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability, or usefulness of any information. Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision. For illustrative use only.

This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific situation with a qualified tax professional.

Advisory services offered through NewEdge Advisors, LLC, a registered investment advisor.

Sources

1. Macro Trends, 2026 [URL: https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/usa/united-states/life-expectancy]
2. Salt River Stories, 2026 [URL: https://saltriverstories.org/items/show/402]
3. Investopedia, 2025 [URL: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/100314/why-were-401k-plans-created.asp]
4. Social Security Administration, 2026 [URL: https://www.ssa.gov/history/lifeexpect.html?]
5. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025 [URL: https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/civilian-labor-force-participation-rate.htm]