How are Gen X planning to spend their time in retirement?

Thank you for coming back and providing more context. I have looked at your group’s webpages.

I am not a member of U3A but my understanding is that membership is open to anyone who is no longer in full-time employment, whether retired or semi-retired. There is no age barrier but it is likely to exclude much of the younger end of GenX other than those who work part time say due to child care responsibllities, who I doubt would be free when most U3A activities take place.

However, we do know that, as a society, there are now many more people age 50+ who are no longer working so there is scope to make U3A more attractive to a slightly younger demographic who might be willing to become part of a management committee.

I think that a fundamental issue with U3A is that activities are invariably in the daytime. I have looked at a number of groups around the country and almost everything is held on weekday mornings and afternoons. There is rarely anything in the evening or at weekends beyond say a walk or a lunch club. Why is that?

And why is membership restricted to the retired and semi-retired? I understand that the clue is in the name and the origins of the movement but, over time, it has strayed far from the idea of it being about continuous education to an organisation that appears to be more about hobbies and leisure pursuits e.g knitting, lunch clubs, board games etc. I’m not knocking those things, I love to knit and enjoy a game of Scrabble, but something has been lost along the way and may well be why younger people aren’t attracted to the movement.

I’m a firm believer in: If you build it they will come. i.e. if you create something of value, people will be drawn to it. As U3A currently operates, I don’t believe it will attract younger members in any substantial numbers.

I should add that I considered joining my local U3A but got such a negative response from the committee about the idea I pitched, to start an evening playreading group in the snug of a local pub, that it deterred me from joining. I see you have a playreading group and that it’s oversubscribed. You may have encouraged me to pitch the idea again but to a different group!

I’m planning to travel and see as much of the world as I can

I think the biggest problem is the ages of the group.

If you are younger you may not want to commit to a group of significantly older people.
Logically if you have your children at 38 -42 you will still have "family" stuff going on and are probably still working.

Good luck.

Thank you all for your messages. A little more information, I initially didn’t want to colour your ideas so I was intentionally a little vague. I’m a member of u3a, this particular group has been running for 40 years now. There are over 1,000 u3a’s UK wide. Our membership is mixed male and female but is mainly 70-90 year olds. I’m 69 myself, so I AM a baby boomer. I’m on the committee and love getting involved as I’m on my own with plenty of time on my hands. When I worked, as a nurse, then trainer, then Training & Development Manager on cruise ships, I was totally career driven. I had to retire at 65 due to breast cancer but didn’t take to retirement at all well at first. I personally love being busy. As research shows, when you first retire, the novelty of not having to work is great but it soon wears off and you find yourself needing a sense of purpose and to be useful. U3a’s are volunteer driven, each one has many activity groups you can join. They have to have a committee as the charity commission requires it. However, many are reluctant to help in any way which causes problems when committee members, specifically officers, want or need to retire. I was thinking that perhaps Gen X might be more amenable to taking on committee roles. But because we have an ageing membership, this might put off younger people from joining. We raise a lot of money for our chosen charity the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance. I’m keen to come up with innovative ideas to remain viable in the future but Google is not much help as it seems to think that all retirees are interested in nothing more than knowing how to grow their pension pot. There’s very little to be found around leisure time and leisure activities. My own daughters are Gen X so I have some insight into their current activities. They are glued to their phones with everything seeming to happen around Facebook or WhatsApp, hence the reference to being tech savvy with social media. Thank you for the suggestion to post on MumsNet!

Indigo8

petra

leapyearnanYour not a baby boomer .
Those born between 1946-1964 are classed as such.
I would hope that the majority of generation x are tech savvy already.

petra I am assuming, from their handle, that leapyearnan was born in 1948, 1952, 1956, 1960 or 1964, possibly on 29 Feb. What gives you the idea they are not a boomer?

petra has already apologised for her wrong assumption, Indigo8.

Apologies to Leapyearnan 💐

petra

*leapyearnan*Your not a baby boomer .
Those born between 1946-1964 are classed as such.
I would hope that the majority of generation x are tech savvy already.

petra I am assuming, from their handle, that leapyearnan was born in 1948, 1952, 1956, 1960 or 1964, possibly on 29 Feb. What gives you the idea they are not a boomer?

I am sorry to say that over the years I have followed many intrests and been involved with a range of things from school to brownies to gardening clubs etc etc., and people have become more interested in doing whatever but less prepared to be any sort of help in running or being an organiser for anything. Some is just their circumstances but also many are less prepared to put any effort in to help to run things. I put this partly due to the Margaret Thatcher effect, where you just look to see what you can get out of something and not what you can put into it!! The absolute lack of commitment to any committee or group is evident in lots of things.
Many years ago , my husband had to work weekends sometimes so could not commit to every weekend, but we solved this by 3 people running the youth group in our church, so there was usually 2 of the 3 available each weekend. It was a popular group which did a lot of things , having speakers and all sorts of things happening. But even though most people in the church did help in various places as the years have gone on, and we have moved and joined things like gardening clubs it is usually the older group of people running things and few people even prepared to help a little. I am 79 now, and still help out with a variety of things where I am able to do so, as do many of my friends. I dont see the next group who are retired wanting to be a part of any committe or being prepared to help out with anything. Sad but true I am AFRAID.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

Why I'm a boomer and tech savvy. No idea what you're getting at or why???

I’m Gen X and retirement is still a way off - both financially and in terms of what I still want to achieve. I’ll definitely think about partial retirement, so I think it is worth thinking about how you group accommodates those who are also still working part time. I definitely find out about things to do mostly via Facebook. I like things that involve good food and wine! I like to try new things.

I'm 68 and still working; I rather overextended myself on voluntary activities and am going to have to drop one, or maybe two.

As others have said, make meetings accessible to those who work; schedule for evenings and add in online participation possibilities.

Churchview

If you post your question on Mumsnet you might be more likely to get an answer from Gen X themselves.

Well, there's a sensible post! 😃

petra

*leapyearnan*Your not a baby boomer .
Those born between 1946-1964 are classed as such.
I would hope that the majority of generation x are tech savvy already.

My older DD, Gen X, doesn't consider her younger sister is Gen X as she is!
She is, apparently, a Millennial and they are quite different (apparently).
😁

What are you wanting to know leapyearnan?

I'm an older Gen-Xer, and expect to spend my retirement travelling for as long as I can, staying fit (I run), and doing things which interest me.
I'd only be interested in a flexible, dip in and out kind of a group - nothing too rigid - I also think as a generation we're most likely to join special interest groups rather than a general one.

Im gen x (born 1967) class myself as 'semi' retired. Working part time in the nhs, cashed in my works pensions and now doing some pet caring work and also voluntary work for various charities. I also have a son and granddaughter plus friends I like to meet up with as and when possible.
I've looked at U3a and also a book club as I am an avid reader. Neither worked for me as they seemed quite rigid in their meeting. The third weds in the month etc doesn't really work for me as I also have numerous hospital appointments due to a disability I have.
A more fluid meet up schedule would attract me and many of my contemporaries as many people have a lot of commitments. Shift work and weekend working can also impact on arrangements.
Some people still seem to think 'work' is just Mon to fri 9-5 and any time outside that is free!

Our GenX daughters have an interest in gardening. I think many people may not have time to work long hours in the garden at their ages (may just pay for mowing/ general cleanup).

Perhaps garden lectures/ activities?

As I said upthread, without knowing what this social club offers and whether it would appeal to Gen X, it’s impossible to say but with any club, the membership changes over time, People lose interest, move away, die. Those responsible for membership need to find ways to attract and retain new members.

I am part of a small team which runs a social club and allied activities. We have around 200 members although our activities are also open to non-members. The audience for our regular events comprise roughly two thirds members and two third non-members who often become members.

One of the most important things is to encourage younger members to take an active role in the running of the group/club including having a say in how things are managed and what activities are offered. I encountered this when I first joined the team as its youngest member, partly as a bid to encourage people closer to my my age to join. But it was quite a while before I was allowed to have any say in what we put on. There was a hard core of older committee members who were rigid to say the least, averse to any change to how things had been done for the past 40 years.

Membership database? Surely paper records and things scribbled on the backs of bus tickets and beer mats are fine. Website? No, we don’t want any of that new fangled stuff. Social media. What’s that? Better advertising, marketing, sponsorship? All were rejected as first but bit by bit they came around (or left the committee) and the membership (and the club's income) started to clmb.

One thing to consider is when these activities take place. We used to operate indoors at weekends at times when younger people with children wanted to be outdoors with their families. It was only when we started to put on more early evening and outdoor activities and make children welcome that we started to attract a younger membership.

Our children are Baby Boomers, GenX - our younger daughters are less likely to join groups than their boomer sisters who are settled into empty nests, managing their dad and his business.

Our GenX are busy with home, children, Church - no free time.

They're not remotely interested in WI type groups or really much of anything apart from making sure the children are fed, school runs (long distance here), meals cooked, laundry done, yards kept up - busy.

Free time is holidays and family.

Perhaps they're different to most, my answer doesn't apply?

Many gen x won't be retiring until 67 / 68 ....their private pensions not being as good and state pension kicking in later

I'm 64 this year, only work an average 10 hours a week due to back problems and arthritis. After a life time in childcare I'm exhausted and my body is wrecked. I'm hoping to retire later this year, fingers crossed. Thankfully DH wants to continue working and I have a small private pension
To be totally honest I have no interest in joining any social groups. I'm more than happy at home cooking, reading, gardening and walking my dog.
I think if Gen X have to work until 67 possibly later they will be exhausted by the time they retire, a bit like myself

My adult children are very active in their leisure time, running, cycling, fell walking. I think they will only stop when injury forces them to. I have no idea what will attract them at that point.
One of the choirs I sing in has an aging membership. It is hard to attract younger people, and without them, the choir will fold, in due course. We have probably only two members under 40 and only a few more who are still of working age; most are over 70. We have recently increased our social media presence, but like the OP, struggle to attract younger new members. However another choir I sing with in a university city has members of all ages including students and is thriving. Maybe like attracts like. If someone turns up and sees mainly older people they may think it is not for them.

What dos the group do that you feel is specific to 'boomers', OP?

If I were looking for a new group to join, I would be very put off if I were bing judged by my DOB. Age group can make a difference - I joined the WI at 28, as a neighbour invited me. We had just moved house and I thought it would be a good way to met people. Everyone else was in their 60s and 70s, and I left. I worked full-time and they were all retired, so I couldn't join in a lot of the activities, and the focus of their lives was very different from mine. That was fairly extreme, though.

Other than that though, the groups I belong to are multi-generational, and that is what I like about them. I don't want to only hear the voices of older women. I like groups that include men and people of all ages to get variety of experience and lifestyles.

I think that raising the pension age for women has made a big difference to social groups though. I retired at 57, and found that most groups were made up of people more than ten years older, as women of my age were still working. I went back to university for a while, to study a degree in a subject of interest amongst people from 21-70+, then rejoined the local social scene after Covid lockdowns ended.

A lot isn't so much about age, but availability. If you want to attract different age groups, I would drop the 'GenX/Boomer' nonsense, make the meetings accessible to people who work, stop charging annually, so people can drop out if they have grandchildren in the holidays and so on. You haven't said what you mean by 'tech savvy', but unless you are a spreadsheet appreciation society or a gaming group, you might look at things like using WhatsApp groups for communication (rather then email), as it's immediate, and setting up a FB (or similar) page where people can post relevant things for everyone to see I'm thinking of things like articles about the book you are reading if you are a book club, or links to relevant local events if you are a history society etc. No technical knowledge necessary, but using platforms that are free and readily available if you aren't doing so already (although most Boomers are more than au fait with that sort of thing).

Since many of the forty plus people in my life ( some of them my children) had their children much later in their life, the answer maybe ...parenting in retirement...teens being picked up and dropped off events, undergraduates needing financial support, a shoulder for the broken - hearted, a painting weekend at son's/daughter's first flat, etc etc

@monica I think you have it spot on, although I have never heard it described as wanting active rather than purely social before. I am gen X that is exactly me and would describe many others my age.