Is This What Gen X Retirement is Supposed To Look Like?

Ever get the feeling you're stuck in some weird limbo?

You're not fresh out of college, chasing titles and trying to climb fast.
But you're also not ready for early-bird specials and back-to-back golf rounds.

You're still sharp. Still curious. Still have something to say.

And yet the world keeps nudging you toward the sidelines like,
“Hey, thanks for everything—now go rest.”

No thanks.

If you're a Gen Xer like me, you probably sense it too:
Retirement isn't going to look anything like it did for our parents.

And maybe that's a good thing.

Retirement was never built for people like us

Let’s be real for a second.

The traditional retirement playbook was built for a different generation:

• Work 40 years

• Get the gold watch

• Live off savings and Social Security

• Ride off on golf cart into the sunset

But Gen X got hit with a different deal:

• Fewer pensions

• Higher cost of living

• Recessions, layoffs, pandemics

• Parents who are getting older and need help

• And a job market that's been flipping itself inside-out every 5–10 years

We’re the first generation raised analog, forced to go digital,
and expected to act like nothing changed.

Meanwhile, our definition of success has changed.
We don’t just want rest (yet).
We want relevance.

We want to do work that means something—without being chained to a desk or a Zoom room.

And most of all?

We want a plan that actually fits the life we’re living now.

Too young to retire, too old for the rat race

Here’s where it gets sticky.

You hit your 40s or 50s, and suddenly people start asking:

• “When do you think you’ll retire?”

• “Are you maxing out your 401(k)?”

• “What’s your exit strategy?”

And you’re thinking:

“Exit from what? I'm just getting started.”

But the grind wears you down.

The meetings. The hustle. The race that keeps resetting the finish line.
You start dreaming of freedom—without really knowing what that looks like.

Do you want to stop working?

Maybe. Maybe not.

Do you want more flexibility and peace of mind?

Hell yes.

And the sad truth? Most of us feel like we’re behind.
We don’t have 7 figures in an IRA.
We’re not living off rental income from some TikTok-perfect real estate empire.

But we do have something more valuable than we think:

Experience. Perspective. And stories that still matter.

We just need a new playbook. One that works with—or without—us in the room.

A retirement plan that actually fits our lives

A few years ago, I stopped chasing other people’s version of retirement.

Instead, I started building my own.

I call it Redefining Retirement—a blog, a newsletter, and a simple idea:

No suits. No spreadsheets. No waiting for permission.

Just systems I can build once and benefit from forever.

What I’m creating is income with meaning—
A portfolio that grows while I sleep, speaks to my purpose,
and gives me the freedom to say “no” to things that no longer fit.

I don’t need to retire from life.

I just need work that feels less like a chore and more like a choice.

My guide to building a smarter kind of freedom

If any of this resonates with you, I’d love to share something with you.

It’s called the Gen eXit Playbook, and inside, I break down:

• How I ditched the daily grind and started transitioning to work-when-I-want self-deployment

• How I stay relevant by keeping up with digital tools and AI (without burning out)

• How I found work I don’t want to retire from—because it’s tied to my values, my creativity, and my autonomy

It’s not a financial product.

It’s a mindset shift—and a practical system for Gen Xers who still have something left in the tank.

And when you download it, you’ll also get my weekly newsletter.

It’s where I share AI tools, newsletter tips, and creative business ideas for building job-free income streams—without hype, hustle, or empty motivational fluff.

You don’t have to wait until you're 65

This isn’t about quitting your job tomorrow or selling everything to live in a van. It’s about planting seeds now—seeds that grow into income, autonomy, and purpose.

You don’t have to “earn” your freedom by grinding for another 10 or 15 years. You can start designing it now—one system, one story, one small step at a time.

👉 If you’re curious about what a modern Gen X retirement plan could look like…

Check out the Gen eXit Playbook here.

You’ve seen a different path.

Now it’s time to design it—on your terms.