Some observers think that's a positive trend. "A lot of people underestimate how big an impact delaying retirement and Social Security can have," says Stuart Ritter, a Certified Financial Planner at T. Rowe Price.

The first wave of baby boomers turn 62 this year and are eligible to claim early Social Security benefits. According to research from T. Rowe Price, a person who is currently 62 years old and delays retirement until age 65 and makes $100,000 each year until benefits begin will boost their eligible Social Security benefits by 27%, or by more than 8% each year (in today's dollars) based on Social Security Administration formulas. Waiting until age 70 to retire will bolster benefits by 88%.

And that's not including the benefits of earning extra income during these years and delaying nest egg withdrawals. Even a part-time job paying $20,000 a year is the equivalent of withdrawing 4% annually from a $500,000 kitty, Ritter says.

Ken Dychtwald, a psychologist, gerontologist, author and all-around cheerleader for the soon-to-be wave of retiring boomers, redefines retirement as "the power years." Among the findings from his 2004 research on what the new retirement will look like, 42% of boomers said they want to cycle between work and leisure and 13% want to start their own business.

Additionally, a scant 6% want to work full time, while only 17% said they never wanted to work again.
Dychtwald preaches that more than ever, aging boomers have the resources and the health to make the golden years the go-go years. It's a nice thought, if not a tad too idealistic for many rank-and-file retirees.

For starters, the idea of working through one's 60s and 70s isn't appealing or feasible for everyone. And the thought of senior citizens flipping burgers at fast-food joints-a more common occurrence these days--probably isn't what Dychtwald has in mind.
"It's more the creative and knowledge-industry folks who are attracted to the idea of continuing working," Hacker says. For many, that means either part-time or freelance work that enables them to remain productive at a less intense level than they would in the full-time world.

"In much of the workforce, part-time or freelance work is treated much less generously (in terms of benefits)," Hacker says. "We have to rethink what working in retirement is and give it a new shape."

But if 60 is the new 40 (does that make 65 the new 45?), companies need to readjust their thinking about employing older workers in the first place. In a recent New York Times article, several academic economists pointed to evidence suggesting that many companies are wary of hiring and retaining older workers.

Padding The Portfolio

Jim Bell, president of Bell Investment Advisors in Oakland, Calif., fits the profile of the new-age baby boomer who wants to remain productive but on his own terms. The 62-year-old now works just four days a week, but plans to remain fully engaged with his practice for the foreseeable future. "I feel like I'm at the top of my game," he says. "Why would I want to sit by my koi pond and read books all of the time?"

But not all of his clients-business owners, doctors and attorneys-feel the same, so to ensure they have a sizable retirement portfolio Bell's firm maintains what he calls a "conservatively aggressive" tilt toward equities that he says provides better inflation protection and purchasing power over a 20- to 30-year period than portfolios laden with bonds and cash.