Viva the Vital
"Viva the Vital" is a monthly column published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and other Media General newspapers, that explores current topics from the Baby Boomer viewpoint.
If you would like to publish these columns in your own publication, contact Cheryl Jones at cjones@boomerproject.com.
Article Archives
The Pursuit of Entitlement
March 14, 2013
Me Generation Meets the We Generation
February 6, 2013
Report Card on Boomer Predictions
January 3, 2013
Thanks to Boomers, Dying Business is Growing
November 29, 2012
Tapping the Potential of Older Boomer Workers
November 1, 2012
Activate Boomers to Save Churches
October 4, 2012
Boomers Know This is the “New Normal” Economy
August 30, 2012
Gen Xers Rock the Working World
June 28, 2012
How Not to Market to Boomers
June 2, 2021
Generational Issues at Work are Booming
April 28, 2012
Looking for the Future from Alice's Restaurant
March 22, 2012
Boomers are Wired to Stay Wired Forever
March 1, 2012
Nonprofits Can Profit From Boomers
January 30, 2012
10 Ways Boomers Will Transform 2012
December 31, 2011
Boomers Should be Thankful about What’s Ahead
November 24, 2011
Delight Boomer Consumers to Win Over All Consumers
October 27, 2011
Boomer Financial Optimism on Hold
September 29, 2011
Blame the Boomers
September 4, 2011
New Toyota TV Campaign Is Cute, But Dumb
July 28, 2011
Jobs, Entrepreneurs and Boomers
June 23, 2011
When it Comes to Leisure Time, Watch out for the Generation Gap
May 26, 2011
With Boomers It Takes One to Know One
April 28, 2011
Boomers Have a Choice: Grow Fatter or Older
February 24, 2011
Five Ways to Profit from Older Boomers
January 27, 2011
Gift Ideas for Boomers: Less Material, More Ethereal
December 23, 2010
Welcoming in a New World Order: More Older, Less Younger
November 25, 2010
Generation XX:The Future is Decidedly Female
October 27, 2010
The Uncivil Generational War
September 29, 2010
The Boomer Plan to End Nursing Homes
August 29, 2010
Boomer Women Rule
July 29, 2010
Boomer Dad to Millennial Grad: Listen Up!
June 28, 2010
Winning with Boomers takes Heart
May 27, 2010
Boomers and the Promise of Longevity Dividend
April 29, 2010
Lessons from a Generation Silent, But Good
March 25, 2010
For Boomers, Our Best Years Are Still Ahead
March 4, 2010
Your Home is Your Ketchup Bottle
January 28, 2010
A Look Back at the Twenty Tens: The Boomer Decade
December 31, 2009
Ten Boomer Thanksgiving Wishes
November 26, 2009
We Have Seen the Future, and it is Old
October 22, 2009
Connecting the Dots
September 27, 2009
More Older Boomers Means More Economic Development
August 28, 2009
The Diagnosis: Boomeritis
July 23, 2009
The Blessing and Curse of Being a Boomer
June 25, 2009
A World Where Everyone Is Special
May 28, 2009
The Future for Boomers Is in Swampscott and Agritopia
April 30, 2009
Viva the Volunteers!
April 19, 2009
No Bail-Out for Retirement
April 2, 2009
Economy Gives Boomers, Too, A Dose of Cold Reality
March 19, 2009
Boomers and Berries
March 5, 2009
War of the Generations
February 19, 2009
"Enhanced" Media Consumption
February 5, 2009
Not Gone, But Forgotten
January 22, 2009
Reinventing the Family
January 8, 2009
Age of Responsible Consumerism Begins
December 25, 2008
It Takes a Village
December 10, 2008
By 2028, Boomers Will Be Most Thankful for Friends
November 28, 2008
New Hope for a Color Blind Society
November 13, 2008
Boomers and the Revolt against Consumerism
October 30, 2008
Boomers, Fear Not, for the End is Not Near
October 16, 2008
Words from the Wise
October 2, 2008
Boomers Stymied by the "R" in AARP
September 18, 2008
Boomer Grandparents Make Back-to-School Fashionable
September 04, 2008
How Boomers Won the Race on Race
August 10, 2008
Maybe Those Whining Boomers Have Reason to Complain
July 24, 2008
Boomers Ponder Odds Of Managing a Long Life
July 10, 2008
Extending the Lifetime Warranty for Boomers
June 26, 2008
Now that Obama's the Democrats' Choice ...
Boomers Caught in Generational Smackdown
June 12, 2008
Boomers Ask, What's In It for Me?
May 29, 2008
Boomers Struggle With Co-Workers as Young as Their Kids
Generations at work. Sometimes it is a good thing. Sometimes it isn't.
May 15, 2008
Boomers' Political Influence Emerges Slowly
One would think the largest, most influential cohort would dominate the political landscape in America, but it is too large, too diverse and too different to be on the same page.
May 1, 2008
Events Shared During Youth Help Shape Each Generation
The foundation of all generational differences are the unique experiences shared during the "coming of age" years of 10 to 20. This piece discusses some of the generational differences created by those different events.
April 17, 2008
Boomers Can Live by a Timeless Philosophy
While generational differences are plentiful, there are some things that are timeless and cut across all generations. This article shares a philosophy of life that is truly intergenerational.
April 3, 2008
Boomers Search for the Wisdom in Faith
Research on older consumers and how their brains functions might provide some insights as to why older Boomers are re-embracing religion and spirituality as they age.
March 20, 2008
Learn to Bridge the Communications Chasm
Boomer parents are now out of the communications loop with their texting teens and college aged kids. Can the gap be closed, or are we fast becoming the next dinosaurs?
March 6, 2008
What a Difference a Day Makes
Marketers target messages at 18-49 year olds, and at 25-54 year olds. What happens to consumers on their 55th birthday? They disappear and are no longer relevant. As if.
February 21, 2008
Boomer Women Are Headed to Mars, Men to Venus
These days Boomer women are less confident in the prospects for the U.S. economy than Boomer men. Is this a generational thing, or a male/female thing? One thing is for sure, as women pass through menopause, they change, reflecting more masculine traits, according to psychologists and social scientists. Men, as they pass 55 and older, reflect more feminine traits. Read the article to learn what this could mean for business and society.
February 7, 2008
Boomers Get Caught in Parent Trap
Nearly one-third of boomer adults in the U.S. have major communication obstacles with their parents that is rooted the continuation of the parent child role. Home Instead Senior Care has launched the "40-70 Rule" and a new Web site, 4070talk.com, an information packed program designed to help adult children and their aging parents deal with those sensitive topics that often make conversations difficult.
January 24, 2008
Wired to Work, "Me Generation" Volunteers in Record Numbers
The 'what's in it for me generation' wants to give back in more significant ways, benefiting others as well as themselves -- and changing forever what it means to volunteer in America.
January 10, 2008
Boomers Create a New Image for Life's 'Dessert Stage'
Boomer grandparents are a new breed of grandparents who not only want to spoil their grand kids - but cherish, teach and invest in them. Literally.
December 27, 2007
Who Are We and How Are We Aging
The Older Dominion Project has answered The Who. Now we're focusing on the what, when, where and how.
December 13, 2007
Will Boomers Make 60 the New 60?
Boomers will change forever what it means to be 60. Just like they've changed so many other things in society.
November 29, 2007
This Isn't Your Father's (Or Mother's) Retirement.
The future for most Boomers doesn't look like it includes a gold watch and a daily stroll on the beach in Florida.
November 15, 2007
What a Long Strange Trip It's Been - and Continues to Be
What will drive Boomer behavior for the next 40 years? The quest for "vitality" in five key aspects of life.
November 1, 2007