My grandfather lived to 99. He built a business, raised a family, retired early − and aged into a system that actually worked. He didn’t beat the odds. America built the odds. Social Security. Medicare. Pensions. Community. These were intentional policies and social infrastructures designed to make aging feel dignified, and something you could plan for.
Like many millennials, I grew up conditioned to believe that the systems my grandfather relied on would not be around for us. So I’ve leaned into the “life’s too short to worry about it” mindset.
Here’s the irony: Life today is actually longer than it was for the Greatest Generation, born in the years 1901-27. And it’s not just lifespan that has been extended. The span of years we can expect to work, parent and enjoy healthy and active lives also is now longer.
Yet, the legacy programs we inherited weren’t built for 30-year retirements, dual-income households or gig work without pensions. Instead of modernizing, we patched holes. Today, policymaking is constrained by election cycles, where sound bites win out over sound policy.
Though the Trump administration targets budget cuts and touts efficiency, the private sector remains largely uncoordinated. Technology designed to help people as they age is still seen as niche, and many investment funds haven’t yet recalibrated for the scale of this opportunity. It’s a chicken-and-egg dynamic: Less capital means fewer start-ups, fewer start-ups mean less traction and less traction keeps capital on the sidelines.
