When I think of going back to school, the only image that comes to mind is the scene from the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, when Ben Stein plays the economics teacher. During his monotone lesson, he tries to elicit a response from his class by pausing every few sentences asking if “Anyone? Anyone? Anyone?” has the answer. It pains me to make this correlation to retirement planning, but alas, I must. Why? Because today we are talking about 401(k)s again. Anyone? Anyone? Anyone? Know why?

Because they are the most common retirement savings vehicle and one that we often put into cruise control during our working years. Tune in today and figure out how to speed up your savings!

According to a survey by GOBankingRates, 73% of adult children haven’t had the money talk with their aging parents. This isn’t completely surprising considering that the “Silent Generation” felt it was too risky to speak out. They grew up in financially insecure times with the collapse of the market and war. They were also considered the “The Lucky Few” because they entered the prosperous times of the 1950s and 1960s, which rebuilt the nation. They also retired relatively early taking both a pension(s) and Social Security.

Then came their children, the “Boomers” who coined the phrase “Midlife Crisis” and kept the prosperity going. When it comes time to pass the baton, will the Silent Generation be willing to share their financial story with their children who are entering their retirement years in droves?

We are going to share excerpts from the book, Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk: How to Have Essential Conversations with Your Parents About Their Finances, by Cameron Huddleston, and the article by Kiplinger, “10 Ways to Talk to Your Aging Parents About Their Finances.” You can plan in a panic or plan ahead – we opt for the latter choice.