The sooner you start, the more you will potentially have when you are ready to stop working. The problem with saving for retirement is that as the value of our dollar decreases, the amount we are saving has to increase, or the earning on the money does, because it has to keep up with the cost of inflation. If inflation by the buying power of a dollar is going up at 6% a year, meaning each year the price of goods goes up comparatively by 6%, then your account earning only 5% is actually losing 1% a year in buying power.

While there is no good way to curb this in the current financial system, you can help to protect your investments and retirements through diversifying and continuing to save. Putting 5 dollars a year into a modest mutual fund of 10% gains a year when you are 21 till you are 65 will render a 2 million dollar nest egg when you reach that age. Most people spend that on coffee in the morning.

The hardest part about putting money away is getting in the habit of doing it, and having too easy access to the money. If you know you can get at it just as easily as your regular bank account, you most likely will. When that advertisement for a new ATV or Widescreen TV comes up, they are betting that you will dip into your nest egg and buy their product. You need a more secure way to save. An IRA is one good method because it lets you invest the money in stocks and bonds, yet can be tax deferred, meaning if you put pre tax dollars from your paycheck into it, you don’t pay taxes on that money or its earnings till you remove it. However, if you take it out early (before retirement) there are usually steep penalties associated with that.

Again, keeping your money diversified is the safest way to be. Putting some in mutual funds, various stocks, and long term bonds are the most common and safest ways to invest.

Some people are bullish on the continued metals market of silver and gold. While they are great investments, the problem becomes one of storage. If you buy actual physical inventory, you have to pay someone to keep it safe. If you buy common shares, you pay more and they usually take fees out when you buy and sell it. If you take actual possession of the metal, then you have a serious risk of losing it to a burglar or fire. If metals is where you want to place some money, be sure to look at all your options and discuss them with a professional investment manager that you trust.

So, if you can train yourself to put away a few dollars a day into long term investments and savings, with out giving in to unnecessary spending, you can assure your retirement will be a comfortable one. The sooner you are able to do that, the more you will have in retirement and the sooner you can retire.