Almost every single working person will retire at some point in their life. But, because retirement is often seen by many as ‘something they’ll sort out when the time comes’, a shocking 1 in 3 Americans currently has nothing saved for retirement.

There are many reasons why people don’t save for retirement that depend on many factors but, regardless of the reasons behind it, not saving or even planning for retirement can be catastrophic for your financial future. Life doesn’t suddenly stop when work ends, and living expenses and bills still need to be covered but, without any form of retirement fund, how will you afford to live?

Planning for retirement years before you actually retire is crucial to ensure financial stability when the time comes. So, if you’re ready to begin mastering your money in preparation for later life, here are some quick tips to get started.

Decide how you want to live 

Whilst this may seem like an impossible question to answer early on in the planning stage, deciding how you want to live during retirement is crucial to ensure you save accordingly.

Do you think you’ll move to a completely new area? Will you downsize or opt for a bigger place with space for your hobbies? Do you expect to use all the free time you’ll have to travel?

Thinking big and answering these questions will not only give you a somewhat plan for your future but will also give you an idea of a budget to be saving towards.

Create an automatic savings account 

Once you’ve crunched some numbers and worked out if you’ll realistically be able to afford the retirement lifestyle you want, it’s now time to set up an automatic savings account. The longer you leave it, the more time will pass you by. Time you could be using to save!

Set up a realistic amount to be automatically saved into a savings account each month. This way, it will be transferred over without you having to manually do it yourself, something that makes a surprisingly big difference when it comes to saving.

Adopt a more frugal lifestyle 

Even if you’re in a high-paying job which will theoretically allow you to save a lot for a comfortable retirement lifestyle, anything can happen. What if the company you work for suddenly folds? What if you just get fired?

Being more frugal with your money may not seem necessary but, to give yourself the most financial stability possible, cutting back on spending will be worthwhile. So, even if you’ve got your eye on the brand-new Dodge Grand Caravan, ask yourself this: ‘do I really need it?’

Especially during our twenties and thirties, retirement seems so long away we often don’t take it as seriously as we should. But, whilst it may seem an age away, retirement requires saving and the earlier you start, the better! The last thing you want is to leave work and find you’ve got hardly any money to live on, so start planning now to secure your financial future.