When It's Too Late to Save for Retirement

You are 55 years old (or somewhere aroundthere) and your company is going to force you toretire at 65. You have $35,000 saved in your401K and that’s all. The house will be paid forby then so you will have a place to live. Thecompany pension will pay about $1,000/month andso will Social Security. What will my life stylebe like at that time?

Let me give you a clue. You are going to needjust about as much as you are making now evenwith the house paid for. If you are lucky youmight have health insurance with your pension,but don’t count on it. You hope Uncle Sam willhelp out. But don’t count on it.

When that savings you have runs out maybe oneof your kids will let you and the misses havethe spare room. Scary, huh! Maybe one kid livesin Minnesota where you can spend the summer andthe other in Florida where the winters will benice. But don’t count on it.

You might get lucky and buy one of those stocksthat skyrocket from $2.00 to $200. Those chancesare 1 in 100 and you don’t have enough money tobe taking chances. But don’t count on it.

Whatever time you have left between now andretirement you should start managing your assetsto have them grow and compound better than inthe past. If you continue to do what you havedone you are going to have the same results. Itis a choice between cat food and filet mignon.

A better portfolio manager is not the answer.Saving more will help, but you need to livetoday. Having your house paid for is a hugeplus. A second job with all that income going tosavings makes sense – if you can do it.

One of the better solutions is starting abusiness you can run from home. The Internet hasmany offers. My caveat here is never send anyoneupfront money. It takes the Avon lady 3 to 5years before she makes any money. There are manylegitimate small businesses like this that canprovide a second income, but you must investboth time and effort and be persistent. You mustwork it every day.

Don’t choose any business that requires asubstantial capital investment. If you have afriend or relative that has a home-basedbusiness you will want to spend time with him.Even if you don’t use that vehicle you can learnplenty from that person.

You local library has hundreds of books devotedto helping folks start a business. The Internetis a great source. Take time to investigate anddon’t take anyone’s word for theirpie-in-the-sky story. Always get references andcarefully check them. You want to talk tosomeone who recently started in that businessabout 6 months ago, another about a year beforeand a third about 2 years prior. Maybe severalof each. Once you make the commitment you musthit the ground running and don’t stop. Either itwill work in a few months or it won’t. Hard workis the only way you will find out.

It is not too late provided you start NOW.

Al Thomas' best selling book, "If It Doesn't GoUp, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands ofpeople make money and keep their profits with hissimple 2-step method. Read the first chapter andreceive his market letter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.comand discover why he's the man that Wall Streetdoes not want you to know. Copyright 2005