Studies show that most Americans are nowhere near their "magic number," the amount a person needs to have saved for even a basic retirement. Most will struggle to pay for shelter, food and medical care and have little left for the leisure, travel and comfort of their dreams. To have a chance of meeting that "magic number," people should start saving by about age 25, experts say. The alternative -- if older people don't ramp up savings and if younger people don't get started -- is a lower standard of living in retirement -- or a struggle to keep working.
Aggressive saving -- and investing -- can help with more than just retirement. It's during the early stages of a worker's career, when the temptations of revelry and leisure pursuits are highest, that the habits of saving need to be instilled.
When it comes to saving for retirement, as people approach their middle years, it is usually less about age than it is about stage. Stage of life, that is. The goals and priorities that tend to arise during these years -- putting the kids through college, in particular, -- are the prime influences on, and sometimes the prime impediments to, retirement strategies.
There's one line of thought that a person's later years are a time for slowing the pace somewhat. When it comes to preparing for retirement, however, it's actually a time to gear up and get moving.