MSN Money lists six smart ways to retire sooner as follows:
1. Start as early as possible.
2. Check your lifespan.
3. Get real.
4. Make your hobbies pay.
5. Set a target.
6. Taper, don't quit.
My take on this list is that #1 is the key. If you can save early and often, you'll not only have plenty for retirement, but you'll end up being rich due to the power of compounding.
After #1, I think #6 is key. If you're having trouble saving enough for retirement, a great way to help yourself out is to work longer, even if it's a part-time job at lower pay. The more time you're earning a salary, the bigger and better impact you'll have on your retirement savings/investments.
This said, I'm shooting to retire EARLY (mid 50's or so) with at least a partial reduction in work hours and time.
You forgot the biggest one, Don't have Children!!
Posted by: Emily | July 10, 2008 at 11:31 AM
My tip: Learn and develop your skills.
Posted by: Kacper | July 10, 2008 at 11:52 AM
My tip: never retire! Find something that you can do that you love doing and keep at it. Do you see writer, actors, etc.. retire, most keep going? How about Art Linkletter, at 94 he still travels thousands of miles giving talks. He recently finished writing a book.
Posted by: "Mo" Money | July 10, 2008 at 12:03 PM
I've pretty much given up on the traditional concept of retirement. My wife and I both were able to get our work entirely home-based over the past couple of years and since then we've been experimenting with working from nicer, remote locations. With phones and the Internet our clients don't really know or care where we're working from so it might as well be someplace nice. :) E.g., this entire summer we rented a beautiful house in northern Michigan and have been working remotely from there. It's given us a sense of freedom we never had with 9-5 jobs. We're going to try to do a month from Europe sometime in the fall.
We're still saving as much as we always did but I would imagine this type of work arrangement would allow me to happily add an additional 10 years of full- or part-time work onto my life.
Posted by: MonkeyMonk | July 10, 2008 at 12:20 PM
I've also given up on the concept of full retirement (at least until 70); however, I intend to work full time to between 65 and 66. Then, I'll work part time. Fortunately, I have a pension, and I've been sacrificing to put away $ into my Roth IRA. My condo will be paid for.By 65, I either have the $ or I don't. I'm in a high-pressure management job, and as a social worker, I want to work "per diem". That's my plan. Kids, save ASAP so that you have choices later on--all the best!
Posted by: fuzzysmom | July 10, 2008 at 01:59 PM
I somewhat flubbed on #1, and #4 is in its fledging stages. However, I'm shooting for full retirement no later than 50. While I'm pretty much on track, I feel that I can always do better.
Posted by: savvy | July 10, 2008 at 04:58 PM
I think #2 is pretty important as far as retirement planning but also very difficult. None of us knows our lifespan and it could vary a lot. So this throws a big unknown variable into the plan. You run the risk of planning for too much or too little. Really it seems the best we can do is be conservative and plan for a longer lifespan just to be safe but that makes reaching your goal that much harder.
Jim
Posted by: Jim | July 11, 2008 at 03:49 PM