What to avoid in planning for retirement

Avoiding common retirement planning pitfalls is just as important to reaching your goals as following best practices. And the first, often-overlooked pitfall is neglecting to think about retirement.

Planning for retirement isn't something that occurs in the 2-3 years prior to retirement; it begins early in your work life and is constantly modified as your goals and needs change. Ideally, people should begin saving for retirement in their early 20s and begin to form a solid retirement strategy when they reach their 50s, reflecting and honing this strategy in the 3-5 years before retirement.