CNBC Guest Blog
- Busch: The Debt-Interest Rate Paradox
- Busch: Markets Smell a Country Rat
- Schork Oil Outlook: Mission Impossible For The Bears?
- Losey: Asset Allocation At Retirement
- Farrell: Obama Hectored, Ignored and Restricted?
- Don't Dwell on Investment Mistakes; Move on, Like Buffett
- Hirschhorn: Greed...or Fear
- Schork Oil Outlook: Some New Hope For Nat Gas Bulls
- Insights for Growing the Economy: the State of Entrepreneurship
- Tamminen: California Is At It Again
MOST SHARED
- The 'Real' Jobless Rate: 17.5% Of Workers Are Unemployed
- US Home Prices Up 5th Month, 2nd Straight Quarter
- China Eastern to Complete Shanghai Air Buy by End '09
- Gold Will Collapse Like Oil Did in 2008: Charts
- Wave of Debt Payments Facing US Government
- Weak Dollar Is Golden for Mining Companies
- Revised GDP Reading Puts Growth at 2.8%; Inflation Tame
- FDIC Insurance Fund Falls to Negative $8.2 Billion
- GM's Plan to Sell Saab Unit To Swedish Firm Falls Apart
- The Lloyd's Prayer, Leggo My Eggo, Plate Hate & Your Emails
- Buy These 'Competitively Positioned' Stocks: Portfolio Manager
- Behind The Scenes With Warren Buffett
- 'Why the American Consumer Will Keep on Buying No Matter What'
- On Assignment: Europe & Asia
- The L.A. Extravaganza: A Test for Auto Shows
- 8 Stocks That Could Gain With Rising GDP
- 5 Stocks That Benefit from Health Care Legislation: Analysts
- Can Murdoch Help Bing Challenge Google and Shift the Content Equation?
- Consumer Confidence Improves But Still Shaky
- US Home Prices Up 5th Month, 2nd Straight Quarter
- Revised GDP Reading Puts Growth at 2.8%; Inflation Tame
- FDIC Insurance Fund Falls to Negative $8.2 Billion
- Ron Paul's Plan to Audit Fed a 'Serious Attack': Mishkin
- US Economy Mired in 'Form of Depression': Rosenberg
- Strong Banks, Weak Credit: Treasury Rethinks TARP
- Fairfax Lawsuit Keeps Heat on Chanos, SAC's Cohen
- Blog: Behind The Scenes With Warren Buffett
RSS FEED
Text Size 
CFP, Retirement Strategist, Author
The Automatic Rule
Start saving money today. Even if it’s only a buck or two each pay period, savings is a habit you must start and stick with for the rest of your life. To improve your chance of savings success, automate the process. Have money withdrawn automatically from your paycheck or directly from your checking account each month. If you don’t want to think about saving, automation can take care of it for you.
The 1% Rule
 |
iStock |
At a minimum save 1% of your earnings each payroll period. When you get a salary increase, add an extra percent to your savings and spend the rest.
For example, when you get a 3% increase at work, save 1% and spend the other 2%.
This way you’ll continually increase your savings rate while enjoying a higher standard of living.
The Time Rule
When I meet with people in their 50’s and 60’s, the one regret they have is that they had wished they’d starting earlier in life. It’s never too early or too late to start saving for retirement. Time is your friend. It can work for you or against you. It’s your choice. Choose wisely.
The Spending Rule
The less money you take out, the lower inflation is, and the higher return you earn on your money, the longer it will last. Conversely, the more money you take out, the higher inflation is, and the lower your return is, the shorter your nest egg will last.
The Most Important Rule
The government and your company will not take care of you. Read, listen and learn about personal finance, investments and strategies. In the end, your financial well-being is your personal responsibility. Control what you can control.
Your Money on CNBC.com
_________________________
Bill Losey, CFP®, America's Retirement Strategist®, coaches women and couples nationwide with their retirement planning and investment portfolios. Bill is the author of Retire in a Weekend! The Baby Boomer’s Guide to Making Work Optional and he also publishes Retirement Intelligence®, a free weekly award-winning newsletter.
You can learn more at www.MyRetirementSuccess.com .
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes