America’s Social Security program is both popular and woefully underfunded.
Experts have been warning that the social safety net millions of Americans rely on is on the verge of fraying. Now, personal finance author and motivational speaker Tony Robbins is calling on people of all ages to start weaving their own safety net.
“Time to get your head out of the sand and do some easy number crunching to find out where you are and where you need to be,” his website advises.
“Remember this: Anticipation is the ultimate power. Losers react; leaders anticipate.”
Robbins might be preaching to the choir. According to the AARP, 74% of Americans believe Social Security will not provide enough to live on during their retirement. Two-thirds of them also consider the monthly benefits too low to live on.
If you share these concerns, here’s what you can do to secure your financial future.
Since Social Security payments are likely to be insufficient, creating your own independent nest egg seems like an obvious solution. Robbins recommends setting a target to save at least 20 times your annual living expenses to fund a comfortable retirement.
On average, U.S. adults currently believe the “magic number” to retire comfortably is $1.46 million, according to the Northwestern Mutual 2024 Planning & Progress Study. This estimate is 15% higher than in 2023, even though Americans’ average retirement savings dropped to $88,400 in 2024, down nearly $1,000 from $89,300 in 2023 .
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Simply put, most Americans know they need to be saving and know how much they need to save but are failing to actually act and accumulate cash.
A relatively simple savings and investment plan should help you stay ahead of the game. The average U.S. household income in 2023 was $80,610.
If you’re in your mid-30s and you have that kind of income, you can reach the $1.46 million milestone within 31 years by putting away 10% of that income ($8,000 a year or $666 a month) and investing it in a low-cost index fund that has historically delivered a 10% annual return.
