Planning for retirement should be a lifelong process. For people in mid-career, the late 30s to early 50s are crucial to having a successful plan for your retirement years. Consider these facts:

1. If you haven’t started investing for retirement yet — start today! In a perfect world, you would have started saving for retirement when you started your first job. However, most of us don’t live in a perfect world. Start where you can and increase your retirement contributions each year as you receive salary increases.
2. If you are investing for retirement now, don’t quit. Many families find that these middle years are very expensive with new drivers, college expenses and even wedding costs. You may be tempted to stop or back off of your retirement contributions. There are a variety of ways to fund some life expenses — such as scholarships or student loans to help with college expenses. Remember, they don’t make loans for your retirement needs.
3. Calculate how much you will need in retirement. Most financial planners say the average family in retirement needs to have the resources to replace between 70 and 90% of their pre-retirement income. The exact amount needed will vary by family depending upon your unique situation and your current age. Retirees who have large fixed payments, such as a mortgage, may need to have more money available in retirement.
4. Know where you are now. Take the time to evaluate your current retirement savings and your current contribution level. Consider using one of the helpful calculators which GuideStone makes available. Don’t be discouraged if you are behind in your retirement planning. Make a plan and work the plan.
5. Invest a percentage of your salary, not a set dollar amount. Many people lock in to a set dollar amount for their retirement savings. A set dollar contribution will not keep up with inflation as your salary increases.

Retirement planning needs your attention throughout your working years. If you are in your late 30s to early 50s your decisions today will impact you for years to come. A little planning now goes a long way toward having what you need in your retirement years.