The average American believes they need $1.26M to retire comfortably. This helps explain why investment strategies are fundamental to effective retirement planning: most people simply cannot reach their retirement goals without investing their savings.
This article explores how to align your investing and retirement savings to prepare for the retirement you deserve. But first, let’s address the importance of long-term planning.
Saving for Retirement: Why Long-Term Investments Matter
We are constantly fed news about market change—along with various opinions regarding what that can mean for retirement accounts. However, the consensus remains that investments are for the long term and working with a financial advisor helps you understand the markets and your investments.
So, when we are thinking about decisions regarding your investments and retirement goals, we consider a long-term perspective. Here are some questions to help you think through aligning your retirement goals and investments:
WHEN WILL YOU RETIRE?
How far you are from retirement will help you align your investments and retirement goals. Investing can look different if you are twenty years from retirement age or five years from retirement age.
As you move toward your target retirement age, consideration is often given to becoming more conservative in your investment portfolio. Decisions regarding these changes should also consider the impact that inflation can have on your retirement which could last 20+ years.
WHAT ARE YOUR RETIREMENT GOALS?
This might sound simple, but many people never properly define what they want from retirement. Ask yourself some questions:
- Do you want to stay in your home or do you want to move closer to your children or somewhere warm?
- Do you want to stop working all at once or work part-time for a while?
- Do you want to travel or relax at a beach house?
Write down what your ideal retirement looks like and begin thinking about what that might cost. Understanding your goals is an important part of aligning investments and your retirement.
HOW ARE YOUR INVESTMENTS AND RETIREMENT GOALS CHANGING?
Life changes, and we can’t expect our goals for retirement to stay the same. At Marshall Financial Group, we revisit your investments and your retirement goals regularly to make sure that they are still aligned with each other and with your risk tolerance.
Depending on your life stage, lifestyle, and income, many changes are possible:
- You might need more or less liquid capital
- You might have specific short-term goals or requirements
- You might change the age you want to retire at
Many people choose to adjust their savings rate and put more into your retirement accounts as you approach retirement. Equally, starting at age 50, you can add more to your 401(k)s or IRAs.
SHOULD I COMPLETELY CHANGE MY INVESTMENTS OR RETIREMENT PLAN?
While you can realign your investments and retirement goals, don’t get spooked by temporary changes to the market.
This strategy is about continually putting money into your accounts (regardless of whether the market is up or down) to “reduce risk, create a long-term plan for investing, and grow your investments,” and can be a helpful strategy for long-term investment planning.
However, that strategy is not for everyone. At Marshall Financial Group, our client experience has taught us that regular communication is key to help you understand your investments and their performance—which is why our advisors offer unusually high-touch support and client care.
We take the time to understand your goals, your risk tolerance, and how those can align with your investments and portfolio. Want to book a confidential, zero-commitment call to explore your retirement plans?
1 https://news.northwesternmutual.com/planning-and-progress-study-2025
