Things have changed a lot in America in the last generation. There was a time when many people worked for the same company their entire professional lives. And, when retirement came, employees knew the company had money set aside for them in pension plans. There was a degree of loyalty on both sides of the fence.

Those days are a distant memory for most of today’s working Americans. Contemporary employees may hold more than a half dozen jobs between school and retirement. In some cases, they may even change careers that often. Employers today see things differently too. Many treat employees as commodities — much like the chairs in the front office and the soap in the restrooms. They hire based exclusively on their own needs.

Who’s to blame for this state of affairs? I don’t know. Did the chicken come first or was it the egg? Is this new mentality good or bad? Probably a little bit of both. Selfishness and greed are never good. However both employees and employers are more conscience of their options (and competitive forces) today.

So, where does this leave us? It leaves us in a very different world. Today, most employees have to fend for themselves. Studies indicate that the traditional "defined benefits retirement plan" (i.e. pension plans and the like) is a dinosaur of the past. Only twelve percent of employees today have such retirement "guarantees." And of those who do have a "guaranteed" retirement plan, more and more are learning why I choose to put the word "guaranteed" in quotes. There are an increasing number of stories in the news of companies who are unable to meet those obligations.

So, to be painfully blunt: The primary reason to invest for your future is because no one else is going to!!

As I present the No Debt No Sweat! Financial Seminar across the country, I try to drive this point home. Certainly there’s nothing wrong in hiring a competent, honest person to help with your planning, but at the end of the day, you’re the one responsible. I don’t mean to be harsh here, but if you have a retirement account (IRA, 401K, etc.) and you honestly don’t know where your money is invested and how the various funds are balanced and how they’ve performed in the last year — then you’re asleep at the switch! This is the money that’s going to get you through the second part of your life.

Let me share a few foundational suggestions on retirement prep:

1. Think about how long you’re going to live.

No, I’m not trying to play God. Only He knows the days allotted to each of our earthly lives. But it does behoove us to have some awareness of average life spans — and what it costs to support them.