Why it's crucial to start investing for retirement as early as possible

Posted on 2:00pm Friday 1st Jul 2022

Whether you’re the breadwinner of your family or financially supporting yourself, most of your earnings likely go toward immediate expenses. Should there be anything left over, you may often feel tempted to spend on a few luxuries to reward yourself for all your hard work.

Unfortunately, it’s a common mistake to spend so much on being comfortable in the present that you forget to set aside enough money to get by in the future. If you put off saving for too long, though, you may not have much time or money left to start or grow a retirement fund.

That said, keeping all your money in a traditional savings account won’t earn you much interest, even if you leave it there for several years. Instead, investing your money is one of the best ways to grow a sizable retirement fund. This is because many investment vehicles offer a higher rate of return compared to most savings accounts.

And with the power of compound interest, you can potentially make your money work for you. Done correctly, investing can help you earn a lot more compared to simply depositing part of your income each payday. If you’re still not sold on the idea, here are a few more advantages to investing for retirement while you’re still young.

Why Its Crucial to Start Investing for Retirement as Early as Possible

You have more time to build your ideal portfolio

There are many investment vehicles you can put your money in, such as stocks, mutual funds, and even cryptocurrency. If you start early, you can more easily diversify your portfolio since you have a lot of time on your hands to research and learn about how these investments work. You’ll also benefit a lot more from compound interest, which means your investments could grow exponentially by the time you retire.

As you experiment and search for the optimal asset allocation for your needs, make sure to always keep your investments secure. For example, if you’re dipping your toes into the crypto market and trading XMR, you’ll want to choose a trusted and secure Monero wallet to protect your digital currency.

You can respond more quickly to trends and opportunities

Since you’re saving up for retirement, it makes sense to go for investment opportunities that can potentially give you high returns. Unfortunately, such opportunities can come and go in the blink of an eye, and you may miss out if you wait too long. Given this, one of the biggest advantages of investing for retirement as early as your 20s is that you have more chances to quickly jump onto emerging market trends.

For instance, although stock investments are one of the most time-tested forms of investments, they may not yield as high a return as, say, cryptocurrency. However, the technical aspects of cryptocurrency make it quite intimidating to try for people who aren’t all that tech-savvy.

Even if you may not be a crypto expert just yet, though, you likely have a bit more familiarity with using computers or browsing the internet compared to your older peers. And if you don’t feel that you’re competent at using technology, you’ve still got plenty of time to learn and familiarise yourself with these sorts of things.

In short, you’ve got the upper hand in quickly taking advantage of emerging trends, and you can more easily adjust to any shifts and changes in the financial landscape.

You can better mitigate your risks

While riskier investments may potentially give you higher gains, there’s also the possibility that you’ll suffer massive losses, especially if you aren’t careful with your money.

Given this, the closer you are to retiring age, the more daunting it will be to invest your money in something that won’t guarantee results. As such, the older you get, the less willing you’ll be to bet your assets on investment vehicles that may prove unfruitful in the end.

However, if you start early in the game, you have more time to study the market, strategise, and figure out which high-risk investments are worth your time. And even if you do end up losing some money, you still have the time to rebuild your savings and recover from said losses. That said, if you luck out on your chosen high-risk investments, you could stand to gain a lot of profit from them both in the short and long term.

Final word

There are plenty of gains to be had from thinking about financial planning for your retirement early on in life. You’ll have more time to explore your options and more chances to hop onto promising trends before they’re gone. Additionally, you’ll have more time to recover in case you take on bigger risks for the chance of earning greater rewards. You may even be able to save up early enough that you get to retire a little earlier than you originally planned.

As long as you play your cards right, you’ll be sure to have enough money to get by during your retirement. Who knows? You may even be able to achieve some of your personal financial goals, whether that’s a trip around the world, a comfortable home, a dream car, or anything else you’ve always wanted.

The sooner you start investing for retirement, the more you can accumulate over time. The sooner you get started, the better your retirement will be.

Want to make more money online, at home or need a side hustle?

Find loads of ways to make extra money at home on my blog, as well as my favourite side hustle in my matched betting blog!

To get started, you can make money online in the UK with these 60 ways I’ve tried and tested.

Follow these steps to make £1000 in one month at home.

Or, if you’re short on time, try these methods to make money in one hour.

Love sharing great offers with friends? Make extra cash with these refer-a-friend schemes.

Want to save more money or get free money?

Check out my massive money-saving tips section and find some great deals on my voucher codes and how to get free money pages!

Check out my list of UK apps that turn receipts into cash and also this list of UK cashback sites to maximise your free cashback and savings.

Want to manage your finances better?

Here are loads of family finance tips and helpful debt articles.

Check out my massive money-saving tips section and find some great deals on my voucher codes and free money pages!