If you would like to retire within the next 10 years, the numbers matter more. You can still adjust your savings, investment risk, work plans, and household costs, but the margin for error narrows.
(opens in a new tab)The moves below reflect how respected financial professionals think about saving for retirement and the actions they believe offer the most value.
This guidance assumes you are not starting from scratch and that you already have some retirement savings, such as a 401(k), IRA or similar account.
1. Stress test your retirement numbers
Stacy Johnson believes retirement planning works best when assumptions are realistic rather than optimistic. He focuses on inflation, taxes, and market swings when evaluating long-term plans.
He recommends “stress-testing” the assumptions in your plan by using higher expenses, inflation and market volatility than you might expect and lower returns than you’re assuming to see whether your estimates hold, and if not, exactly where they break down.
Johnson is a CPA and former Wall Street stockbroker with more than 40 years in personal finance. He founded Money Talks News in 1991 and has shared consumer money guidance through TV and digital media for decades.
2. Review your emergency fund and insurance
Suze Orman’s core philosophy is that financial protection should come before investment growth. She prioritizes insulation from shocks.
She advises boosting your emergency fund, reviewing life and disability insurance, and considering long-term care coverage long before retirement begins.
Orman is a former financial advisor, best-selling author, and long-running financial broadcaster known for her focus on financial security.
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3. Eliminate all remaining consumer debt
Dave Ramsey centers his approach on debt elimination as the foundation of financial freedom. He views payments as a threat to flexibility in retirement.
He advises paying off credit cards, car loans, and personal loans before retirement so savings do not need to support those payments later.
Ramsey is a financial author and radio personality who has advised millions on debt elimination and personal finance for over 30 years through his nationally syndicated show and bestselling books.
4. Create a retirement bucket portfolio
Christine Benz emphasizes preparing portfolios for the volatility that often hits at the worst possible times.
She recommends dividing savings into buckets for cash, short-term bonds, and long-term investments so near-term withdrawals do not depend on market performance.
Benz is Morningstar’s director of personal finance and a leading voice on retirement portfolio strategy and withdrawal planning.
If you have more than $100,000 in savings, consider getting advice from an expert. SmartAsset offers a free service that matches you to a vetted, fiduciary advisor in less than 5 minutes.
5. Plan Roth conversions while you still can
Ed Slott focuses on reducing lifetime tax exposure from retirement accounts. He stresses acting before required minimum distributions begin.
He suggests converting portions of traditional IRA or 401(k) balances to Roth accounts over several years to reduce future taxes on withdrawals.
Slott is a CPA and nationally recognized retirement tax specialist who trains financial advisors on complex IRA rules.
6. Map out a withdrawal sequence
Ric Edelman stresses planning how retirement income will flow rather than thinking only about accumulation.
He advises deciding which accounts you will draw from first, second, and third to manage taxes and preserve savings longer.
Edelman founded Edelman Financial Engines and is a best-selling author known for simplifying investment and retirement decisions for broad audiences.
7. Automate savings, portfolio rebalancing, and bill payment
Jean Chatzky concentrates on reducing financial friction and relying less on manual effort.
She recommends automating contributions, rebalancing, and bill payments to maintain steady progress and prevent setbacks in the final decade of work.
Chatzky is CEO of HerMoney, a longtime financial journalist, and the former financial editor of NBC’s Today show.
8. Prepare for the sequence of returns risk
Wade Pfau’s research highlights the danger of market declines early in retirement and how they affect long-term income.
He advises building cash buffers or using flexible withdrawal plans so early-retirement losses do not force you to sell investments at the worst time.
Pfau holds a Ph.D. in economics and is a leading retirement researcher known for work on withdrawal strategies and risk management.
9. Define your lifestyle before you finalize the money
Ramit Sethi focuses on aligning financial planning with the life you want rather than starting with spreadsheets.
He recommends outlining your preferred retirement lifestyle, then shaping your saving rate, housing plans, and spending targets to match that picture.
Sethi is the author of I Will Teach You To Be Rich and teaches practical personal finance through books, interviews, and digital platforms.
10. Calculate your true income needs
Teresa Ghilarducci centers her work on retirement adequacy and realistic expectations.
She advises building a detailed income-replacement plan that aligns expected expenses with Social Security, savings, pensions, and potential part-time work.
Ghilarducci is a labor economist and professor at The New School known for her research on retirement income security.
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Make the next decade count
None of these experts limits their advice to a specific timeline, but the 10-years-to-retirement mark may be when their strategies matter most.
This is your last decade of leverage. You can still out-earn mistakes, redirect savings, optimize taxes while you have income flexibility, and build buffers before market drops become catastrophic.
Some of these experts emphasize protection, others focus on optimization, and a few zero in on getting your actual numbers right.
They all recognize that planning shifts from accumulation to managing your money so it supports your life in retirement. Make that shift while you still have time and income on your side, because once you are only a few years out, your options narrow fast.
Sources
Stacy Johnson; Suze Orman; Dave Ramsey; Christine Benz; Ed Slott; Ric Edelman; Jean Chatzky; Wade Pfau; Ramit Sethi; Teresa Ghilarducci
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