Do a check in

Often times, I sit down with my clients who have been investing for a while...they are in their forties and fifties and have money in various IRA's, mutual funds, stocks and 401(k)'s, but they often neglect their accounts ( which is good for me I guess because they coming looking for my help) often never rebalancing or changing their risk tolerance as they get closer to withdrawal time.

Would you buy a rental house, rent it out and then never do any maintenance on the house like changing the air filters, new paint, mow the lawn etc?? Of course not, so you can't do that with your investments either. You should at least twice a year sit down and do an evaluation- of everything...your savings rate, how your investments are doing compared to their benchmarks and other investments in their peer groups etc.

If you don't have the time, knowledge, energy, desire etc. to have the discipline to do this, then hey guess what..there are people out thereyou can hire to do it for you...people like me, financial advisors....ask your friends for some referrals, check out a seminar, or look to your employer for guidance...it can be well worth it in the long run.