These are five simple things you can do to ensure nothing trips up your plans for a secure future:

• Contribute enough. The first thing investors who have a 401(k) plan at work should do is participate, say investing experts. Then, try to consistently increase your contributions to the extent possible. Over time, set yourself the goal of contributing the maximum allowed under the law.

“It goes back to an old adage: Pay yourself first,” said Art Miller, president of Capital Preservation Strategies in Illinois. “Make contributions even if has to hurt a little bit financially.” Many people, he added, don’t contribute nearly enough.

If you were auto-enrolled in your 401(k), the default contribution rate may be set at 3% or thereabouts of your pretax income. Bumping that up to 10% or even 15% is advisable. Be realistic about what your income needs in retirement are likely to be. Longevity is a risk. Americans today are more likely than ever before to outlive their money.

• Review periodically. Miller is surprised by how little some of his clients seem to know about what’s really inside their retirement portfolios. They start off by describing themselves as conservative investors, but it eventually turns out that 70% to 90% of their portfolio is in riskier types of investments.

“Typically, people don’t watch what is happening to their accounts,” said Miller. His practice has catered to professionals, small-business owners, investors nearing retirement and retirees for approximately 26 years…

–Investor’s Business Daily, April 1, 2016
Read the full Investor’s Business Daily article here

The vast majority of advisors urge their physicians to stand firm, hang in there, and not to panic by selling off stocks or mutual fund losers. However, the most salient question is how much money can a doctor afford to lose before he or she finally takes stock, no pun intended, has an epiphany, and searches for an oasis where their money earmarked for retirement is safe?

The first thing investors who have a 401(k) plan at work should do is participate, say investing experts. Then, try to consistently increase your contributions to the extent possible. Over time, set yourself the goal of contributing the maximum allowed under the law. “It goes back to an old adage: Pay yourself first,” said Art Miller, president of Capital Preservation Strategies in Illinois. “Make contributions even if has to hurt a little bit financially. Many people,” he added, “don’t contribute nearly enough.”