As the last post regarding what to do with your tax refund, I’d like to suggest beginning to set aside some money for you. I’m assuming that you’d rather not work until you’re 96, so now is the time to stash away some cash for your retirement. Some of you may think ‘Oh, I’m too old to start saving for retirement’, or ‘I can barely get by on a daily basis, how the heck am I going to save for the future?’. Well, guess what? It’s never too late. And if  you’re in a pickle, financially, then it’s time to fix up the engine so you can get behind the wheel and go where you’d like to go.

If you participate in a retirement savings program through your company, like a 401(k), good for you. That’s fantastic. But to be honest, I wouldn’t necessarily count on that as your sole source of income after you retire. In this day and age, you need to cast your net a little wider to ensure you don’t have to eat peanut butter and jelly for the rest of your life.

There are several different coffee cans to toss your spare pennies into, like bonds, CDs, mutual funds, stocks, money market accounts, IRAs, and such. (I’m not going to give you any kind of advice about which ones are performing well or suggest that you buy into any one fund or stock. I’m merely pointing out that you have options.) These types of investment opportunities are separate from a company-sponsored 401(k), so it’s up to you to decide how much money you want to invest – and then you make the deposits. You can do that monthly, quarterly, yearly – whenever you have some extra cash to throw at it. That’s why I suggest using your tax refund money to get you started. If you don’t need it, why not put it to good use? But let me throw in a word of caution: if you’re going to make this one of your priorities, make sure that you keep up with it. There’s no sense in opening an account if you’re never going to contribute to it.

If this sounds like something you’d be interested in doing, then hop on the computer and do a little research. Visit the websites of different investment firms in your area, find out what they have to offer, and then make an appointment. A professional financial planner can answer any questions you may have and will give you advice about the best places to put your hard-earned cash.

And just so you know – he or she will probably ask you what your goals (a.k.a. priorities) are in life. Maybe now would be a good time to brainstorm . . .