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On January 1, 2004, a friend of mine was 46 years old. His IRA balance stood at $3,055.
He admitted he’d been late to the retirement game. “Beyond scared” might be more accurate. Reality had caught up with him. He felt behind and wasn’t sure it was even worth trying.
It would have been easy to ignore the problem. To assume it was hopeless.
Instead, he began contributing to his company’s IRA. He stayed invested. He let time and compounding do their quiet work. There was nothing flashy about it—just discipline and patience.
Through the financial crisis of 2008–09, the COVID plunge and other market corrections along the way, he didn’t look and he didn’t stop. Every two weeks, money went into his account from his paycheck.
Today, his account stands at $961,680.
Why tell this story?
Because you may know someone in their 30s or 40s who quietly believes they’ve already missed their chance. They feel behind. They feel embarrassed. So they do nothing.
Over the years, I’ve come to think of change as a simple formula:
Δ = 𝑓(Ds + V + Fs)
Where Δ is change.
Ds is dissatisfaction with the current situation.
V is vision of what could be.
Fs is the first steps.
Most people already have the dissatisfaction. What they lack is a hopeful vision—and clarity about how to begin.
Sometimes the most helpful words aren’t, “You should be saving more.” Instead, try: “Help me understand how you’re doing in preparing for retirement.” That question might open the door. You can then share a story like this—and perhaps help someone take that first step.
It’s never too late to start.
I was in the upper 40s when divorce and a new career forced me to reboot my financial life. 48 seemed too late, it seemed like my best years were in the past. Fast forward 25 years and I know I was wrong, it wasn’t too late and I had plenty of good years left in me.
The strategy might be a little different in your 40s, eliminating debt became a priority for me. I sure didn’t want to be making a house payment until I was 78.
What a great example of “It’s never too late!”
It reminds me of what I use to tell folks back in my financial advisor days, “The best day to start saving for retirement was the day you turned 18. The second best day is today!”
I had less than $150,000 in my IRA when I started my last job, in 2009, at 58 years old. When i retired in January 2024, my 403b and our Roth IRAs were over $700,000 and our total Net Worh was $1.3 M. (My wife did not work ourside the hoime except for 6 years in the late 1990s early 2000s, when we owned a Natioinwide Insurance Agency.)
It really isn’t ever too late!
Thanks William. I think all of us get stuck on how to make a meaningful start on something – losing weight, exercising, decluttering the house. I agree that the vision and the first steps are likely often enough to promote real progress.
Amen to that. I don’t have quite such a dramatic success story, but in 2019 I hired a recently divorced woman of 45 who had spent the previous two decades as a homemaker raising five children. She had no assets to speak of when she started. By the time I sold the business in 2025, she had a low six-figure investment pot, another 10 to 15 years of runway to grow it further, and enough cash savings to cover four or five months without a wage. She also found time along the way to pass her driving test and buy a small car. As you say, it’s never too late to start.
Thanks Mark. Great to hear of people making such progress despite lots of challenges.