Is it bad to admit that I already daydream about retirement when my oldest child is still in elementary school and my youngest hasn’t even started yet? I haven’t figured out the details on how or where we’ll spend our golden years but I’m hoping it includes a beach chair, a ukulele for serenades, and endless chocolate-covered strawberries.

The best place to start planning for retirement is to know where you want to finish. Where would you like to retire? How much money do you think you’ll need?

Once you’ve figured out when you want to retire and how much you’ll need to save then you can count backwards. Using your estimates for the future should give you an idea of where you need to be in 10 years, 2 years, and now to reach your future financial goals.

Once you’ve figured out what you need to do, find a goal you can start with immediately and implement it into your day-to-day life. Maybe the first step is to cut out all trips to the drive thru out or maybe it’s as simple as tracking your expenses and trimming out another expense. Make realistic short-terms goals and keep your long-term goal in the forefront of your mind.

If you have a 401(K) plan then this is a great time of year to evaluate how aggressive your investing is and to increase your contributions when you get a raise.

Reward yourself along the way. As you begin to reach your mini-goals of paying off debt or stockpiling cash in your savings account, be sure to reward yourself as you reach your milestones. It feels good to pause and enjoy the vistas along a great hike before you reach your final destination. Stop and enjoy a moment before you keep climbing up the mountain. It will motivate you to keep going when you hit the rough spots along the way.

Goals are really just talk until you put them in writing. Be sure to put your plan in writing and keep it somewhere you can look at it frequently to keep yourself motivated.

Involve the kids, too. We recently sat down with our little ones and told them about parts of our financial plan for the next few years. Our reward will be a nice family trip next spring. We brainstormed as a family ways we could cut some things out of our budget. They actually suggested turning lights off when they leave a room and cutting out extras like eating out and movies. (What a motivated bunch of kids!)

Question: What age do you hope to retire?