If it’s years away, why worry about retirement now? Because the decisions you make today could significantly affect your future lifestyle. Enough errors in judgment could put your financial security during retirement at risk. So, by avoiding the following mistakes, you may improve your chances for a financially secure retirement.

1. Waiting Too Long To Start Saving

While it may be tempting to put off saving for retirement until you buy a house and pay for your children’s college education, this could be a huge mistake. Time is critical to the growth of your retirement account. If you put other goals first and wait to start saving for retirement, you will miss out on the benefits of compounding during all the years that you weren’t saving. It’s almost impossible to make up the difference once you get a late start.

The ideal time to start saving for retirement is as soon as you are eligible to participate in your first employer’s retirement plan. It may be hard to save for something so far off when you have so many current demands on your paycheck. Start with a small amount every payday and increase it as your earnings increase. With a good budget and a little discipline, you may be able to save enough to buy a house, send the kids to college, and enjoy a comfortable retirement.

2. Following the Crowd

Your investment plan should be based on careful research and an understanding of your own risk tolerance and investment time frame. A qualified financial professional can help you make these assessments. Once your plan is in place, it is unwise to make spur-of-the-moment changes based on the latest investment trend. In many cases, by the time a hot investment tip hits the airwaves, it’s too late to benefit from it. When you are saving for a retirement that is years in the future, you are a long-term investor and should stick to your long-term plan.

3. Becoming Discouraged by Short-Term Losses

As a long-term investor, you should seriously consider including stock investments in your portfolio. Historically, stocks have offered the best chance for long-term returns that will stay ahead of inflation and help you achieve your financial goals. However, stocks are risky and investors should be prepared for losses as well as gains. It would be a mistake to take your money out of an investment that you believe is experiencing a temporary decline because you might then miss out on the eventual rebound. If you have a significant number of years before retirement, your investments have a lot of time to recover from periodic declines in the stock market. Be sure to consult a financial advisor when making investment decisions.

4. Underestimating Your Future Needs

With people living longer, healthier, more active lives, you may need more money during retirement than you anticipated. Depending on your lifestyle, you could need 80% -- or more -- of your pre-retirement income for many years after you stop working. And don’t forget about inflation’s potentially crippling effect on your purchasing power.

Figuring out how much you may need for retirement should motivate you to save as much as possible in your company’s retirement plan. The more money you save, the more money you have working for you, and the more money you are likely to have when you retire.

5. Forgetting to Review Your Retirement Plan

If your personal or financial situation changes significantly, it may affect your retirement investment strategy. So, once your strategy is in place, don’t forget to review it periodically to make sure it still suits your needs. Make sure you review your strategy after a death, divorce or employment change. Also, as retirement draws closer, you may want to shift some assets from more volatile to more stable investments.

Saving for retirement usually involves long-term investment strategies. Consult a financial professional when setting up and reviewing your retirement investing plan.

Josh Scandlen is a Financial Advisor with Legg Mason Wood Walker, Inc., a diversified securities brokerage and financial services firm that is a member of the New York Stock Exchange, Inc. and SIPC.