For the past few weeks, I’ve been studying, reading about, and helping people understand their retirement funds and ways to protect and grow the nest egg that represents their retirement fund money.  Throughout the research process, four mistakes to avoid kept coming up in conversations as to how investors were able to put away enough money for the leisure years of life.  These mistakes often led significant lost wealth due to higher-than-necessary expenses or significant losses due to taking foolish risks.  They are simple, straightforward, yet somehow get forgotten in the hustle and bustle of modern day life.  That is a risk you can’t afford to take with your future.

Beyond all of this, and the four tips for investing your retirement money, the biggest mistake I see isn’t even on the list.  It involves people not staying the course; not sticking with a plan that works.  After years of saving success, they find themselves with $ 20,000 or $ 50,000 and they think of it as a backup to tap in the event of an emergency.  In the old days of company pensions, this was impossible (which explains why people were more conservative with their finances and made it to old age self-sufficient).

Whatever happens, realize that there is no safety net.  There is no backup.  If you want to retire comfortably and independently, it is your responsibility to make that happen.  Not your employer.  Not your country.  Not the taxpayer.  Not your family.  Not your children.  Your responsibility.  To help you do that, read 4 Tips to Building Your Retirement Funds: A Few Things You Can Do To Protect and Grow Your Retirement Fund Money.

Four Mistakes to Avoid When Investing Your Retirement Fund Money originally appeared on About.com Investing for Beginners on Thursday, September 22nd, 2011 at 19:18:30.