Finance
Planning for Retirement Early
9 September 2026 · Global Women's Week
Compound growth rewards early starts more than almost any other financial decision.
Starting retirement contributions in your 20s versus your 30s can mean a dramatically larger nest egg by retirement, purely from extra years of compound growth — even with smaller monthly contributions early on.
Because women often take career breaks for caregiving and live longer on average, retirement planning deserves particular attention — the math needs to stretch further, even when career income doesn't always match that need.
If an employer offers any retirement matching contribution, it's effectively free money — not contributing enough to capture the full match is one of the most common, avoidable financial mistakes.
Quick tips
- Capture the full employer retirement match if one is offered — it's free money
- Even small early contributions beat larger later ones, thanks to compound growth
- Revisit retirement contributions after every raise, not just when you remember to