Win Ben Stein's Money

"Somewhere there is a map of how it can be done." - Ben Stein

The best perk with my day job is that I get to travel. Since I fly in and out of LAX, I have experienced my share of inflight celebrity sightings: Elijah Wood, Portia de Rossi, Mark Harmon and Julie Andrews to name a few. But the closest I came to wanting to speak to one of them was when Ben Stein sat across the aisle from me in 5B - AA Flight 2461 from DFW to LAX.

Ben is dry even when he is not playing a dull economics teacher. He is best remembered for his appearance in Ferris Bueller's Day Off and why I find it fitting that he is the spokesperson for the National Retirement Planning Coalition. It is not a topic that most Americans spend much time considering. But even though Ben is dry, he is cool when it comes to all things financial. So here are his Top Ten Ways to Plan for Retirement:

1. Select a target date for when you want to retire.
2. Calculate how much money you need to accumulate by the time you want to retire.
3. Find out about your Social Security benefits.
4. Maximize your use of tax-advantaged plans such as employer retirement plans, individual retirement accounts and annuities.
5. If your employer doesn't have a pension or retirement plan, ask that one be started.
6. Don't touch your savings.
7. Diversify your assets.
8. Ask questions. Get help. Seek the assistance of a professional financial advisor.
9. Start now, set goals.
10. Do a retirement plan and monitor your progress.