You want retirement to be your chance to get out of the rat race and have time for the things you’ve always wanted to do. That’s great, but what exactly does that mean? Traveling? Volunteering? Spending time with family and friends? Starting a business? Simply doing nothing?

You may think your plans are just like everyone else’s, but that’s unlikely. They’re as unique as you are.

Exactly how you want to spend your time will definitely affect what you should be doing now to prepare for it. However, there are steps that everyone should consider taking today regardless of their retirement goals. Here are six of the most important:

1. Have a plan

If you haven’t gathered your ideas about retirement together and distilled them into a cohesive investment plan, that’s a great place to start. Or if you have a plan stuck in a drawer somewhere, you need to revisit it.

Whether you want to start a second career, travel the world, or do nothing will make a big difference when it comes to what you’ll need to cover your expenses. The better you can define precisely what your goals are and which are most and least important, the better your plan should be.

An asset allocation — how your investments are spread out across different asset classes (stocks, bonds, cash alternatives, etc.) — should be at the heart of your plan. The allocation that’s appropriate for you will vary depending on a variety of factors. Primarily, these are what you want your investments to help you achieve (objectives), how comfortable you are with market volatility (risk tolerance), and how long it will be before you plan to retire (time horizon).

2. Use tax-advantaged accounts

Even if you don’t have a retirement plan as such, chances are you have savings in employer-sponsored qualified retirement plans (QRPs), such as 401(k), 403(b), or governmental 457(b) plans, or a traditional or Roth individual retirement account (IRA).

If that’s the case, good for you. These tax-advantaged accounts can be great ways to work toward your retirement goals because paying taxes each year on any growth, as you would with taxable accounts, can dramatically reduce the amount you end up with.

If you participate in a QRP and your employer offers a matching contribution, try to contribute at least as much as the match — otherwise, you are leaving free money on the table. If your employer doesn’t offer a QRP or you’re self-employed, look into opening an IRA.

3. Try to stay in the market

When the market takes a big hit, you may be tempted to sell your stocks with the intention of getting back in when things turn around. This practice, known as market timing, may sound good, the market can be extremely unpredictable, making success with this strategy very difficult.

If you get out when the market’s down, you could miss out on significant gains if it suddenly turns around before you get back in. And that can prove costly.

Rather than attempting to time the market, try to stick with your asset allocation when there’s market volatility unless something major has happened in your life (a birth, marriage, illness, divorce, etc.) that makes you want to change it.

In addition, consider rebalancing by checking your accounts to see if market activity has shifted your investments away from your desired asset allocation. If it has, you may want to sell some investments and buy others to bring your accounts back into alignment.

4. Clean up your accounts

Over the years, you may have accumulated a number of IRAs and QRP accounts with your current and past employers. Along with that, you may own taxable investments in different full-service and online accounts. And your spouse or partner may be in a similar situation.

Having a portfolio in pieces like this may make it more difficult for you to reach your retirement goals. Take time to figure out how many accounts you actually have, and consider the potential benefits of consolidating them, including helping you to:

• Understand how your assets are allocated
• Decide when it’s time to rebalance
• Know exactly what investments you own
• Save time
• Manage your beneficiary designations

5. Prepare for emergencies

Events like a sudden job loss or unanticipated home repair can quickly derail your retirement plans. To help protect you and your family, consider keeping an emergency fund with enough money to cover three to six months of living expenses.

These funds should be held in a liquid but stable account, such as a bank savings account, so you can access them when needed and not have to worry about fluctuations in value.

6. Consider an advisory account

If you’re not comfortable with or interested in managing your retirement savings, consider using an advisory account.

These accounts are run by professional money managers who choose the investments, make buy and sell decisions, and periodically readjust the holdings in the account to maintain your chosen asset allocation. Instead of paying commissions for trades in an advisory account, you are charged an annual management fee based on the value of the assets in your account.

To determine how much you will need to fund your retirement, it’s helpful to estimate what your budget will look like. These four questions could help you identify your retirement lifestyle and plan for the related costs.

1. What will I be doing?

• Do I plan to continue working past age 65 or after I reach my full retirement age? Full time or part time?
• Are there hobbies I want to pursue that will either cost money or make money?
• Is there volunteer work that may also have costs associated?
• Do I plan to travel? Where?
• Are there things I enjoy that have related costs?

2. Where will I be living?

• Will I stay in my current home or downsize to something smaller or a rental property?
• Will I move to a retirement community or assisted living facility?
• Will I sell my home and replace it with an RV or other alternative living option?

3. What situations could impact my expenditures?

• What health care coverage do I need for my medical conditions?
• Do I have an emergency fund for unexpected situations such as a health care crisis or property loss due to a natural disaster?
• What if I stop working sooner than expected?
• What happens if I experience a significant income loss?

4. What barriers are keeping me from investing?

• I have nothing extra to invest.
• I have education loans or other debt.
• I don’t know how to start an investment plan.
• I have time to start saving later.

Next steps

Prepare rather than panic. Create an outline from your answers to these questions. It should give you the framework to calculate the income you may need to support your retirement lifestyle.

Decide to adjust your spending patterns today. Choose something you really don’t need and redirect that amount into your retirement savings. Take advantage of growth potential over time. Pay yourself first instead of spending money on something that won’t support your future retirement needs. Creating that nest egg now could reduce your stress about money.

Start or add to an emergency fund. Even if the amount seems very small, it’s important to take the first step. As that amount grows and the behavior becomes a habit, you will likely gain confidence and momentum in your investment activities.

Meet with a TrueJourney financial advisor to review your answers and turn your outline into a plan to help you work toward your goals.