I recently read The Number by Lee Eisenberg.  In it, he defines four different types when it comes to retirement planning - the procrastinator, the plucker, the plotter and the prober.  (Click here for definitions.)

Personally, I think I fall somewhere between plotter and prober.  I’m definitely a number-cruncher.  I get a great deal of enjoyment (maybe TOO much - LOL) from creating spreadsheets and planning my path to my own “number”.  However, I have defined what I want retirement to look like and I think I have a pretty balanced lifestyle in terms of living for today vs saving for tomorrow.

I suspect a large part of the population falls into the two first two categories - procrastinator or plucker, which can prove troublesome.  I can’t imagine how it feels to wake up one day at age 50 or 60 and realize I have no idea on how to retire.

So which type are you and if you’re one of the first two types, what are you going to do about it?