Your 50s are crucial if you want a good retirement. Don’t waste them

We roll into our 50s thinking we’ve got time. Retirement still feels a long way off. The mortgage might be halfway tamed (or at least not keeping us up at night), the kids are showing a few signs of independence, and there’s a little more breathing space in the budget. It’s easy to think we can cruise for a bit.

But here’s the thing: this is not the time to coast.

Retirement may feel a long way off in your 50s, but it’s crucial you don’t get used to coasting.Credit: Simon Letch

Your 50s and early 60s are the years that make or break how easy your retirement will feel – financially and otherwise. And for Gen X, the first generation to have superannuation throughout most of their working lives, this isn’t just the pre-retirement wind-down. It’s a whole new life stage.

One with more freedom. More income. More choices. One that doesn’t ask you to wait for retirement to enjoy your life – it asks you to design it. This is the decade where your choices start to really matter – in money, lifestyle, and your ability to shape what comes next. But only if you’re proactive.

If you sit back, you risk missing the window where you get to choose, and instead find yourself forced to accept whatever happens next.

By your 50s, a lot has shifted. You might be earning more than ever. The kids aren’t chewing through your bank account quite like they used to. And you’ve probably figured out what actually matters — how you want to spend your time, who you want to spend it with, and the kind of life you’d like to grow into next.

This decade isn’t just about money. It’s about making choices that actually fit the life you want.

That’s powerful. But only if you use it. Too many people drift through these years on autopilot — earning well, spending without a plan, putting off the big questions. What do I want the next 20 years to look like? How much will I really need? And what am I working toward?

This is your chance to stop coasting and start designing the life you want. Before life designs itself for you.

Now’s the time to get deliberate

Most people don’t get to choose when they leave work. Health issues, caring responsibilities, redundancy, or burnout push them out earlier than planned. If you’re still in the driver’s seat, with options, income, and energy, use it.

This is the time to lay down strong financial foundations, rethink what you want from your work life as you mature, and start actively shaping the next 10 or fifteen years. That might mean working hard for a bit and saving harder; before shifting gears into a lifestyle or purpose-oriented phase.

And after that, choosing when you’re ready to cut back your hours. Or it might mean stepping off the treadmill in your current career path and into something you feel passionate about trying.

Only 31 per cent of people leave the workforce on their own terms today – with plans in place and a goal in mind. That’s not enough in my opinion. And with AI already shaking up roles people never imagined were at risk, that number probably won’t rise anytime soon.

Small changes now can transform your later years

Let’s say you manage to free up $10,000 a year by tightening your spending, not sacrificing the fun, just trimming the fluff and repurposing money you’re no longer spending on the kids.

Maybe it used to go to school fees, grocery blowouts, or lifestyle habits that don’t serve you any more.

If you tip that $10,000 into your super each year from age 52 to 60, you could end up with an extra $80,000 to $100,000 in your retirement balance – and that’s before compound growth does its thing.

That money could fund five to seven extra years of part-time freedom. Or travel. Or support for your kids or ageing parents. Whatever matters most to you.

And if you let it keep growing inside super into your 70s? That $80,000 to $100,000 could become $250,000 to $300,000 by age 75 and generate a tax-free income stream you’ll be thrilled to have. If each of you within a couple finds $10,000 for these midlife years, you can double that impact.

Think about retirement as a rewiring, giving you more time to do the things you love.Credit: Getty Images

Your super matters more than ever

It’s easy to think of super as “future you” money. But in your 50s, future you is knocking loudly, and would really like a bit more attention.

The good news? Most people have got options at this point of life. If you can find a few spare bucks, you can salary sacrifice up to $30,000 a year into super, including your employer contributions which hit 12 per cent on July 1.

You can take advantage of the carry-forward rules if you’ve had years with lower income or missed contributions too. And if you’ve still got time on your side, switching your settings to a growth option (rather than something too conservative) can supercharge the benefits of compounding.

And remember, you’re not locking it away for decades. You’re probably only a few years from being able to access it. That’s the magic of this stage: you’re close enough to see your super becoming real, but still far enough out that the actions you take now can make a serious difference.

It’s not just about super

This is your decade to get fully in control of your money — not just for retirement, but for the next 40 years of your life.

Still have high-interest debt? Demolish it. A leftover mortgage? Tackle it. Credit card balances that never seem to disappear? Time to sort them out. Struggling to budget, save, or say no when it matters? Step up.

This is the moment to get ruthless about your money – so you can choose the kind of work you want to do, rather than being backed into high-paying, low-reward roles just to stay afloat.

Run your numbers. Know your assets, liabilities, income and expenses. Work out what enough looks like for you – and how your money could compound if you give it the right runway.

You might even realise you already have enough super, on the right settings, to hit your goals. For some, working longer doesn’t buy a better life – it just increases the inheritance. So ask yourself honestly: is that what you’re working for? Or is there something more fulfilling waiting for you once you give yourself permission to look?

Start dreaming forward

This decade isn’t just about money. It’s about making choices that actually fit the life you want – purpose, relevance and joy that go beyond promotions, pay rises, or impressing people who still measure success by how high you climb. Maybe life’s not about that any more. Or at least not in the second half.

It’s time to start sketching the next version of you. It might mean slowing down or changing lanes. Throwing yourself into something new. Maybe you want to write, volunteer, travel, start a business – or finally take Wednesdays off for surfing or lunch with your mates.

Whatever your next chapter looks like, it won’t happen by accident. This phase is the stretch of life between full-blown parenting and full-blown retirement. It’s yours to enjoy. So why wait until you “retire” to feel fulfilled, free and excited about life?

You don’t need to overhaul everything. But you do need to show up for yourself. This window won’t stay open forever – but use it well, and it could unlock the best years of your life.

Bec Wilson is author of the bestseller How to Have an Epic Retirement and the newly released Prime Time: 27 Lessons for the New Midlife. She writes a weekly newsletter at epicretirement.net and hosts the Prime Time podcast.

• Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making financial decisions.

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