Assalamu Alaikum girlie! 🌸

Today’s topic might make your eyes glaze over a little (retirement?? already??), but trust me you’ll want to read this one.

It’s one thing to save money for the future... but it’s another thing to make smart moves with that money so Future You isn’t out here stressed at 68 wondering what went wrong 🥴

This week, I’m breaking down 4 expensive (but common!) retirement mistakes too many people make so you can avoid them with ease.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

• What to double-check with every retirement account

• A very misunderstood thing about taxes 🧾

• How to actually figure out how much to save

• Why relying on Social Security is not a strategy

Let’s get into it, girlie 💅

🚨Mistake 1: Thinking your money is invested… when it’s not

Ouuuu this one hurts. Just because you’ve been contributing to a retirement account doesn’t mean the money is actually invested.

A lot of people think setting up payroll contributions = done deal. But here’s the catch: if you didn’t go in and choose your investments, that money might just be sitting there in cash. Doing a whole lotta nothing. 😬

Let me give you an example. Say you’ve been putting aside 8% of your paycheck for 5 years, thinking it’s growing. But if you never selected your investment options, it’s just sitting there. Instead of growing from $100K to possibly $300K or more, you’re stuck with flat savings and missed opportunity. Ouch.

✅ What to do:
Log into your 401(k) or IRA portal and check your investment allocations. If it says 100% money market fund or a stable value fund (they usually have ribaa anyway), that’s a red flag. Call HR or your plan’s support line and say, “Hi, I want to make sure my retirement contributions are actually being invested. Can someone help walk me through it?”

💸 Mistake 2: Ignoring the tax strategy of your account

Not all retirement accounts are created equal, especially when it comes to taxes.

You’ve probably heard of Roth and Traditional accounts, here’s what they mean:

• Traditional 401(k): You invest before taxes and pay taxes later when you withdraw

• Roth 401(k): You invest after taxes and don’t pay taxes later

A million dollars in a Roth is not the same as a million in a traditional account. One is fully yours. The other? Gotta share with Uncle Sam.😤

✅ What to do:
Figure out which type of account you have. Some jobs offer both Roth and Traditional 401(k) options — you can even split your contributions between the two. If you’re self-employed or using an IRA, you can choose which one you want.

Mistake 3: Not running the numbers for your retirement goal

You can’t hit a target you never set, right?

There are tons of free retirement calculators online (SmartAsset, NerdWallet, Ramsey Solutions) that’ll help you figure out how much you need to invest monthly to reach a specific goal by age 60, 65, etc.

You don’t have to be perfect, but you do need a target.

Good thing is, retirement calculators make it super simple. You just input your age, how much you’ve already saved, how much you’re investing monthly, and how much you want by retirement and it’ll give you a real number to work with.

✅ What to do:
Play around with any of these retirement calculators to what you might need: SmartAsset, NerdWallet, Ramsey Solutions Investment Calculator.

🏛️ Mistake 4: Relying on Social Security

Let me say this gently… the government is not your retirement plan, girl.

Social Security was created to be a supplement, not your entire safety net. At best, it’ll cover around 40% of your basic pre-retirement income (source: ssa.gov). At worst? Who knows. Policies shift, systems change, and we’ve seen how fast things can get cut or restructured.

And honestly, by the time we reach retirement age, we don’t know what Social Security will even look like. So you don’t want to stake your future on it.

✅ What to do:
Start thinking of Social Security as extra and not essential. If you get it, great. But your real retirement plan should be built on tawakkul, investing consistently, and building your own wealth from now.

Why Am I Telling You This?

Because most of us didn’t grow up learning about investing, retirement, or any of this money stuff. And girl, it’s too expensive to wing it.

That’s why I created Master Your Money, a practical, fluff-free course that breaks all this down into bite-size pieces so you can build wealth, pay off debt, and invest like a boss lady, Inshaa Allah.

The early-bird discount is no longer available but the course is officially live!🎉 It’s packed with everything you need to build financial peace - now and for the long run.

Cheering you on,

Fatimah💎

Founder, Finance Girlie