According to a study by PayScale, women and men both see an average 60 percent salary growth by age 30. The decade people spend in their 30s then becomes an important time for them to contribute toward their retirement as they'll be earning significantly more than they did in their 20s and still giving their investments time to mature.
Contribute to your company's 401(k)
For those that work at a company that offers a 401(k) they should invest the maximum that they can into it throughout their tenure at the company. Investing into a 401(k) is especially beneficial if a company offers matching contributions. With this, a company is essentially giving free money toward their employees' retirements. It's possible for individuals to save thousands of extra dollars each year for their retirement and not have it taken from their own income if a company has matching contributions.
Save outside of work
Even if they company offers a 401(k), or another type of retirement account, save outside of it. Credit unions offer individual retirement accounts. According to the IRS an IRA allows individuals to contribute up to $5,500 (or $6,500 if over the age of 50) in 2014 and 2015. Personal IRAs enable individuals to save and invest their incomes without it being taxed until its withdrawn. The age someone can withdraw from their IRA is 59 1/2. Funds can be taken out before this age, but it will invoke a 10 percent penalty. Earnings and gains are taxed once distributed.