Midcareer workers in their 40s and 50s face their kids' college tuition and possibly supporting an elderly relative.

• Resist the urge to refinance your house if it starts a new 30-year mortgage. Says Paul Capeloto: "You want all debt paid off when you retire."

• Those without pension plans should be saving 10 percent or more by their 50s.

• As much as you love those kids, don't pay for their college if it means halting retirement savings. Retirement comes first; there are no grants or scholarships for assisted living.

Further reading:

"We're Not in Kansas Anymore: Strategies for Retiring Rich in a Totally Changed World," Walter Updegrave, Crown, available March 2004, $24. Achieving retirement security in today's low-interest-rate economy.

AARP money-management site isn't just for retirees: www.aarp.org/money

More resources

• Received inheritance nine years ago and has 80 percent of it invested in growth stocks. "I was pretty leery of stock at first. Then I decided to make this expand."

• Pays brokers and tax accountants for advice she believes is worth the money and "has been absolutely vital to my financial survival."

• Loves her job and plans to work until 65, longer part time if necessary.

• Expects to pay a 15-year mortgage before retiring.

• Plans to finance retirement with a 20-year school-system pension, Social Security and her investments.

How's she doing? Great, especially in not spending her inheritance. Is she overly exposed to risk with so much stock? Maybe not. Middle-aged women "can't tread water" in overly conservative investments, Paul Capeloto of Smith Barney, says. "If women are paid less, then they must have aggressive behavior to meet the goal" of retirement.