If you’re in your 30s and haven’t yet saved a six-figure sum for retirement, I believe it’s far too soon in the game to be hitting the panic button. Why? You’re still (likely) in the earlier innings of your career and have yet to unlock (and understand) the full power to be had from compound interest. Compounding is one of those concepts best understood after you’ve seen it in action (think your portfolio value appreciation after a decade or more of consistent reinvestment of dividends).

Indeed, if you’re in your 30s and only have four figures saved up, it can feel like you’re driving in the right lane (the slow one) in a race against time. Though having less than $10,000 in a 401k isn’t ideal, I think that meeting with a financial advisor can easily help steer you back in the left lane as you hit the gas a bit on your retirement plans. Of course, it can be tough to make up for lost time, but if you’ve got a 401k employee match, as this 30-something Reddit poster who’s looking to play catch up does, I do think the right tools are in place to pick up the pace.

This individual in their 30s is behind on their 401k savings but far from being “too far behind.”

Undoubtedly, having less than $10,000 would qualify as being “behind” in retirement for someone in their 30s. However, I believe there’s no such thing as being too far behind. At the end of the day, a four-figure sum in the 401k is far better than having zero or a negative sum. While your 401k nest egg may be far below the average at any given age, I do believe that circumstances can change with the proper guidance and financial game plan.

Whether that entails “downgrading” the current lifestyle to save more and make the most of a 401k employee match (such matches can be akin to receiving free cash from your work!), being less conservative with one’s investments (someone in their 30s shouldn’t be investing like someone in their 60s!), or steering clear of bad financial decisions (think leasing a vehicle or getting involved in get-rich-quick schemes), there’s always some place to improve.

Indeed, if you’ve got less than $10,000, it may be costly to visit a financial advisor. Either way, I’d still encourage savers, like the 30-something Redditor poster, to find one that fits within their budget. It doesn’t have to cost a small fortune to get good advice to help one build a fortune over the decades.

Additionally, I’d encourage those who feel miles behind with their retirement savings to use the negative emotions (think guilt, shame, envy, hopelessness, and all the sort) as motivation to close the gap with the averages, whatever that may be. I believe it is possible to start one’s financial journey at a snail-pace, only to accelerate to a hare’s pace by the final decade.

Whether we’re talking about supercharging one’s savings habits, raises from one’s work (which may entail heftier 401k employee matches), or good, old-fashioned dividend reinvestment to compound one’s retirement portfolio, there are realistic pathways that can lead one down the path a retirement that’s fatter than expected.

The bottom line

It’s okay to feel just a bit discouraged if you’re struggling to save, especially if you’re in your 30s, a pretty expensive time in one’s life, with student loan debts, mortgage debts, and children, among other expenses common to the decade. Indeed, your 30s is a time to get serious about finances, especially compared to your 20s. The good news is that it’s never too late to shift gears to ensure they’re returned to the right retirement trajectory.

For now, cutting back on spending is a top priority for someone who’s severely behind on savings. I think a professional financial advisor could also make sense to budget for in the new year. Perhaps the new year could bring a new way to think about saving for retirement.

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