According to a survey, many single women are ill-prepared for retirement and unlikely to achieve a financially secure golden age if they don't take action now. I suspect the same is true of a great number of men, but as we know, men are loath to ask for help. When asked about their retirement plans, I dare say almost all men would reply, "Got it covered".

According to the findings of the Ninth Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey, single women make up a majority of women in the US. Single women apparently dream of a retirement filled with travel, the pursuit of hobbies, and spending more time at home with family and friends. The truth is, however, that some may never realise their dreams and others may not be able to afford to retire at all.

The survey reported that single women estimate needing a median amount of $500,000 by the time they reach retirement. However, more than one-third of those who responded said that they had saved less than $25,000 for retirement, while only one in 10 reported having saved more than $100,000. When asked how they arrived at their estimate, nearly two-thirds of single women admitted that they guessed the answer. Notably, only six percent completed a worksheet or calculation, or received their estimate from a financial adviser.

The survey found that single women most frequently cited self-funded savings programmes operated in the US, such as 401(k) plans and IRAs, which are not available in Bermuda, as their expected primary source of income in retirement. Yet only 69 percent of single women who work full-time reported that their current employer offers them a 401(k) plan.

This can be explained, in part, by the fact that a majority of single women (56 percent) said they would prefer a job with a higher salary over one with excellent retirement benefits. For single women who work part-time, the picture is even gloomier: the survey found that 64 percent have no retirement benefits offered by their employer.

Single women who have access to a 401(k) or a similar plan through their employer do not all take advantage of the opportunity to save. The survey found that only 70 percent participated in the plan, with a median contribution rate of six percent.

"Too many single women are still not saving for retirement, and those who are should be saving much more," said Catherine Collinson, president of the Transamerica Centre for Retirement Studies, a non-profit corporation. "For most single women, their current savings rates are unlikely to build a large enough retirement nest egg. It's important for everyone to conduct a proper analysis to estimate their retirement needs and to create a plan that will help get them there."

Single women face competing financial priorities which influence their ability to save for retirement. The majority of single women cited either "just getting by" (33 percent) or "paying off debt" (30 percent) as their greatest financial priority, while only 17 percent cited "saving for retirement".

The survey also found that single women frequently (46 percent) cited "outliving their money" as one of their greatest fears about retirement. Their fears are apparently well-founded, in that studies have shown that elderly women are more likely to live in poverty and marital status is one of the critical factors that determine whether they will become or stay poor in retirement.

"Despite greater financial independence, women also have longer life expectancies and they are more likely to work part-time or take time out of the workforce to be mothers and caregivers," said Collinson.

"These circumstances make it much more difficult for many women to adequately save for retirement, so it's important they remain mindful of the implications of their life and employment-related decisions and how to adapt accordingly.

"Balancing today's financial priorities with saving for retirement is quite challenging for many," Collinson said, "yet single women can take action to help improve their outlook for a secure retirement."

Single women can increase the likelihood of achieving their retirement dreams by taking the following steps:

• Become more educated;

• Learn about retirement planning and investing concepts (which can be done via this column on the odd occasion that I remember what I'm supposed to be writing about);

• Take advantage of self-help tools such as online calculators to help assess retirement needs;

• Calmly and without emotion assess current financial priorities and long-term savings needs;

• Assess competing financial priorities and seek a balance between immediate needs and saving for retirement;

• Calculate retirement savings needs and create a savings plan for achieving them. In the event of shortfalls, seek a balance between saving more, investing more effectively and working longer;

• Translate these plans into action;

• Start saving as soon as possible;

• Be sure to consider retirement benefit offerings when assessing future employment opportunities;

• If possible, save for retirement outside of work as well; and

• Avoid borrowing or withdrawing from retirement accounts prior to reaching retirement age. Although the survey related to single women in the US, we're all people under the skin, innit, and these suggestions apply to all of us, male or female, Bermudian or Uighur, and so forth.

Fear of the truth often leads us not to want to face reality. In financial matters, this is probably most often expressed in not wanting to make plans or, in a more extreme example, not making a will for fear of contemplating our own death. My advice is to be a man (or a woman, as the mood takes you) and face facts. The truth, as they say, will set you free - free to save, free to spend, or free to at least understand your situation and act accordingly.