What must I do to secure my financial future?

[Sophia Dwyer]

I am already 40 and some friends advised me to start saving for my retirement as early as now. That I should start calculating how much I will need during my retirement and a company pension plan or Social Security cannot be my sole source of retirement income. What must I do then to secure my financial future?

[Christopher B.]

That's a pretty big question to answer. Based on how you've structured this question I'd suggest that you focus on increasing your financial literacy first and foremost. BP is great but I'd suggest starting with a couple books on the basics of finance and investments in general. Essentially you need to understand how money works. Just like building a house,  you have to start with a solid foundation. As your knowledge increases the puzzle pieces will become more clear.