Even when stocks and the economy are humming along nicely, it's tough to convince our primitive instincts that we should sacrifice today to save for the future.
So it should come as little surprise that retirement saving is taking a back seat to other issues in the economic downturn and housing slump.
Retirement savings ranked as a lower priority than keeping up with monthly expenses for the first time since 2004, according to the Mercer Workplace Survey released in December.
Another study, released by Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies, found that just 59 percent of workers claimed to be "very" or "somewhat" confident in a comfortable retirement, down from 75 percent a year earlier. Nearly 1 in 5 workers in that survey had taken out a loan against their company 401(k) plan, up from 11 percent the year before.
"The recurring theme is that consumer debt is rising to a degree we haven't seen before," said Catherine Collinson, president of the center. This is the survey's ninth year.
Paying off debt was the top financial priority, noted by 32 percent of survey participants, who were full-time workers over 18, employed at firms with 10 or more workers. In last year's survey, saving for retirement was No. 1.
In the most recent survey, only workers making $100,000 or more in annual income were more likely to say retirement was their top priority, Transamerica officials said.
Mercer officials gave the immediate economic environment as the reason for the drop in long-term savings as a priority.
"The decline in expected home values has contributed to a growing sense of uneasiness among participants and their current financial outlook," they said in a statement. "As a result, savings priorities are being reordered - with retirement taking the biggest hit."
The question is what to do about this. Certainly, down markets can provide bargain opportunities for long-term investors, but that's little comfort to consumers who may now owe more on their homes than the market value, or who are nervously watching stock market volatility.
When stocks sank last month, Mercer issued a Q&A; in a newsletter to participants of retirement plans it serves that tried to reiterate one of the most basic - and ignored - tenets of long-term investing: Don't panic.
It warned investors not to lock in market losses and reminded them of the tax consequences of withdrawing money early from retirement accounts.
Volatile markets do provide opportunities for shifting money around, so if your asset allocation has gotten out of whack, consider rebalancing your portfolio to better fit your risk tolerance, experts said.
Not sure what asset allocation is? You're not alone, and that's another step in doing something about retirement uncertainty.
Collinson said just 9 percent of those surveyed in Transamerica's study indicated they have a great deal of knowledge about asset allocation, the process of dividing a portfolio among various classes of stocks, bonds and other investments.
"What better time, then, to start getting educated?" she said.
Tax planning is another area where investors can assume some control amid the volatility.
This becomes even more important when you consider the aging baby boomer generation and the squeeze on government resources it will create, which experts believe will cause tax rates to rise significantly.
If you have all of your retirement money in tax-deferred accounts, you might consider a Roth individual retirement account if your taxable income qualifies or a Roth 401(k) plan, if it's available where you work. Under these plans, no deductions are allowed on contributions, but the money grows and is distributed tax-free in retirement.
In the Transamerica survey, about half of participants indicated they would like the option of paying taxes now and withdrawing funds in retirement on an after-tax basis.
A suggestion to the benefits department may not move retirement to the front seat again, but it's one way to try to protect your long-term savings.
yourmoney@tribune.com
Janet Kidd Stewart writes for Tribune Media Services.