There's a reason workers are encouraged to do what they can to save for retirement. Without a nest egg, retirement could become a period that's laden with financial stress.

If you're an average earner, Social Security will only replace about 40% of your pre-retirement wages. But most seniors easily need around twice that much replacement income to cover their expenses and have money left over to actually enjoy that stage of life.

In fact, Northwestern Mutual's most recent Planning & Progress Study found that Americans believe they'll need $1.27 million, on average, to set the stage for a comfortable retirement. And the good news is that it may be easier than you'd expect to amass a nest egg that large.

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Source Fool.com