The unique steps millennials, Gen X, and boomers can take to prepare for the 'fragile decade' around retirement

• Americans fear running out of money more than death, with Gen X most concerned.
• Allianz Life's study shows 70% of Gen Xers fear financial instability in retirement.
• Experts explain how each generation can prepare for the 'fragile decade' of retirement.

Americans are concerned about running out of money — and younger generations are more bothered.

Allianz Life surveyed 1,000 individuals age 25+ living in the contiguous US for its 2025 Annual Retirement Study. 70% of Gen Xers fear going broke before they die, while 61% of boomers reported the same fear.

"GenXers are really the ones that are coming up to the danger zone," Kelly LaVigne, the vice president of consumer insights at Allianz Life, told Business Insider. "Boomers have been in it for a long time, so it's not really news."

Millennials fell right in the middle, with 66% reporting that they fear running out of money more than death.

Regardless of your age, you want to prepare for what's known as the "fragile decade," said LaVigne. "It's the five years before and the five years right after you retire."

This is a pivotal time when investors are particularly vulnerable to market volatility.

"When you're close to retirement or at retirement and starting to take money out, it could devastate your whole plan," he said, as you no longer have the luxury of time in the market.

"When you have a significant loss because of the market and you're taking out money at the same time, that could be the difference between having money for your entire lifetime and running out in 20 years before your lifetime does, so having protection against those variables is really important the closer you are to retirement."

Here's what millennials, Gen Xers, and boomers can do right now to mitigate the so-called fragile decade.

For millennials, 'it's all about putting money away now'

Retirement may seem far off, but for millennials and younger generations, "it's all about putting money away now," said LaVigne. "Keep as much as you comfortably can, put that away, because the more you save when you're younger, the further ahead you'll be later on, so you don't run into the crisis that many boomers did."

The simplest way to save is to automatically and regularly transfer money from your paycheck or checking account to your retirement account. If you never see the money, you won't be tempted to spend it, and you'll learn to live without it.

As for where to save, contribute to a 401(k) account if your employer offers one. If it offers a match program, which is essentially free money, contribute at least enough to get the full match.

If you're eligible to save in a Roth IRA — you must earn less than $150,000 as an individual — take advantage of that account, said LaVigne: "Putting money into that as opposed to the traditional one early on in your career is possibly one of the better opportunities for you to be in good shape when you do start really getting serious about retirement."

For Gen Xers, it's 'crunch time'

Retirement is right around the corner for Gen X. Now is the time to add to your nest egg if you can.

"The Gen Xers are realizing that it's crunch time," said LaVigne. Much of this generation has about a 10-year timeframe and has kids either finishing college or already out of school. Especially if you're feeling behind on savings or realizing you may not be able to work as long as you wanted to due to health reasons, "now it's about you and getting serious about saving."

Think about ways you can boost your income, starting with your current job.

"It really depends on what your current career is. Can you get more out of doing more at your current job?" he said. Negotiating a raise or picking up more hours is going to be easier than starting a side hustle or part-time job, but "if you have the interest and you can sacrifice the time, it certainly is a great way to get ahead. And just put all that money away. Don't even use it for expenses. Put as much as you possibly can away for a rainy day and for your future retirement."

For boomers, understand your investments and be strategic with Social Security

There are investment products out there designed to mitigate risk the closer you get to retirement, said LaVigne: "Things like exchange-traded funds, which don't follow an individual stock." There are also buffer ETFs, which can limit losses over a set period. "Say, over a year, if you have a 10% loss, they might be able to make you whole at the end of that 10% period of time, so that you don't fall behind because your investments are losing money."

There are also annuities, which can provide a guaranteed income stream in retirement.

"They give you some growth, because you need growth to get enough money for retirement, but offer you protections," said LaVigne. "It's worse to lose the money after you get it than not to get the money at all, so those are things that these investments can help with."

If you're approaching retirement, look over your investments and understand exactly where your money is.

You'll also want to strategize around Social Security. You can start taking it as early as age 62, but that doesn't necessarily mean you should. In fact, many Americans regret taking it prematurely.

"Don't just take Social Security because you turned 62," said LaVigne. "It could be the right thing for you — I'm not an advocate for everybody waiting until age 70 — but knowing the rules around how Social Security works is a really, really important part. It's not going to be your entire retirement income, but for the average American, it is about 40% of their retirement income."

While it's easier said than done, especially amid market volatility that's outside your control, "overall, the best thing to do is not panic," said LaVigne.

Stay the course, stick to your plan, and don't let other people's decisions impact yours: "Don't be the one that says, 'Oh, everybody's pulling their money out. I'm going to pull my money out.' And then six months or two years later, 'Oh, I hear people are putting their money in. The market is rallying.' By the time the market's rallying, you've already missed some of the best days in the market."