‘Recipe for disaster': Tony Robbins blasts US retirees for relying on Social Security — how to avoid the trap

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Tony Robbins, the well-known motivational speaker, warns that the most popular approach to Social Security is also the most dangerous.
On his blog, he says relying on the program as the foundation of your retirement plan is a 'recipe for disaster."
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Here's why Robbins encourages people to look beyond this safety net and why a growing number of working-age Americans are already leaning towards alternative strategies.
For most Americans over the age of 65, an average monthly Social Security benefit of $2,000 isn't enough. Data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) program shows that retired households spend over double that every month.
The program's sustainability is also in doubt, meaning future retirees could potentially see even lower benefits. Trust fund assets are expected to be depleted by 2033, according to the Social Security Administration (SSA), while the Trump administration's proposed tax cuts could deplete the funds in as little as six years, according to Marc Goldwein of The Committee for a Responsible Budget.
In other words, Social Security might not be a solid foundation for your retirement plan.
'Time to get your head out of the sand and do some easy number crunching to find out where you are and where you need to be,' Robbins wrote in a blog post.
Robbins goes on to encourage working-age Americans to create their own nest egg. Instead of relying on Social Security, it could be a good idea to start building out an independent retirement fund as soon as you can.
Robbins recommends targeting savings of roughly 20 times your annual expenses. This can be coupled with the 4% withdrawal rule, which means you can safely use 4% of these assets after adjusting for inflation to meet your living expenses without depleting your funds over the long term.
To reach that level of savings, it's important to start investing early and often.
Read more: Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market —
The key to building a robust portfolio for the long run is spreading your wealth across different asset types. As you approach retirement, you'll often need to sell off assets to maintain your lifestyle.
But if all of your investments are in a single stock, and that stock is down when you want to retire, what will you do? That's why diversification is key.
The stock market has see-sawed during 2025 due to a combination of geopolitical uncertainty and shifting economic priorities, driven in part by U.S. tariff negotiations.
This is one reason why considering inflation-resistant investments for your retirement, such as gold, may be worthwhile. This precious metal is typically more stable than stocks during economic downturns and recessions. In April 2025, gold breached the $3,000 per ounce benchmark. What's more, JP Morgan Chase predicts that gold could soar to $4,000 per ounce in 2026.
To capitalize on gold's growth potential while also securing tax advantages, one option is opening a gold IRA with the help of Priority Gold.
Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold against economic uncertainty. When you make a qualifying purchase with Priority Gold, you can receive up to $10,000 in free silver.
According to a Deloitte survey, 89% of wealth managers believe art and collectibles should be a part of a wealth management offering. That could be a sign it's worth considering this physical asset as a part of your retirement strategy.
This market has traditionally been the domain of the ultra-rich, but now you don't need to be an expert in art to take advantage of this asset class.
Platforms like Masterworks simplify the process of art investing, allowing everyday investors to buy fractional shares of blue-chip artwork from iconic artists like Picasso, Basquiat and Banksy. Like blue-chip stocks, these are pieces of art that tend to only increase in value over time. This can make it easier to diversify your portfolio without the complexity and cost of managing art investments on your own.
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Then there's real estate. For most people, this means purchasing a home, but there are now ways to invest without amassing a sizable down payment and taking on a mortgage.
For instance, with Arrived, you can invest in rental homes and vacation rentals, curated and vetted for their appreciation and income potential.
Backed by world-class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived makes it easy to fit these properties into your investment portfolio regardless of your income level. Their flexible investment amounts and simplified process allow investors to take advantage of this inflation-hedging asset class without any extra work on their part.
For accredited investors, Homeshares gives access to the $34.9 trillion U.S. home equity market, which has historically been the exclusive playground of institutional investors.
With a minimum investment of $25,000, investors can gain direct exposure to hundreds of owner-occupied homes in top U.S. cities through their U.S. Home Equity Fund — without the headaches of buying, owning or managing property.
With risk-adjusted target returns ranging from 14% to 17%, this approach provides an effective, hands-off way to invest in owner-occupied residential properties across regional markets.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.