For the more adventurous, real estate income is another way. Investing in rental property can be a compelling option for those who have the time, the handyman abilities, and the willingness to find and work with tenants.

If you're retired, or close to it, you probably know the story. Income--especially guaranteed income--is hard to come by these days. 10-year treasuries yielded 2.3% at the end of November of this year. Ten years ago, that number was nearly double, at 4.5%; 20 years ago, it was 6.1%.

A solid plan for any project, not just retirement, needs strategies to make it happen. Here are some essential building blocks for a retirement plan.

To get retirement right, you'll have to move beyond the dream stage. This means thinking about what will really be important and meaningful to you in retirement--and what it will cost.

You may have seen articles in the financial press recently about the rise of index-fund investing and the demise of active management (stock picking). This is actually nothing new. Investing has been evolving this way for many years, and is in large part a welcome development: Over time, most active management does not beat the indexes, and is expensive to boot. Low-cost indexing is the way to go for most investors.