A recent survey conducted by TD Ameritrade found that millennials, on average, expect to retire at the age of 56. While the current average retirement age is 63 - and is expected to rise - this may seem like an unrealistic goal. Availa Bak recommends millennials put together a savings plan now to work toward their long-term goals.

While it would take a lot of hard work and diligent saving to achieve a retirement age of 56, it's not entirely impossible. A strict financial savings plan can help. See below for steps that can help you acheive your retirement goals. 

Steps to achieve early retirement

While no financial savings plan can fully compensate for all the possibilities that life throws at you, having a comprehensive plan can make the journey toward retirement a little easier. Following are a few ideas to include in a plan.

1. Start saving early. At the very least, millennials will have to start saving as soon as they graduate from college and enter the professional world. The earlier they can start saving, the faster their savings will acumulate. By committing to putting a large portion of their paychecks into savings right away, millennials will be more likely to meet their retirement goals. 

2. Make saving automatic. Contributions to savings should automatically be transferred to a savings or investment account. Saving automatically will also help millennials to grow accustomed to a lifestyle that includes a smaller take-home percentage of their paychecks. 

3. Take advantage of employer match contributions. Millennials - and really all professionals - should contribute the maximum amount to their 401k plans to receive the full employer match. This is essentially free money that will dramatically increase their retirement savings. 

4. Diversify your investments. While employer-sponsored 401k plans like Roth IRAs and traditional IRAs are great retirement savings vehicles, it may be wise to consider another type of investment plan as well. Make an appointment with a financial advisor to explore options that can make your savings work for you. 

5. Increasing contributions annually. One sure-fire way to speed up growth in retirement savings accounts is to contribute more. As millenials' income increases - through cost-of-living wage increases, raises, or higher-paying jobs - they should also increase their retirement and investment contributionjs. 

While the steps described above will not guarantee that millenials will save enough to retire at age 56, they can help ensure that their retirement savings are in better shape at whatever age they decide to retire.