Not everyone fritters away their money on junk. In many cases, there are just too many expenses in the present to even think about the future.

The expenses can run the gamut from workers sandwiched between the expenses of young kids and elderly parents to student loan payments or credit card debt.

"There are so many current obligations and expenses that some people are not thinking about themselves. They are just making ends meet and hopefully, by some miracle, have some money for retirement," says Hirshman.

No matter what the cause, the cure for overextended finances may be old-fashioned budgeting.

"Getting back to the basics in terms of budgeting can help someone find the resources for saving for retirement. It's like making your mortgage payment. It has to be done. It hasn't sunk in yet how important it is," says Kuntz.

That means tracking expenses and cutting spending to the bone.

"You have to look at trade-offs, what is it going to take to get (to retirement)," says Hirshman. "Don't consider it deprivation today. Think of what you're getting tomorrow."