Preparing for the Future
It is time to start thinking about your future. This has been said to me many times over my career and some times I listened and some times I did not. As I approach my retirement these words have even more meaning because the future will be here very soon. Each one of us needs to look at where we are right now in life and start planning on for the future. This is a very board topic it includes financial planning, medical planning, and family planning.
Financial planning is talked about a lot by the services today. More security clearances are lost due to a member’s financial problems then for any other reason. This will affect not only your military career but also you potential for future employment on the outside. Many companies are will to pay more if you have that clearance already when they hire you. So do you save a little money each pay check for emergencies? You should have at least a months pay in the bank preferably three to six months pay that you can tap into quickly. Since we are all going to be getting out of the military eventually, either after four years or 30 years, it is important to have that nest egg building up. Do you pay your credit cards off each month or at least pay more then the minimum? If you do not you need to seek help from your unit’s financial counselor. Ask for help before you start missing payments.
Medical is another area of life that each of need to look at. Do you seek medical attention when you are injured or sick or do you just gut through it? It may seem like a good idea at the time not to go to medical but an untreated injury normally gets worse. When you leave the military the VA will evaluate you for injuries that are service related. The last month or two is not the time to try and get everything documented. It builds a much better case for a disability if you have seen medical for an injury when it happened not 5, 10 or 20 years later. Also consider buying a long term disability policy. This will help to pay for expenses not covered by medical insurance such as nursing homes and home visits. This is a little known benefit that you can get as a member of the military.
The last part of this is family planning. Does your spouse or grown children know what to do if something happens to you? Do they know where your will or important papers are? Do you even have a will? Make sure that you have talked to your spouse about what to do if something happens to you. It is not a topic most people want to discuss but it is vital. Have a folder with important information in such as location of important papers, bank accounts, safe deposit boxes, life insurance policies, etc. The time for your spouse to find out about this stuff is not after something has happened to you and he or she is alone trying to figure it all out.