Transitioning from your life in the military, especially after you’ve served almost half your life, is indeed quite difficult. Retirement means sufficient savings and in today’s difficult economy this requires plenty of planning done in advance.
Here are some tips for military veterans on how to plan for retirement:
1. Determine Post-Retirement Financial Needs
The most important thing to consider is your future income need and begin planning from there. This will require calculating with variables such as median income requirement, inflation rate, and the numbers of years remaining before you retire. Here’s a great retirement estimator you might find helpful. Also, here are four things to consider when you are drawing up your retirement plan.
2. Begin by Saving as Early as Possible
If you know enough about compounding, you’d know how saving early can result in double the amount of savings than those you’d have if you started saving ten years later. However, this shouldn’t discourage you from starting to save late either. However, the earlier you start, the bigger the basket.
3. Make Use of Saving Plans
There’s a variety of retirement saving plans you could opt into. The IRS (internal revenue service) has listed down plans on their website for types of retirement plans (IRA, Roth IRA’s, etc). Here is some more information on military retired pay systems.
4. Plan on Working After You Retire
You might decide against it at first, but working after retirement serves two purposes and both are vital for ex-military officials: finances after retirement and a way to be of service. Many veterans find that a job helps them deal with negative emotions after they’ve completed their service. But to be on the safe side, make sure you save and plan for retirement with the assumption that you won’t be working.
5. Earn a Diploma
Many military men sign up for education during their services so that they can easily transition into the workforce after they retire. Not only will you enhance your military career with education and qualifications (aided by essay services by professionals), but also increase your probability of success post-retirement.
6. Don’t Forget Life Insurance
While you’re on your way to planning for retirement, it’s also crucial to remember that you life is still on the line. Retirement planning will be required if you live till old age, but there’s always other possibilities for military people to consider. Don’t forget planning for insurance ahead of time.
7. Begin Networking
You won’t believe the amount of help you can get simply from re-connecting with people you knew during service, before you joined the military, or anytime after. Friends, relatives, acquaintances could provide help, tips, or even a job.
8. Invest
Investing young could mean the difference between having enough money for retirement or having none. The stock market has some investing options that are perfect for military men. Make good use of these options whenever you get the chance.
9. Sign Up for a Program
The government offers transitionary programs for ex-military men such as Transition Assistance Program and Transition Boot Camp. These workshops could enable you to become more familiar with the contemporary job market and how you can slowly adjust into it. Just like training for the military, they will equip you will skills that are required in the job market including preparation for resume writing and interviews.
10. Keep Track of Your Retirement Strategy
If you’ve already come up with a retirement plan, you probably already have a “strategy” to follow. Losing track of it is only going to render your strategy useless. Review your plan, adjust your strategy if required, and make sure you’re meeting your financial targets on time.
Author Bio: Christina Matthew works as a content developer for an online start-up. She also enjoys writing guest blogs as it allows her to explore new topics and learn more.
