| Financial advice for a successful military career Many military families are already aware that financial problems can often have an impact on a service member’s ability to carry out his or her duties. Recent reports have highlighted this issue, including one released in 2003 by the Department of Defense and the Rand Corporation. The study revealed that financial difficulties could have significant mission impact, such as requiring an individual to return from a deployment to resolve a financial emergency. In the military, financial problems are often the first listed by leaders when asked about personnel problems. Often, “immaturity, a lack of spending restraint, and naiveté regarding financial matters [are] the most significant drivers of financial problems.” And if a military family does experience financial difficulty, it can be a long path to recovery due to lower than average pay, the near impossibility of service members to get a second job, and difficulties with spouses finding employment due to frequent moves. But research also shows that this problem can be addressed with comprehensive financial education. The National Council on Economic Education reported that nearly 50 percent of the adult population receives a failing grade on basic economic knowledge. But it also noted that just 10 hours of financial education could improve spending and savings habits. This booklet is intended to provide a reference guide to the fundamentals of personal financial management. Specifically, it focuses on how to get military families on a solid financial footing. Stressing both discipline and training, this guide was developed from 20 years of experience working with military families, and is aimed at helping them better understand their finances. The topics presented include:
The goal is to provide complete, accurate and usable information so every military family can gain essential knowledge, be good stewards of their finances, and help those that serve focus on their primary mission. And by including the tools and resources to equip military families to act, real change can occur. Because information without execution is meaningless. —————— MilitaryConnection.com thanks you for your patronage. This web site is a portal of all things military, and we are quickly becoming the “go to” web site for all things military. We are constantly adding resources, content and features to benefit our audience. Our web site and all of the resources are free to users, and there is something for everyone. Additionally, we feature finance articles like this to keep you informed. If you belong to a group or organization, we will post your press releases, special events, newsletters, professional conferences and seminars, reunions, job fairs, and videos to help spread the word. One of the areas of our focus is connecting candidates from the military community with outstanding government and civilian employers. We know that candidates from the military community across the board have a work ethic second to none. They make highly valued employees. MilitaryConnection.com has a multitude of employment resources including a Directory of over 30,000 employers, Job Tips, Columns, our new and improved Job Board, Virtual Job Fair and much more. We understand the importance of education. Please check out our new Education section, featuring the most up to date information on the new GI Bill, Education Articles, Education Benefits, and the Scholarship Directory featuring thousands of scholarships. When the next tour is back home, it’s on MilitaryConnection.com. |