What influenced your decision to join the military, and what led to your decision to leave active duty? Giff Carter, Chief Revenue Officer GIFF CARTER (GC): I’m a bit embarrassed to say, but the movie Top Gun. I joined in 1989, it was shortly after the movie came out, the Cold War was in full force and, ...
The 2018 Military Influencer Conference is back. It will be held 23-25 September in Orlando, FL, at the same resort as FinCon, the conference for financial media. FinCon is full of our people, but MIC is our tribe. You’ll meet over 400 attendees like you: whether you’re on active duty, or optimizing your ...
This was the best conference yet! For those who are just joining us, last month I polled people's questions about USAA's insurance and financial programs. I brought those issues to the Digital Military Experience with USAA's Communications team, other program managers, and several executives. But first, it's ...
[Nords note: if you're finding this post via a search engine, here's the followup post with USAA's responses: USAA Answers Your Insurance And Financial Questions] It's almost that time of year again! The San Antonio summer is cooling off (a little) and on 19-20 September I'll be USAA's guest ...
A long while back, a reader wrote: "Hey, Nords, any chance you'll do a summary post about your FIRE history? I'm really interested to hear how your net worth and income have gone up." Life is good: my spouse and I recently pulled off an epic seven-week "slow travel" Mainland trip on military flights. (I'll ...
We spent another Memorial Day weekend at the Rainbow Lodge in the bustling megalopolis of North Bend, WA. (Snarkasm! It's a lovely little town.) This was my second Camp Mustache, and they just keep getting better. Unlike last year's chilly rainy mosh pit, this year's Seattle-area weather was ...
A reader asks an outstanding question: Does it make sense to opt in to the military's new Blended Retirement System in 2018? One of our NCOs has a pessimistic view of the BRS, especially since they're over 12 years of service and don't see how the BRS will benefit them. In fact, they don't see how it will ...
My social media has lit up this year with complaints about vehicle insurance. It seems as if every military family who's transferred to a new duty station has paid more money to insure the same autos and the same drivers. Even families who haven't moved (yet) are unhappy when they renew their policies: more money ...
How to Choose Your Next Duty Station Choosing your next duty station or even creating a list of potential new homes is possibly the most stressful part of being a military member. For me, on the officer side, I know that I will move every 3-4 years like clockwork and that’s at a junior CGO level. This rate will ...
Sharks And Stripes 2: Camp Pendleton, CA, 13 June and live online. Do you need a little help with your business idea? Are you growing your revenue but not sure how to reinvest it for growth? Are you worried about financing or interested in talking with an investor? Scenes from a previous Sharks And ...
Are you ready to make your choice about the military's Blended Retirement System? Are you a leader who has to advise younger officers and enlisted how to decide between High Three and the BRS? Are you a veteran like me who's asked the question several times a week by their family (and their readers)? ...
This post is brought to you by Daniel Kopp, an Air Force officer and founder of MilitaryLifePlanning.com. If you're interested in contributing at The-Military-Guide.com, please see our posting guidelines. For any servicemembers who are transitioning out of the military or perhaps daydreaming about what that ...
We're military veterans, not financial advisors. We're trying to share what we've learned and to pay it forward – but you have to make your own decisions.
What worked for us will probably work for you, but unfortunately, we can’t guarantee it. Let us know if something’s not working for you, and we’ll try to figure out a better way... Continue Reading...
Doug Nordman 
Justin Taylor