Posted on Dec 28, 2016
What are the best ways to get young service members and veterans to care about managing their personal finances?
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There are many tools provided by for-profit and not-for-profit groups to help educate young military families about budgeting, saving, investing, etc. But there is a real challenge in reaching these families and "activating" them. How do we make them care and engage?
Personal Finance
Budget
Financial Services
Money
Future
Posted 8 y ago
Responses: 16
The best tool I found was to give them a clear scenario where two people start investing/saving at different times (same assets, and same end points, but different start points). Then, quantify the "cost of procrastination." That made them perk up really quick.
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Get them to wake up? LT (Join to see) the real question is how to get anyone to care about managing their personal finances? The good thing for those soldiers able to get a retirement, they are WAY ahead of nearly all their civilian World friends.
As a recruiter, I would try to stress to our new recruits that investing young was so important and how the money they invested early on was so much more powerful and easy than it would be later...most did not listen. Then the curse of divorce, that always appears to be worse within the military, could quickly destroy years of wise investing, as well.
One of the saying that was big during my time in uniform is so appropriate for this subject. 'No one plans to fail, they only fail to plan.'
As a recruiter, I would try to stress to our new recruits that investing young was so important and how the money they invested early on was so much more powerful and easy than it would be later...most did not listen. Then the curse of divorce, that always appears to be worse within the military, could quickly destroy years of wise investing, as well.
One of the saying that was big during my time in uniform is so appropriate for this subject. 'No one plans to fail, they only fail to plan.'
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CPT Gabe Snell MSG Brad Sand SSG (Join to see) LTC Paul Labrador Maj Marty Hogan CPT Jack Durish SSgt Shawn Springsteen Thank you all for the helpful comments. A follow-up question would be, what form should education on personal finances be provided? Does it still have to be in-person and in their face to have any impact? Or do we need to play to the millennial style and focus instead on easily accessible, user-friendly apps and websites that provide the information in bite-size pieces? Or something else?
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SSG (Join to see)
People not caring or not being educated is only part of the problem. Time is another part. The military just ramrods us through things. They dump all this information on us but don't give us a lot of time to really explore or absorb it. If they dedicated more time to things like this, whether it be sometime during reception on the way to basic or while in-processing at a new post, it might help a lot more.
It has been nearly 20 years since I was part of the active component so I don't know how they do things there now, but I remember there being a lot of time that could've been used on briefings or workshops that could've included dependents for things like this.
It has been nearly 20 years since I was part of the active component so I don't know how they do things there now, but I remember there being a lot of time that could've been used on briefings or workshops that could've included dependents for things like this.
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Maj Marty Hogan
LT (Join to see) I have done some TSP/ SDP training when I was deployed. We presented it to younger troops and showed them advantages of long term savings. I should them my personal account- with personal experience etc. In the few months I was deployed was gave 3 or 4 briefings on our days off and at first it was one section attending- towards the end of my deployment it was several sections and older members as well. Not just the younger crowd that needs education.
So I am advocating face to face, but then you have to designate who is giving advice and are they qualified etc. We spoke directly to benefits and personal experience. I did mine based on my experience as a dual status technician- and my co-training was an AGR. I kept it very basic and mostly gave them the avenues to explore for more info. When you are talking about people's money- show them how it will benefit them- they come. One of the most rewarding things that came out of that deployment.
So I am advocating face to face, but then you have to designate who is giving advice and are they qualified etc. We spoke directly to benefits and personal experience. I did mine based on my experience as a dual status technician- and my co-training was an AGR. I kept it very basic and mostly gave them the avenues to explore for more info. When you are talking about people's money- show them how it will benefit them- they come. One of the most rewarding things that came out of that deployment.
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COL David Turk
I held short, voluntary classes for interested SM, in one of the break rooms covering finances and tax form prep (way back, in Germany). Actually had a few come up afterwards, thanked me and wanted more info. Learned to keep it short and try to hit the high points (attention span). Those that wanted more info, would seek you out (and/or use the internet today).
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LTC John Wilson
https://www.fcef.com/education/education-resources-3/
Set up a program to engage leaders as mentors and Soldiers as apprentices. Issue rewards (time off, MWR functions, positive counseling/ER bullets, et al.) to get Soldiers to attain a set of objective personal goals based on sound financial planning and management principles. Make a game out of it. Get Soldiers and formations to compete against themselves and each other on critical topics. The goal should be to see every Soldier execute his/her own written, actionable financial plan that addresses insurance, savings, and long-term investment.
Set up a program to engage leaders as mentors and Soldiers as apprentices. Issue rewards (time off, MWR functions, positive counseling/ER bullets, et al.) to get Soldiers to attain a set of objective personal goals based on sound financial planning and management principles. Make a game out of it. Get Soldiers and formations to compete against themselves and each other on critical topics. The goal should be to see every Soldier execute his/her own written, actionable financial plan that addresses insurance, savings, and long-term investment.
Education Resources | First Command Educational Foundation
First Command Educational Foundation has developed a number of financial readiness education tools for use by organizations and individuals.
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