Advice on how to prepare for retirement

2015-02-25T13:28:09-05:00

I retired on 1 Sep 2014. In the two years that led up to that date, I found that there were many things that I had neglected to prepare for, and yet, I also found several communities that provided much needed support so that my transition was not as bad as it could have been. My retirement could have been better, and I could always have been better prepared, but I know now, that no amount of preparation will lead to a flawless retirement.

Retirement for any military member is a scary, frustrating, and yet exhilarating process.

We are scared because we are basically taking 20+ years (26+ in my case) and throwing it away. Everything we've done, all the junior Service men and women we've helped, mentored, chastised, and even disciplined or punished, all the training, the sweating, the bleeding, and the hurting - done. No more stress about a Soldier who screwed up and failed a drug test. No more worrying about the safety of your new guys on the range. No more long hours spent in the shop, trying to accomplish a task or mission.

Your skills are no longer needed - and in fact, they probably don't even apply to what you'll need to do for your civilian life. Even if those skills do apply, you won't be using them in the same capacity. Then you can't find a job. You can't translate your military skills or terminology into civilian lingo. Lastly, you're planning, saving, hoping you'll have enough money to make it six months without a job if it comes to that.

Retirement is frustrating because there is so much, too much that needs to be done before you retire. There's training, ACAP, research, job search, resume preparation, looking for a home where you plan to live (if you don't already have one) post-retirement - the list is endless.

Then you start your out-processing. You have to clear CIF. You have to clear your unit. Your unit won't let you clear until you turn in your "special ops" gear (my situation) and get a memo saying you've done so. You have to clear your hand receipts. You can't clear post until you've cleared the unit. All this needs to be done before you hit terminal leave. It never seems to end.

You have to go to the VA. You have to decide: Do you file a disability claim? What can you expect? How does this all tie in? The VA rep won't help you. They don't care. They make you print close to 1000 pages of medical records - single sided, and turn them in. They spend weeks reviewing them. Then, there are the seemingly endless physical and medical appointments. After that's all done, you're told it'll take six to twelve months before your claim is approved.

Finally, it's exhilarating. Friends wish you well. You look forward to not having to get up at 5:30 AM to go run PT. You don't have to worry about mission anymore. Your mission is to finish getting ready for retirement. Usually, the commander leaves you alone - he doesn't want to see you. After all, you're a senior guy (gal) and should know what you need to do - go do it.

The last thing I learned about retirement: You can't prepare for it - at least, not completely. You try to, and you do everything you can, but still there are things that slip through the cracks. Just do the best you can.

You want my advice? Here are a few thoughts:

On pay: When you get ready to retire - make sure you understand how much your pay will change. Start saving at least a year out. You need to have at least six months of your current total pays, including BAH, BAS, and any other compensations that you've been relying on for living your daily life. Remember, 50% of your base pay is actually only about 35% of your total pays, so don't come crying to me.

On VA Disability: If you're going to file a VA compensation claim, start documenting all medical issues at least three or four years out, if you haven't been already. Research your problems at the VA's website. Get a realistic view there of what you can expect for disability compensation. Be prepared to wait up to a year for it to kick in.

On Skills and Education: Start translating military skills into civilian skills. Take courses that will help you find a job - even if you don't plan on using them. If you don't have at least a bachelors degree, get one before you retire or use your GI Bill to get it immediately afterwards. No, a degree isn't everything - you don't need it for a job, even for a good job, but if you have a degree, your annual pay at that new job will be at least a few grand more, and a degree does make it easier to get that job!

On Resumes: Make a master resume with everything, and then prune it down into "job specific" resumes for each job you apply for. Have someone, preferably several people, look at your resumes and hack them to pieces. Also, get at least one or two agencies to review it - there are several that will do a free review for vets. Don't forget to include your volunteer experience as well! If you have a security clearance, make sure you list it on the first line of your resume!

On the Job Search: Submit a resume specifically tailored to the job you are applying for. If you apply for a different job, submit another resume tailored to that specific job. If you are turned down for the position, see if you can get feedback on why. Review your resume, and see if there's something that maybe triggered a negative response. Don't quit! Keep searching, even if you get turned down several times. Use any of the job search agencies that you think can help. I listed my resume on ClearanceJobs.com, Monster.com, USAJobs.com, and about two or three other sites. I also used the “Wounded Warrior Projects Warriors to Work” specialist. She's the one who helped me get the job I have now. The VFW, American Legion, and many other organizations have free job placement and resume review services. Use them!

Those are just a few things you need to do, and while I can't list everything, these are definitely the most important!

Oh, there is one other thing: Enjoy retirement!

Response by SSG Rob Cline made Feb 25 at 2015 1:33 PM

2015-02-25T13:33:12-05:00

Congrats on the retirement! I too, officially retired from active duty on the 1st of September.

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Feb 25 at 2015 1:52 PM

2015-02-25T13:52:20-05:00

Great thread SFC Private RallyPoint Member. Congrats on retirement as well. Never leave things till the last few years. There are never guarantees in life.

Response by CPT Zachary Brooks made Feb 25 at 2015 2:17 PM

2015-02-25T14:17:09-05:00

SFC Stephen Carden might find some useful tips in this thread. I will be sure to archive it and come back to it in 30 or so years.

Response by CSM Michael Lynch made Feb 25 at 2015 2:25 PM

2015-02-25T14:25:38-05:00

SFC Private RallyPoint Member Congratulations on your retirement and you have provided others some great advice. I would like to add one thing to your On Pay advice: If you are like me and have a Home of Record, in my case Vermont that didn't require me to pay state taxes while I was in the military and retire to a state that taxes your retirement it will not be set up by DFAS to pay those taxes. It took me 3 months to realize that I needed to set it up and guess how much to have taken out and had to pay extra to cover the first 3 months.

Also the first whole year you are out and file your taxes, you will get sticker shock. It was the first year in the last ten that I had to pay and no refund and it wasn't a little either. Neither DFAS nor my new company were taking out enough. Plan ahead for this by making sure you change W4's to cover you.

Response by CW5 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2015 5:58 PM

2015-02-25T17:58:46-05:00

I will add my congratulations on your retirement, SFC Private RallyPoint Member.

One thing I would add to your excellent article is to prepare well for taxes the first year after you retire.

I retired in January 2006, and in 2007 when I filed my first non-military taxes, I was in for a shock. I had a job lined up immediately upon retirement, so my pay plus my retirement was more than what I had been earning on active duty. Bottom line: I owed over $7,800 to the IRS in early 2007 when I filed my taxes.

I was in a military frame of mind, but I was a civilian. It took me a while to recover from the shock and the debt. Now I pay a LOT more taxes each month to the IRS and I break even at tax time or I get a modest refund.

Response by MSgt Michael Durkee made Feb 25 at 2015 7:43 PM

2015-02-25T19:43:43-05:00

Thank you for your insight, experience, and welcome to the Retiree club!

Response by SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL made Feb 26 at 2015 7:55 AM

2015-02-26T07:55:41-05:00

Retirement - a 'process' not an 'event'

We all know that pension policy is under the microscope at the moment. There is much talk of 'raising the retirement age' as a way to solve the problem of increasingly inadequate, yet costlier State and private pensions. If we are to provide a sustainable solution, we need to consider the issue from a broader perspective. The idea of one retirement age is, in my view, outdated. We need to move away from the notion of going straight from full-time work, to full time 'non-work'. Social attitudes - of both employers and employees -will need to focus on the benefits of gradual and phased withdrawal from the labor force. Retirement should become a 'process', not an 'event'.

http://www.rosaltmann.com/retirementandpenionsprocess.htm

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 26 at 2015 10:42 AM

2015-02-26T10:42:04-05:00

SFC Private RallyPoint Member Congratulations on your retirement and all good points.

I would also add a few things: enjoy sleeping in if that's what you prefer, but find time to workout (I am now an afternoon workout guy). Be in better shape, even those of us that are older and broken because of our service...many out there have over come much more debilitating injuries.

Also, don't lose the work ethic. You may find that you have more time than you had while serving. Make the most of it. If you do not need to put in hours at work (which I hope you don't), use the free time with the family or friends, get some (more) education, get a certification, learn an instrument or learn a language.

Lastly, and one that I wish all who have served and who are serving would follow...continue to live a values-based life, be a high-character veteran. Even if you want to modify your core values from the Army values, be a professional now that you retired just as you were a professional while in uniform. I strive for all of us to emulate those WWII and Korea veterans (among others), who did so much but who walk among us so quietly, not asking for free food or other recognition. Proud to serve, proud to have served.

Again, congratulations.

Response by SFC Donald LeBlanc made Mar 2 at 2015 8:33 PM

2015-03-02T20:33:01-05:00

Great Post SFC Wayman. My transition was very similar and you hit the nail on the head. Honestly I don't think anyone who retires from the military is ready for that transition. The military doesn't have the capacity to prepare people to become ready for the civilian change.

Hang in there, be steadfast, organize like you know how to do, make that "to-do-list", check the block, and slowly but surely you will get there.

It took me a while as well - and I think I got the hang of it being a civilian again.

Oh, please don't hesitate to reach out if you run into any walls with the VA or job searching!!!!

(By the way - it took the VA over 2 1/2 years to finally complete my claims and paperwork - so don't hold your breath - but don't give up either)

Response by 1SG Michael Blount made May 28 at 2015 3:34 PM

2015-05-28T15:34:16-04:00

On the job search front - if you live in the DCVA/MD area and have a financial background - contact me. I've got more open billets than bodies!

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2015 7:38 PM

2015-05-28T19:38:35-04:00

Very good advice! One more thing..beyond the bureaucracy, financial and job stuff is dusting to a civilian lifestyle which is very different. Military service is very close-knit. You miss the cameraderie. With the possible exception of jobs like police and fire, civilian groups don't bond at least in the same way like military units. After 20 year of active duty than can be a tough adjustment for some.. Some possible ways to cope with that would be volunteer work with veterans, volunteer with with groups like state defense forces or Coast Guard Aux or Civil Air Patrol (Air Force Aux) It also may help to live near a military base where you not only have access to your benefits but also with the military community.

Even when I retired from a reserve career where I spent most of my time as a civilian, it was still a tough adjustment. I hit mandatory retirement just before 9 /11/01 and I felt like football player being benched! Doing some of the stuff suggested above really helped.

Response by 1SG Michael Blount made Jun 1 at 2015 1:59 PM

2015-06-01T13:59:33-04:00

Apart from putting the checklist together, and getting my VA-diagnosed hearing disability paperwork in there, what else should I be concerned about/looking for?

Response by SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL made Jun 1 at 2015 11:47 PM

2015-06-01T23:47:43-04:00

Nice Article, I will pass on

Response by LTC Jason Strickland made Aug 12 at 2015 7:55 AM

2015-08-12T07:55:58-04:00

Something to consider, SFC Private RallyPoint Member, is the financial impact of your retirement pay and how the state you choose taxes those funds. Here's a great article that captures some of that information for those of you who are near retirement. There are 15 states that do no tax military pensions: Alabama, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
http://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2015/08/10/states-compete-for-military-retirees?utm_campaign=2015-08-10+Stateline+Daily&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua
cc: SFC Mark Merino CSM Michael Lynch CW5 Private RallyPoint Member SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL MSgt Michael Durkee LTC Private RallyPoint Member SSG Rob Cline 1SG Michael Blount LTC Private RallyPoint Member SFC Donald LeBlanc

States Compete for Military Retirees

There’s growing competition among the states to attract military retirees. One way is by eliminating the income tax on their military pensions.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Aug 12 at 2015 1:37 PM

2015-08-12T13:37:47-04:00

Fantastic thoughts! I concur about taking care of your military and VA ratings while in service. If you qualify and want SSD it is much easier to get benefits in the service as they expedited AD packets.

Response by Sgt Kelli Mays made Nov 24 at 2015 1:54 PM

2015-11-24T13:54:19-05:00

Congrats on your retirement!
....and you are right...The Military should give a course or class of some kind to help those who are about to retire to get acclimated for their transition into the civilian world.

Response by MAJ Alvin B. made Nov 24 at 2015 1:56 PM

2015-11-24T13:56:18-05:00

Excellent article and excellent advice. Planning for retirement is much like planning for any military operation. Retirement is too often placed on the back burner until it is too late.
To what has already been said so effectively, also consider, if you are not moving to a new location for a job, then do your homework as to where you wish to live for retirement. Look at the taxes, cost of living, support structure. Retirement is the rest of your life, plan well and enjoy it.

Response by SSG Keven Lahde made Dec 1 at 2015 8:56 PM

2015-12-01T20:56:22-05:00

SFC Private RallyPoint Member SFC Awesome article. I am nearing that part of my career and something tells me that I will not quit at 20. My wife wants me too, but part of me doesn't want to retire when I hit 20. I guess only time will tell.