What would you do?

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoutboy stick around for it. military officer pensions are among the best there are.

... for the survivors...

[FreeAt30]

Extra money is always nice.

Sounds like you're pretty organized. What does "Turns out, you happen to have enough money to retire right now." mean? There's a pretty big difference between there's a big pile that can be constantly chipped away at for the rest of your life versus, it's invested in a way that it throws off enough money for your lifestyle and grows at the same time... amongst other versions of "enough money".

Also, I'll throw in some of my favorite questions. What are you going to do when you leave. I think it's one of the most important things besides the finances. Many don't bother to think about the fact that they suddenly have a whole lot of weekday that's not earmarked for anything. Keeping busy with work / a job / a cheap hobby costs a lot less than new leisurly and potentially costly activities (travelling and having a drink with whichever friend I can find with a weekday off being some of my favorites).

Extra money is always nice.

Sounds like you're pretty organized. What does "Turns out, you happen to have enough money to retire right now." mean? There's a pretty big difference between there's a big pile that can be constantly chipped away at for the rest of your life versus, it's invested in a way that it throws off enough money for your lifestyle and grows at the same time... amongst other versions of "enough money".

Also, I'll throw in some of my favourite questions. What are you going to do when you leave. I think it's one of the most important things besides the finances. Many don't bother to think about the fact that they suddenly have a whole lot of weekday that's not earmarked for anything. Keeping busy with work / a job / a cheap hobby costs a lot less than new leisurely and potentially costly activities (travelling and having a drink with whichever friend I can find with a weekday off being two of my favourites).

Lastly, you're really young (actually, my DW's age). You probably have tons of drive and energy in you. Have your fun and relax as you see fit, but you may want to also keep your mind on the next step too. When we retired, we lived it up for a little over a year doing all sorts of outlandish things but then settled into a comfortable schedule where we have some sort of a regular routine of casual paced work (stuff that we like since the money doesn't matter) that takes care of personal growth and small inklings of wanting to contribute. Just want you to dodge the "well, that was fun... is this all there is?" pitfall that I've seen a few "lucky" folks stumble into.

[jimnjana]

Its good to be looking to the future, keep your options open. When I was a LT, I was living off of E5 pay, and banking the rest. I continued living small, until I got married....I married a spender. You are at the point that if you are not happy now wearing the uniform (not job satisfaction), I'd recommend you go to the Reserves and try it. If you are not happy in the Reserves get out, while you still can...I know my job satisfaction varied with my assignments, that was one of the things that kept me in, I knew the worst job was going to be over in two or three years at the latest. I loved serving my country, just not everyone of my bosses...

[oneils]

Quote:

Originally Posted by usafLT I'm 25 right now, looking to transition my career out of the military. I have my ER plan and this situation crossed my mind because if all goes as planned (which when does that ever really happen) but if it does, this may be a situation I am in. I am just an over planner for the future. I always try and thing of all the kinks in any of my plans.

Ah, that changes things. Please ignore my previous post. I was talking about people in their 50s a few years away from an immediate annuity.

This may be presumptuous of me, but I suggest you send Nords a private message and have a chat. He might be able to provide some great insight on this. Good luck!