MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- With tax season readily approaching, service members around the globe are beginning to look at their spending in a closer light and asking themselves questions involving their money and what they should do with it.
Luckily, Military Saves Week is just around the corner, spreading awareness to service members to help answer their questions and save them money and build their financial wealth.
The global program will commence for the first time Sunday and lasts until March 4, helping service members and their families build their personal wealth and save money for the future.
“The program is part of a national movement to change the culture of our nation from a culture of debt to one of savings and good spending habits,” said Sarah Shirley, the Director of the Military Saves campaign.
In order to do this, Shirley, from Evanston, Ill., encourages service members to take financial action.
“The first step is for people to identify a financial goal they would like to reach,” said Nancy Register, the Associate Director of America Saves. “Once you know what you are shooting for, establish a time frame of when you would like to save that amount.”
Rather than just saving money here and there, Register says that actually having a specific goal will help you more.
“You’ll be more likely to commit yourself to achieving the goal once you have created your financial plan, and people who write out their goals save twice as much,” she said.
In order to start saving money and cutting back on unnecessary expenses, Register suggests taking a look at your daily activities.
“It’s not rocket science,” she said. “Look at how you actually spend your money on a weekly or daily basis.”
“It’s like a treasure hunt,” Shirley said. “Look through your personal habits and find the things that can be cut back on.”
These things include eating out or buying drinks during the day. Both of which can be cancelled by preparing your own lunch.
The use of phones or cable television could be limited as well to help save money. Other things can also be found in daily habits that can be cut back.
“When you break it down, at the time it may not seem like much but saving $10 dollars a week, turns into $40 a month which is almost $500 a year, just because you didn’t go out to eat every day,” said Register.
Another easy way to put aside money is to make it automatic, said the 59-year-old from Williamsburg, Va.
“Every paycheck or every month, set aside a certain amount of money to go into savings,” Register said.
Shirley agrees with the plan of setting up an allotment for savings as well as the thrift savings plan.
“When you have a set amount going towards either your savings or your T.S.P, you won’t even notice it because it becomes a habit,” Shirley said.
Service members especially can work out a savings plan easily due to their pay they earn during deployments.
“Any service member should be prepared to make money going into a combat situation,” Shirley said.
Due to the increase of money for combat pay, Register recommends that service members plan ahead and find a way to save some of their money if they know they will be taking in extra funds.
“Don’t be afraid to ask for advice,” encourages Register. “Take advantage of the resources around you with your bank or credit union. The people at those places want to help you.”
As a service member, there are also extra perks that can be used to save money such as shopping on base and using military discounts.
“Take advantage of military discounts,” Shirley said. “Then, make a habit of taking the percentage you save and put it into a savings account.”
As Military Saves Week approaches, become involved with the program and help increase your personal wealth and help make our nation one of savings, not debt.