Well, we’ve had five days of posts about Military Saves Week. Honestly, the posts haven’t been read much. I’m surprised. I thought that they did a good job, this year, of structuring the program so that it provided value. What did you think? Was it too basic, too boring, or too much of the same?
In case you missed it, here are the posts from this week:
Monday Forgotten Expenses and True Emergencies
Tuesday Pay Off Debt
Wednesday Who Wants A Million Dollars?
Thursday Want To Stop Working Someday? Start Planning Now
Friday Save Before You Spend
In addition to the great information available from Military Saves, people who take the Saver’s Pledge (totally free, non-binding, no-strings-attached) can receive a copy of the FICO score, free. I think this is the consumer score, so take it with a grain of salt, but it is still better than nothing.
I would love to have feedback on Military Saves Week and this series of posts. It helps me to understand what you like and don’t like, and how I can provide you with better information in the future.
Thanks!
I thought the media kit was exceptional this year (although it's only my third year). I especially appreciated the month of daily tweets.
I wonder whether some of the drop was seasonal, or if readers only wanted to see posts on… sequestration?
I agree, Nords. Military Saves Week has really developed into a substantial program. We even had AFN commercials with people signing a certificate indicating their savings goals, so they could hang it on their fridge or cubicle. But NO ONE read my posts. Perhaps I need to work on my writing!
The information is probably good for people just starting out, or not so far down the road that they can't change their financial plans to fit new objectives. But for me, a retiree, it wasn't helpful at all. Following the divorce 7 years ago, I'm getting by on HALF of my retirement (thank you, Pat Schroeder!) and a Social Security check minus $300/qtr for Part B vs $115/qtr for Tricare Prime, which I'm no longer eligible for. Between that plus rent plus utilities plus auto insurance plus the soaring gasoline costs plus periodic maintenace to keep the ol' truck working plus food plus two daughters trying to get their feet on the ground and needing financial help every so often, the monthly amount left over for "saves" is $0.00, unfortunately. COLA in jeopardy again? No problem; I can just switch from a hamburger and hot diet to dog food.
LWKerr, I'm sorry that you don't feel that you have many options, and I understand your frustration. I challenge you to look at your situation with a new eye, for I feel there is (almost) always room to increase income or cut costs somewhere. I honestly find it easier to increase income, but I really like to work. If you are stuck for ideas, you might find some inspiration in the writings of Donna Freedman at MSNMoney <a href="http:// (http://money.msn.com/keyword.aspx?author=x457a3fe12b6592d01fa1ace166d7d7472d506f8e7b7be0f2)” target=”_blank”> <a href="http://(http://money.msn.com/keyword.aspx?author=x457a3fe12b6592d01fa1ace166d7d7472d506f8e7b7be0f2)” target=”_blank”>(http://money.msn.com/keyword.aspx?author=x457a3fe12b6592d01fa1ace166d7d7472d506f8e7b7be0f2) or this family of 4 who lives well on $14,000 per year <a href="http:// (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/military-family-manages-scrape-14-001249660.html)” target=”_blank”> <a href="http://(http://finance.yahoo.com/news/military-family-manages-scrape-14-001249660.html)” target=”_blank”>(http://finance.yahoo.com/news/military-family-manages-scrape-14-001249660.html) Good luck to you.