Direct Line

Cmdr. Patrick Moran, NASSIG Executive Officer

Buongiorno Sigonella,

Once again I would like to put out that it is never too late to plan for the future and it is never too late to get smart on you can do to prepare financially for the future. Much of what follows is what I put out during my first year at Sigonella, and it bears repeating. When I was growing up and got my first job all I knew about finances was that if I went to work, I would get paid. It seemed simple enough. That was my mindset as well when I first enlisted in the Navy (quite a while ago) and started to receive a regular income. In my late teens and early 20’s I never gave the future much though. I got a paycheck (a physical piece of paper actually) every two weeks and it was solely up to me how those funds would be used. As I said before, let me tell you that those funds were used quickly and not always with any serious thought of how they should be used.

Fortunately for me, and many of my peers, credit cards were very difficult to obtain, and not as prevalent as they are today. It wasn’t until I was well into my 20’s that I obtained a credit card, and once I received it the only thing I cared about was how much my spending limit was, like it was a score card or banner indicating my worth. In reality, that spending limit only reflected the bank’s faith in my ability to repay their loan – with interest (usually high), and much of the time with various processing fees and other charges. That interest and those fees continued to add up until I realized one day that I needed to get smart – and quick. This was in my late 20’s.

I did some research and soul searching and started to understand the ground truth regarding income, spending, and savings and investment. The first thing I did was pay my credit cards off. I had two cards with a running a balance maxed out, paying close to the minimum payment every month in addition to continued purchases. I vowed to myself that I would do that no more. I paid them off and have not held a balance since then. My debt was large, but manageable with discipline. In comparison, I had a friend who managed to pile up over $50,000 in credit card debt alone by the time I was reevaluating my financial choices. That would be over $90,000 today. Again, we were in our late 20’s.

The second thing I did was start to pay myself. This is an old adage but an effective one – “pay yourself first.” Every two weeks I started to save more and spend less on things I surely did not need. With some discipline I soon had some funds to begin investing. But I didn’t know where to start.

The third thing I did was look to educate myself on what my options were with respect to savings and investments. The resources weren’t as prevalent as they are today – this was just when the internet started to take off but online resources were minimal. I had to talk to people so I approached a financial planning specialist who laid out some basics for me. That conversation was the impetus for how I save, plan, and invest today. My strategies have changed over the years as my knowledge base has grown but it was a simple conversation back then that opened a world of resources to me and then had an idea of what the landscape looked like and how to navigate it.

To be sure, there are myriad options for investing and planning for future financial needs. Each can be tailored individually and I am not going to promote one method over another. Some prefer buying, selling, and holding traded stocks. Others consider real estate a solid investment, while still others may lean towards collectible items. Surely there is more to that list. But the only way to know what is right for you and your situation is to get smart on the subject. It may seem daunting at first but the rewards can often be immeasurable in the long run.

NAS Sigonella offers many free onbase resources to take control of your finances and provide you the necessary tools to meet your financial goals today. Services include command financial specialist, personnel financial management, Navy and Marine Corps Relief Society, and financial management and budgeting classes offered by our Fleet and Family Readiness Center.

For alternative sources you can always check with your banking institution, or visit websites like; militaryonesource.mil,militarysaves. org, mymoney.gov or tsp.gov.