Print some personal business cards.  Put your name, home mailing address, professional-sounding email address and phone number on them.  Use the addresses and phone number that you will be using for your resume or business plan.  Keep them simple and elegant, no cute pictures or sayings.

Start carrying these with you and be ready to offer them at any time.  You never know who might become your big contact!  You’ll also want to give them to friends and colleagues you want to stay in touch with, who might not have your personal contact information.

You can print these on your home computer or use a professional service.  I use an online service that offers free business cards that carry their advertising on the back, or for a nominal fee they leave the back of the card blank.
This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

Compare Life Insurance packages.  Your Serviceman’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) will expire 120 days after your retirement date.  Veterans Group Life Insurance (VGLI) will be offered to you during your transition.  Historically it’s been more expensive than other insurance companies so check out the current rates.

It’s easier to get new insurance when you’re already covered, so you may want to purchase a policy before you leave the service.  Remember to submit your application for new insurance before your SGLI expires so you have no lapses in coverage.

If you’re single with no dependants, you don’t need life insurance unless you want to make someone very happy when you die!  This will be a savings for you not to have to pay premiums.

If you have dependants, you’ll want to be covered for at least an amount equal to your liabilities.  This is so your family can pay off all the bills and not lose any of your property.  Of course, the amount of coverage you select is your choice.  Please take the time to research various types of coverage and the cost of premiums so you and your family are comfortable.

Check for free comparison quotes from several companies delivered immediately online.  Also, check with any groups you may belong to like the Navy Reserve Association, MOAA and other professional associations or clubs.  They often offer insurance at low group rates as part of their membership benefits package.

Check out these resources:

Veteran’s Life Insurance Program

Insurance.com Provides fast, free quotes plus company comparisons.
Navy Reserve Association
MOAA

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

Determine your retirement date and your last day in uniform.  You’ve already determined when you’ll be clear of all service obligations.  You’ve calculated when you’re eligible for pay raises that affect your retirement.

Officers must retire on the first of the month, enlisted on the last day of the month.

Now take a look at your leave status.  Do you want to take terminal leave or sell it back?  This is usually determined by what your follow-on plans are.  Do you want the time off with pay or do you want the cash?  I encourage you to do the calculations for payback.  The amount may surprise you.  And remember, you accumulate leave while you’re on leave.

Because you’re retiring, you also get an additional 20 working days of Permissive TDY if you retire INCONUS and 30 days if retiring OUTCONUS.  Verify with your Administration or Personnel Department how they interpret this instruction and how they will write your orders.

Take into consideration the time of year you’ll be leaving active duty.  If you’ll be moving from warm weather to cold…….do you want to that in February?   I made a move once from Chicago to Atlanta in February.  Let me tell you, watching the movers take my china hutch down an ice covered ramp in a white out blizzard was not my idea of a good time!  Or theirs!  Nor did I relish driving in that weather on unfamiliar roads.

Maybe the kids need to finish a school year.  Or your spouse has job or school considerations.  This is where it becomes important to have already discussed any other agendas with your family.  You have a unique opportunity being able to choose when you’ll transfer….so consider ALL the variables.

Starting from midnight the day prior to your chosen retirement date, count backward, using up leave days first, then PTDY days.  Remember to skip the weekends if you’re taking only working days for PDTY.  What does that make your real last day in uniform?

How does this date work with doing a turnover with your relief?  Do you or the boss need or want a turnover?  If your date is near your PRD, this might not be a big issue.  This may be an appropriate time to talk it over with leadership and let them know that you’re planning to retire.

Keep in mind that your last 30 days in uniform will NOT be the best time for a turnover!  You will not be thinking about turnovers or daily routine.

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

I strongly encourage you to start a habit of taking time every day to care for your “self”.

How much time do you spend on you every day?

Do you exercise regularly?

Do you meditate, pray, or make time to sit quietly and think?

You could read personal development books or listen to motivational tapes.  A long, hot shower or bath can be a good time to relax and let your thoughts wander.

The military has been your life for so many years that when you leave it you will miss it, in spite of yourself.  You will experience a sort of grieving process.  Start taking care of yourself now.  However you do it, I urge you to spend a few minutes daily with activities that nourish your spirit and feed your soul.

Check out these resources:

Loving What Is – Four Questions That Can Change Your Life by Byron Katie, a revolutionary new way to solve problems

Nightingale-Conant THE World Leader in motivational, self-development courses

Dr. Paul Pearsall International author and speaker, some truly thought provoking books on the science of positive psychology.  (I can recommend “Toxic Success: How to Stop Striving and Start Thriving”)

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

Okay, it’s settled.  You’re leaving the service.  In order to accomplish a successful stress-free transition, you’ll want to clear some space on your calendar.  Decide now how much time you will invest in the process of creating your future.  This will be time spent primarily accomplishing the activities in this book as well as anything else you must do before you leave the service.  Can you commit a couple of hours a day or a week to your transition?  Maybe you have 30 minutes at lunch, or an hour before dinner.  It could be a couple of hours early on Saturday mornings.

No time?  You can make some by letting go of other activities temporarily.  Put aside the bowling league for a season or step down from your leadership role in the sailing club.  Now please don’t sacrifice your sanity!  If bowling gives you an outlet for stress and you enjoy spending this time with friends, keep doing it.

Ask yourself what is the most important thing in your life right now.  Which activities will move you quickly through this transition and which will slow it down?  (Your answer will depend largely on how much time you have remaining in uniform.)

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

One of the biggest shocks after leaving the military is how much you’ll be paying in Federal and State taxes.

In the military, approximately 35% of your pay was not subject to taxation. Once separated or retired, all of your income will be subject to being taxed, including your retirement retainer.Please talk to a civilian tax accountant/ strategist before you leave the service. Get an accurate picture of your immediate financial future. Project which tax bracket you will be in and adjust your withholdings as appropriate.

Take action now to protect as much of your income as possible.

From pay to the GI Bill, from VA home loans to health care, your military service has earned you valuable military benefits. Whether you’re on active duty, a veteran or retiree, Military Benefits makes using your military & Veteran benefits easy.

Check out this website today!  It’s the most extensive list I’ve seen for “one-stop shopping” to ALL the benefits available to you.

Before you go any further, get yourself off to the side for some quiet time and do some soul searching.  Ask yourself if you’re REALLY ready to retire.  Be sure it’s the right time and for the right reasons.  I call this a “location” check.  Where are you with this?

Are you at peace, looking forward to the next chapter of your life, hopeful and a little excited?  Or are you suffering, edgy and fearful?

If you’re anywhere but peaceful and hopeful, do whatever you have to do to change “locations”, get to that place of peace.  Talk to someone you can trust…..a mentor, a good friend, a counselor or a transition coach.

The Fleet and Family Support Centers offer trained counselors and workshops in areas of stress, anger management, transitions, etc. for the whole family.  If you’re a long way off from peace, maybe get with a therapist for a short time to work through some deeper issues.

Now’s the time, early in the process, to get clear on what your military career has been, what it has meant to you and where it has brought you.

You may find that you aren’t ready to leave yet!  There are many good reasons to stay in the service.  It’s okay to decide to stay in at this point.  Better now than later.

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

Identify the ‘noise’ in your life.  All the things you leave undone, ignore or tolerate, actually drain your energy and sap your creativity.  Ignoring them doesn’t make them go away.  And tolerating or accepting them doesn’t lessen the negative impact they have on you.

Make a list of everything you can think of that would make you feel better if it were taken care of or dealt with permanently.  Organize your list into 4 major categories:

1. Physical Environment (examples: personal papers filed neatly, plants being fed and watered, clothes all ironed, adequate lighting, car in good repair, appliances working),
2. Relationships (examples: let go of old relationships, caught up with letters and phone calls, nothing ‘unsaid’ in current relationship, always tell the truth, spoken to parents recently),
3. Financial (examples: pay bills in-full and on-time, no credit card debt, save 10% of income, live within your means, up-to-date will and insurance), and
4. Health/Well-Being (examples: exercise regularly, don’t smoke, make healthy food choices, meditate daily, take vacations, think positively).

Make this list as long as you like.  Once you have your list, commit to deal permanently with at least one item per week.  As you quiet the ‘noise’ your life, you’ll have more natural energy and vitality.

Create some space for your new life to grow and take shape in.  Don’t suffer with this…. make a game of it and have FUN!

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.

Contact your Command Career Counselor or the nearest Fleet and Family Support Center and schedule yourself and your spouse for the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) seminar.  This is a mandatory seminar per OPNAVINST 1900.1D.

They normally have several speakers over a few days giving out lots of advice and providing checklists on what you must/ should do prior to/ immediately after leaving the service.  Each base provides slightly different material and information.  Be sure to get hard copies of everything they offer in class.

This seminar is best attended 2 years prior to leaving and again within 6 months of leaving, if possible.  This is the place to ask questions about what the latest government requirements and benefits are, get copies of any forms you may need, gather phone numbers for your primary points of contact in the Personnel Office and do a little networking.

Don’t become overwhelmed (or under-whelmed) by the information they’ll give you during this seminar.  Because you’re using this checklist, you are already miles ahead of everyone else in organizing your retirement.

Check out TAP Facilitators for more military transition resources.

This is part of a complete step-by-step military retirement checklist. I’ll be posting weekly action steps here, so please subscribe over in the right-hand column so you’re sure to get each update.