One of my coworkers, a civilian actually, came to Aviano around the same time I did. He is admittedly high on the food chain and got into the federal workforce after getting out as an officer a couple of decades ago. As I was walking through our hallway, I ran into him as he congratulated me on my recent promotion (to E-6). We started talking about our future goals and he started trying to convince me to commission – which isn’t going to happen for a few reasons. We started talking a bit about what my plans are for the future and I mentioned that with my aggressive savings rate and investments, I’m looking forward to not working after I retire from the military and I should be in good shape to do so. His reaction was typical, although a little surprising. He started raising his voice and telling (at) me that I will not be able to retire after the military (especially as enlisted) and I am silly for thinking that it is possible. Even if I monetize a hobby, it will not be enough! I will become bored in retirement and will need to work to keep stimulated. He got so flustered, he actually excused himself from the conversation and hurried back to his office before I can even get a word in.

This happens a lot.

So what to do? I do not particularly believe in withdrawing from all future planning conversations, and in fact I enjoy trying to convince people what IS in fact possible. I like to inspire my troops, peers, and even those above me. Even if people do not want to retire and want to keep working, showing them the possibilities (besides the generic “here is what Johnny would have after 50 years of compound growth” presentation we get) and opening their eyes is a great feeling. Needless to say, shutting down and pretending I am living paycheck to paycheck is something I just am not interested in. While we all have relatively hidden lives and expenses, we literally do wear our paychecks on our sleeves (or now with OCPs, on our chests) so we all are aware roughly of what our financial situation at least COULD be. The more people are comfortable about talking about their numbers and position, the more others can ask questions and we can make our financial lives better across the board.

It is definitely discouraging when you run into people that are so set on this being impossible. I’ll also be honest that once I got home, I went through my spreadsheets JUST IN CASE as I tend to do when I run into these situations. Although this particular person made it quite clear that he is set in his ways about his beliefs, plenty of others are not. If/when other people see these types of exchange, let THEM know that the person who made those assumptions are in fact wrong and show them how. Be better supervisors, peers, or subordinates and try to help everyone in your sphere of influence.