Table of Contents
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xiii
INTRODUCTION 1
The Soldier's Handbook 2
The Purpose of Soldier of Finance 4
PA R T O N E
DISCOVERY PHASE: WHAT IS YOUR WHY? 7
1 WHY ARE YOU HERE? 8
Shaky Beginnings 10
What's Your Story? 14
What Is a Soldier of Finance? 15
Debriefing: A Soldier of Finance Success Story 15
Go/No Go 17
Summary 19
2 TIME TO ENLIST AND TAKE AN OATH 20
Soldier of Finance Creed 22
Finding a Battle Buddy 23
Identifying Blue Falcons 26
Down to Basics 29
Summary 31
PA R T T W O
INITIAL TRAINING PHASE (WEEKS 15) 33
3 WEEK 1: THE ARMY PHYSICALMEASURE YOUR DEBT 34
Your Financial Status: Stop Being in Denial 36
Debriefing: The Meaning of "Not Much Debt" 36
The Situation Report 38
P/X Rangers (or Living Beyond Your Means) 41
Summary 44
4 WEEK 2: ROSTER NUMBER
YOUR CREDIT SCORE FOR LIFE 45
740 Is the New 720 47
Credit Scores and Your Mortgage 48
Finding Your Credit Score 49
Summary 50
5 WEEK 3: LAND MINESYOUR CREDIT REPORT 51
My First Credit Report 53
Where to Get Your Free Credit Report 54
Carefully Verify the Information 56
Set Up Your Recon 58
Summary 61
6 WEEK 4: THE LOW CRAWLCREDIT REPAIR 62
Stop the Bleeding 64
My Unnecessary Debt 65
Pay Down Your Debt 66
Debriefing: No Credit to Good Credit 67
Get the Most Out of Your Credit Cards 68
Watch Out for Credit Card Company Dirty Tricks 71
Summary 74
7 WEEK 5: LAND NAVIGATION CERTIFICATION
IDENTIFY YOUR GOALS 75
Define Your Mission Objectives 77
Op Orders: How to Achieve Your Mission 79
Summary 85
PA R T T H R E E
CAMPAIGN PHASE (WEEKS 612) 87
8 WEEK 6: ACCOMPLISHING GOALS
FROM CHAOS TO PRECISION 88
Into Action 89
Execute the Mission 91
Twenty-One Days to Change 93
Dealing with Setbacks 95
Review the Mission 96
Summary 98
9 WEEK 7: DESTROYING THE ENEMY
PAYING OFF DEBT 100
Field Artillery: Matching the Cannon to the Objective 103
Ammunition for Targeting Debt 104
Debriefing: Operation Motherhood 108
Don't Be Content with Debt 110
Getting Cash Flow Positive 113
Summary 115
10 WEEK 8: SENSITIVE ITEMS REPORT
TACTICAL BUDGETING 116
Tie Budgeting to Your Goals 117
The Sensitive Items Report 118
The Basic Training Budget: Identify Your Unnecessary Spending 120
Online Resources 122
Debriefing: Operation Budget 123
Practice Makes Perfect: Why Soldiers Drill 125
Family Battle Drills 126
Summary 129
11 WEEK 9: FRAGO
THE SAVINGS ACCOUNTS SURVIVAL GUIDE 130
The FRAGO Fund 132
Watch Out for Imposters 134
Making the Most of Your Savings Account 135
You Are Now Ready for Anything 138
Summary 139
12 WEEK 10: MANUALS AND ORDERS
GETTING STARTED IN INVESTING 141
Why Haven't You Started? 142
Are You Ready? 144
The Magic 10 Percent: A Guideline for Investing 145
Get the Right Advice 147
Secure Your Base of Operations 148
Summary 150
13 WEEK 11: FROM BOOTS TO HUMVEES
BEGINNING INVESTMENT VEHICLES 152
Remember the Mission 155
Use Boots, Not Buses, for Short Distances 155
Middle-Distance Humvees: Investment Accounts (Individual or Joint) 158
Peer-to-Peer Lending 160
Summary 162
14 WEEK 12: FIVE-TON TRUCKS AND MRAPS
LONG-DISTANCE INVESTMENT VEHICLES 163
Take an Active Role with a Roth IRA 164
Follow the Roth IRA with a 401(k) 167
The 401(k) for Military Personnel 169
The Stock Market: Be Careful of the Risks 169
Diversify Based on the Size of Your Portfolio 171
Investing for Your Future 171
Summary 173
PA R T F O U R
CONSOLIDATION PHASE (WEEKS 1314) 175
15 WEEK 13: BASIC HOUSING ALLOWANCE
MORTGAGE BASICS 176
Debriefing: J. Money's House 178
How Much House Can You Really Afford? 180
What Types of Loans Are Best for You? 182
Housing Traps to Avoid 183
Summary 186
16 WEEK 14: YOUR BODY ARMOR
YOU NEED INSURANCE 187
Auto Insurance 189
Homeowners/Renters Insurance 190
Medical Insurance 191
Life Insurance 192
Umbrella Liability: Covering the Gaps 196
Summary 198
CONCLUSION 199
RESOURCES 201
INDEX 203
ABOUT THE AUTHOR 209