I just hit 20 years of active duty time in the military and I made no plan to retire and set myself up for post-military. I now have to keep on going on active duty and put the family through another move because my ass did not make a plan to get out.

You get complacent in the military and with that steady paycheck on the 1st and 15th...it is easy to not plan for the exit. I am 39 and with another 4 years I will be in my mid-40s....who the **** wants to hire some mid-40 year old?

I should have had a plan and retired from the military right at 39 and still young enough to get looked at for a second career. f u c k!

Moral of the story/TLDR: don't get complacent and plan life/s h i t out years in advance

What branch are you in? I'm trying to get in the Air Force and am 35, need to lose the weight.

Your plan will be to get curb stomped by me

just go be a 5-star general?

get rid of the trannys?

do something

I am in the Air Force, it is a good career for sure. I did Air Traffic Control for over 12 years and then commissioned to be an Officer.

I wish man...Generals make a lot of money! Unfortunately since I am not a pilot I will never be a General

You did 12 years enlisted and 8 as an officer? You can't survive on retirement check and a part time job or wife working?


Plus you probably have a few hundred thousand in your TSP by now? Not sure if they matched back then though but they now match 5%.


I would get out and take a few months off. Sell leave if you got it. Then maybe do some cozy federal or state job. Usps or something like that.

What are your thoughts on the RPA Pilot/Sensor Operator job in the Air Force?

EDIT: MastoDonte, if you have severe social anxiety will the Air Force let you get on medication/see a therapist once you enlist? I know before enlisting you can't get on medication. What about once you join?

don't you get a full pension at the 20 year mark? Is it not enough to see you through further education/frictional unemployment? Surely being an officer has given you a lot of responsibility and managerial skills that can be applied in the civilian world. Can't be all bad, right?

I say 4 years is a good amount of time to come up with a plan brah, start thinking about what you might want to do.