Author Archives: Doug Nordman

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About Doug Nordman

Author of "The Military Guide to Financial Independence and Retirement" and co-author of "Raising Your Money-Savvy Family For Next Generation Financial Independence."

What Happens When (Not Just How) You File Your VA Disability Claim


Last week’s post explained why you want to file your disability claim, not just how to file it. Now we’ll get into why you should prepare as much of your claim as possible up front as a “fully developed” package … Continue reading

Posted in Career, Military and Veterans Benefits, Military Life & Family, Military Retirement, Money Management & Personal Finance | Leave a comment

Why You File Your Veterans Disability Claim (Not Just How)


“Learn From My Mistakes… Without Repeating Them!” There are roughly eighty-two gazillion websites which will tell you HOW to file your disability claim with the Veterans Administration. (I’ll link to some of them.) This post explains WHY you want to … Continue reading

Posted in Military and Veterans Benefits, Military Retirement, Money Management & Personal Finance | Leave a comment

“Why Do I Have To Pay Back VSI or SSB?!?”


Just when you think you’ve written about everything in military personal finance, someone asks a new question about an old topic. If you’re still in uniform, here’s a cautionary tale. If you’re a veteran of a certain age, let’s take … Continue reading

Posted in Career, Military and Veterans Benefits, Military Retirement, Sea Stories | Leave a comment

21.5 Years Of Financial Independence and Early Retirement


  As we slide into 2024, after more than two decades of financial independence, I feel as if my spouse and I are reaching an inflection point. We’ll highlight the changes. It’s all good.   Slow Travel 2023:  Flying Space … Continue reading

Posted in Financial Independence, Travel, What Do You DO All Day?!? | 5 Comments

“What If The 4% Safe Withdrawal Rate Fails?!?”


In an earlier blog post I wrote: “In a future blog post I’ll share more ways to get comfortable with the 4% SWR.” That’s based on a question from a member of ESIMoney’s Millionaire Money Mentor forum: “I have to admit … Continue reading

Posted in Financial Independence, Money Management & Personal Finance | Leave a comment