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With my son now a new member of the military I find I am passing on a number of the tricks we learned when we lived on a military salary Follow some simple guidelines and you can live well on your salary. Here are the top ones:

1) Make sure you know about all of your potential income and make sure you maximize it. With dependents your pay is broken into different parts - Basic Pay, Special Pays like hazard duty or flight pay, family, food and housing allowances as well as high cost of living adjustments for your area. Make sure you check you monthly pay statement closely. The military is efficient about making sure you are paid the correct amount, but mistakes happen. If there are discrepancies, talk to your personnel department immediately. Letting it slide can make for a bigger mess in sorting it out later.

2) Make sure you understand money management. Most young enlisteds especially have only enough understanding of checking accounts and credit cards to make themselves dangerous. I had one PFC working for me who kept writing checks at the commissary and snack bar for $1-$4, scores of them every month. When he wrote too many checks, he got hit with over $1,000 of bad check fees. He didn't understand how to properly use a checking account. Get a good book on money management and learn your options. This is a life skill that you need to perfect if you are an adult, and especially if you are a member of the military.

3) Make a budget. Sit down and work out a budget that takes care of your expenses, including needs like buying clothes and food, as well as gives you some money for entertainment and still put a little aside for monthly savings. You want to make it smart enough to take care of everything, but not so tight you can't do it.

4) Be careful buying things on credit. Most people who get into financial problems in the military do so because of buying things on credit. You buy a new car on credit - a wide-screen TV - a washing machine and more. While each of these might be a good decision by themselves, you can quickly go overboard and find yourself slaving to pay your mounting payments. Businesses are eager to sell to you on credit, since you have a regular paycheck. Just remember, you want that great thing now, but will you want the payment in six months? Consider buying a cheaper item for smaller payments, or saving up and getting a discount for paying cash.

Here is a question for you? Who is richer? A millionaire who owes a million dollars? Or someone who

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