Visualising Super: Looking back with 20/20 vision

Superannuation was not really on my radar six years ago. I was preparing to deploy to Iraq, then a series of serious health issues changed everything.

The tipping point came in 2020. The old adage is that ‘hindsight is 20/20 vision’. It took me a year to start seriously considering medically discharging. Seizures had caused me to go blind in my right eye three times, so my vision was certainly not perfect! I couldn’t look forward, so I had to look back and reflect.

Reflecting on that time, I have realised that there is no such thing as being too well prepared – because I certainly was not. 

What I had wished I knew earlier

In the military you do not have a lot of control over your careers. What Service or Corps you enlist to, where you post to, your promotion, and the roles you perform, are largely out of your hands.

However, one thing you can have control of is your super.  

Learning more through a consultation

CSC was not known to me at all until I became ill. I had engaged with the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) previously due to an injury sustained some years ago, however circumstances meant I had not had much interaction apart from my annual super statement. 

A consultation with CSC led to me learning about the things I may be eligible for. This was uncharted territory for me and CSC helped me better understand the process. It made me realise that after almost 18 years of service, I had neglected to engage with my super, and the role CSC may play in my life if I were to be medically discharged. 

If I had my time again, I would engage more proactively with my super through the CSC education offerings. All I had done previously was roll some super from a previous fund that I had gained whilst working casually at university!

Educate others

Your friends may well be in a similar position to you and nudging others to engage with their super early can be very valuable for them. I believe super is like fitness. The effort you put into your fitness in your younger years can affect your health later in life, and the same can be said for super. 

In hindsight, I also feel that I could have done more to educate my soldiers about super, in addition to the normal mandatory training they receive annually.

The benefit of hindsight

The last six years have taught me a lot, and as they say, hindsight is 20/20 vision. I hope this article prompts service members to engage with their super with a forward-looking lens, rather than looking back as retirement looms, wishing that they had done more to engage with such a crucial part of their financial future.