By Lori Schock, Director of the SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy* and Patrick Campbell, Acting Assistant Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection’s Office of Servicemember Affairs

As a member of the military, you are called to serve every day in challenging environments to secure the freedom and prosperity of our nation. To meet these challenges, you engage in “immediate actions” training to better prepare yourself to respond to all kinds of threats and situations.

This Financial Planning Month, plan to use your credit cards to your advantage. No matter how much you try to avoid them, we all use credit cards sometimes. Having money set aside for unplanned expenses is one way to avoid overspending on your card. Here are some credit card tips and tricks from Bank of America’s Better Money Habits so when you do use your card, you can earn cash back and receive rewards on some of your transactions.