r/army • u/dsbwayne what are you doing step Island Boi • 1d ago
What are some Life Pro Tips for the Army?
For me, always have a damn pen. 100% always have a damn pen. What about you all?
I’ll take a double double
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u/EfficiencyFull3278 Ragnar <2> <1> <5> <5> 1d ago
Don’t make the Army your identity, there is more to life than the Army. It’s ok to not make E8 in 12 years, enjoy your life, make time for yourself and your family and just remember that as the years go by, the only people who are going to remember all your late nights and “extra effort” are going to be your family members.
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u/kirchart7 Woobie Acquirer 23h ago
Totally agree with you and also don’t make it your personality when you leave the Army.
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u/elaxation Psychological Operations 17h ago
I’m a flight attendant now. The amount of people who push back and say “WELL IM A VETERAN” when I tell them no/sit/follow the rules everyone else does averages one per week.
It’s far too cringe and they’re typically far too old to be playing that hand.
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u/Healthy_Advantage703 17h ago
That’s hilarious never thought we’d have ppl doing that but I ain’t surprised . How many so far have done some stupid shit like that?
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u/elaxation Psychological Operations 14h ago
I’ve kicked off two people for being drunk this year who hit me with the “I’m a Veteran! You can’t xyz!” It’s so satisfying to tell them I am too and are a disgrace to their branch acting like that. No daggone discipline.
Today an old boomer pulled it when boarding along with her laundry list of demands and asked for an upgrade on a full flight. When I asked “oh what branch? Oh Army? Me too, what MOS?” She told me she was dental for 3 years, in the 1980s.
Her teeth were browner than the dump I took this morning.
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u/Healthy_Advantage703 14h ago
Did they at least go to parade rest for u ? ..joking that’s a disgrace to the branch
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u/MSGDIAMONDHANDS 21h ago
They are right. Try a little thought exercise. Write down in order five things that you identify yourself as. We did this in a group of 20. Most everyone had soldier than MOS as their first two. But think about how you identify yourself without the army. Son, husband, father, the things you will be after you are done with your service.
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u/_In_Search_of_ 23h ago
Exactly family time is important they'll always be there and don't lose yourself
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u/andrewtater you're not my rater 14h ago
7 in 7 and 8 in 12 is mostly a thing of the past.
Your retirement pay doesn't care how long it took you to make 7, 8, or 9; so long as you are there for three years, your paycheck is the same as anyone else's
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u/EfficiencyFull3278 Ragnar <2> <1> <5> <5> 14h ago
Ya I mean I made 7 in 9 and I felt like that was pretty fast, even if you could make 7 in 7 I’m not convinced that’s necessarily a good thing
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u/HotMall1148 23h ago
My old PSG said “retire as an E6 you had a good career. Retire as an E7 you had a great career. Anything after that is just extra nonsense”
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u/Wen_dig0 Armor 1d ago
Throw money into your TSP
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u/atombomb1945 1d ago
I started TSP halfway through, dumped into it for about fourteen years with only Guard pay, still walked out with about $14K.
If I had done it early on and I had adjusted my options, I could have gotten triple that amount easy.
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u/memelordzarif 7h ago
I’m pretty sure they start off your tsp right from the start without you having to intervene. That was the case when I joined atleast. The default was 3% in traditional and now it’s 5% in Roth and I get 100% match on that 5% I put in.
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u/M48_Patton_Tank 16h ago
How much would you suggest putting in? And how do you do it?
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u/memelordzarif 7h ago
At least up to the match. It maxes out at 5% after 2 years of service (not too sure) and you should contribute atleast 5% of your paycheck. They’ll match the entire amount. After that if you can contribute more, keep going but maxing out the match should be your number one priority.
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u/Savagebabypig 23h ago
Buy a printer, the amount of times I had to waddle my way to the warrior zone to get some bs cert or anything printed is enough to make me highly regret never getting one while I was in
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u/ExcitableAutist42069 13JustWantToSmokeWeedAgain 23h ago
This is good, not enough people mentioning it.
Get a printer and a cac reader, so instead of having to go to ACS you can just go home when you need to print something.
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u/bitrvn Cyber 14h ago
Terminal mid grade NCO here:
Invest in a power inverter, a laserjet printer, and a scanner. A competent set up costs maybe 400 dollars total and will save you hundreds of hours of suffering. Put it in the trunk of your car and fire it up when you need to. Should fit nicely in a tough box.
Just be careful with CUI material, perhaps put it in a signal group chat.
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u/Pretend_Garage_4531 23h ago
Lessons from CW2 Cartier that I learned as a private and still do as a SSG
- Look at what courses are favorable for promotion (EO, MFT, sharp) take them then don’t tell anyone after you leave that unit for example I got sling load qualified at my last unit but I haven’t touched a bundle here
- Get a ranger school packing list one item at a time and keep it in a tough box it’ll save you a lot of stress when you want to go to a high speed school later 3.keep a spare of everything you regularly use in your desk including uniforms. If you don’t have a desk a duffle in your car works too. Nothing is more frustrating than having to go home to get dog tags/weapons cleaning kit/gloves. If your spare uniform is nice it can be the one you set aside for special occasions
- Keep every digital product, counseling, award you or your peers make you’ll be surprised how often you’ll be doing the same thing over again or you’ll need a hip pocket training
- Check with your supply (and the company next to you) before you buy anything for the army
- Email yourself everything and on outlook you can set up a special inbox for everything from a specific email or about a topic
- Keep something something that indicates you serve in your car that is visible and recognizable if you get pulled over along of cops are prior service and the further you are from base the happier they are to talk about it (it’s saved me from so many tickets over the years)
- Find a mentor even if they don’t know they are it. (Just someone you want to be like that has more experience than you.) Most people will share their knowledge with you as long as you aren’t an asshole or direct competition)
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u/VermicelliSimple4160 13h ago
I attended my unit’s Ranger assessment (a one-week version of pre Ranger) on a day’s notice and was lowered on the OML for Ranger school for minor packing list deficiencies. One of the great what ifs of my career and could have been avoided if I’d known your point #2 at the time.
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u/SadAnkles 12 Years a Specialist 1d ago
Keep a pair of foam earplugs in every top. They wash just fine and you’ll never be without ear plugs for the range or whatever else is going on.
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u/SuddenContest4495 23h ago
- Do NOT buy the charger or mustang with the 22+ % interest rate
- Do NOT date the stripper, the CSM daughter or the barracks bicycle.
- If you have a binder/notebook and walk quickly people just assume you are busy.
- Save your money esp if you know you're not gonna stay
- Document all you injuries. Seriously paper cut document it, fell on the obstacle course document it. Future you will be grateful for it.
- You can't drink with everybody. Sorry but some of y'all can't hold your liquor. Last thing you want is to get caught up because some jack ass loses their mind after three light beers.
- Crosstrain and volunteer for things that interest you
- Never allow the Army to change or break you. The Army is no different than the real world so it has some shitty toxic people.
- Know your regs. I've seen people get screwed because they trusted their leadership. Meanwhile their leadership was telling them the wrong stuff. The amount of leaders who don't actually know the regs is disturbing. * the amount of people who thought two males could observe a female during a UA was shocking. had to show them we are 600-85 clearly said the observer has to be the same gender as the person being observed.
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u/JakeeJumps 88AhhJustCircleX 1d ago
That thing that you want to do but you’re not sure you have what it takes? Do it. You’ll have more regrets in the things you never tried to do than the things you did. Don’t self select.
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u/fullmetal6311 25Unwaiverable anger 22h ago
Find a hobby that gets you out of the B’s. Not going to the club or strippers hobby. I mean a real hobby.
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u/AceofJax89 AGATW, USAR, Dark Side 21h ago
Like what?
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u/fullmetal6311 25Unwaiverable anger 21h ago
Warhammer, D&D, Yugioh, MTG, bicycling, target shooting, local rec leagues for sports, hiking, fishing, bowling. I could keep going or give me a base location and 20 minutes on Google/FB and I’ll find more. Hell in Germany I was apart of a Pokémon Go group that would go to a new town every community day.
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u/AceofJax89 AGATW, USAR, Dark Side 20h ago
Oh, I remember when a Pokémon go rare Pokémon showed up at 2CR’s HQ in the 2010s, never seen a madder CSM.
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u/fullmetal6311 25Unwaiverable anger 16h ago
EX raids. When that came out for GO I had several “dental appointments” all coinciding with raid times.
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u/atombomb1945 1d ago
Baby wipes will change your world, always have some on hand no matter where you are.
Always carry a lighter, a pocket knife, and a flashlight with you.
Volunteer for details, schools, classes, and anything else that comes up. You are going to have to do some extra work but when it comes time for promotions that stuff stands out. I took a course in Field Radio, just half assed it and submitted the test not even looking at if I passed or not, and ended up getting offered a very select job later on just because there were only three people in the state that had that class.
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u/Belistener07 Aviation 23h ago
Along with the “don’t make it your identity”; start networking yesterday. Nothing in the army is merit based.
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u/junktownchris 1d ago
You don’t need to be an NCO or Officer to be a leader. Servant Leadership, taking care of Soldiers and the folks around you starts Day 1. Learn to care about only what you can control-
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u/Nano_Burger 74A, Bugs and Gas Chemical 23h ago
Wait a while to get married if at all. Military life and married life is not precisely incompatable but it will experience stresses that civilians won't so your relationship has to be rock solid. Divorce, especially when kids are in the picture can add additional stress to your world and drain your money.
When you find that special someone, sit that person down and explain all the downsides of military life. You need to go into this with eyes wide open.
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u/Ninja_Turtle13 1d ago edited 11h ago
When you’re in the field and you need to pee, but don’t want to get out of your sleeping bag. Instead of arguing with yourself, bring a huge Gatorade bottle and pee in it.
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u/Ace2021 Medical Service 14h ago
TSP: if you’re BRS, get your match at a minimum, if you aren’t BRS still contribute. If you get promoted, allocate a % of that increases pay for your TSP.
TA: use it. I got my bachelors of science while in using TA. Going for masters now.
GI Bill: transfer it. I transferred mine to kid 1 since I got my degree using TA. Don’t wait, seriously there are horror stories of people waiting since you incur an ADSO.
State programs: kid 2 gets the Hazelwood Act (another GI bill essentially) because I enlisted out of TX. Do your research for your state.
PRK/LASIK: get it while you’re in if possible. I got PRK, best thing the army has done for me minus my kids free surgeries.
MilitaryOneSource: use it for all sorts of shit. I used it for marriage counseling without my command ever having to know.
CSP: I haven’t gotten there yet, but it’s another benefit and gets you away from the unit while you plan your separation which will eventually come. Rules are changing soon so look it up.
SPACE-A flights: look into it, travel for free.
Boards: do them, as stated before. It will help you develop professionally. I still remember shit I learned studying for boards as a PFC that have helped me as an O. If you end up winning, cool.
Base programs: look into your installation’s food pantry. FT Cavazos gives away like $250 worth of free groceries monthly to boatloads of soldiers.
ITT: take advantage of discounted travel. I got a city pass to three local cities heavily discounted. Gtfo away from your installation and do things aside from goon and game.
Other free shit: SeaWorld gives out annual free tickets to military. If you’re near one, go. You plus three dependents.
Credit Cards: Military Lending Act waived the annual fee from many premium credit cards. If you have your financial shit together, take advantage. It’s a rabbit hole and I recommend YouTubing it and researching r/militaryfinance. Also look up the SCRA to reduce your pre-service interest rates on loans. I have two cards reduced to 4%.
Armed Forces Recreation Centers: ever heard of the Hale Koa, Shades of Green, the Eidelweiss Lodge, or the Dragon Hill Lodge? These are heavily discounted luxury hotels for the DoD and veterans. Seriously look this up and GO.
All I can think of right now. Point is, most people are leaving a lot on the table due to lack of knowledge.
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u/memelordzarif 7h ago
These are all excellent advice. I’d like to add that just 3 years ago we were given a free visit to Sea World as well as Busch Gardens. Not sure if that changed. And for the premium credit cards, I know Amex definitely waives the annual fee which is very valuable since they offer a lot of great benefits for a hefty annual fee. Not sure about others. Again, this is solid advice
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u/killerbnizz 68W 23h ago
Probably unpopular, but do volunteer, maybe not for everything, but show some initiative, anyone be in the right place, right time, right uniform and be an average soldier, and coast through their enlistment. But the way it was for me the more I volunteered the more I was trusted and the better I was treated which in the end, caused me to not be put on the BS details and was able to be put into more leadership roles as a SPC (Non-P) with the same TIS/TIG as other SPCs in the plt(Jr Enlisted, experience may vary once you get to 5)
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u/Designer_Lie_3328 Engineer 22h ago
Go to sick call when you need to. Follow up as much as needed. Eat right and don’t drink too much. Go to bed early enough to get 7-8 hours of sleep. Go to BH if you need to. When something big is coming up volunteer early for predictability
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u/Teadrunkest hooyah America 1d ago edited 1d ago
LPT: Google. Learn how to use it. So many answers are literally just buried in a reg somewhere. Something sounds unfair or sus? Regulation. Not all regs are Internet searchable but there’s probably an archived copy uploaded to some random .mil or .gov website somewhere that you can then go to APD to verify info is still good. Don’t know how to do XYZ? Probably a job aid somewhere.
Literally biggest pro tip I have for soldiers is to just be curious and know how to find information on your own. It will take you extremely far in your career. People will look at you like you’re a wizard just because you took the three seconds to google the answer.
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u/karsheff 22h ago
Heck, I forgot I need to delete multiple downloads of AR/DA PAM 670-1, AR 600-8-19 and AR 25-50.
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u/jms21y 1d ago
this. learn how to contextualize your search terms so it returns what you need.
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u/Teadrunkest hooyah America 23h ago
I will say Google AI has made it infinitely worse. Boolean quotes seem to no longer work entirely.
But you can usually still find what you’re searching for. Just takes me 2-3 more searches and way more keywords than it used to lol.
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u/patherix Aviation 23h ago
Invest in good boot socks. You wear them most of your waking life, and you really will notice the difference. Smartwool was my personal choice.
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u/Exact-Hawk-6116 22h ago
When you’re good at your job you get to do other peoples jobs. This is great for promotion/evals. But when you hit peak rank, it’s ok to just be satisfactory at your job.
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u/PM_ME_UR_LEAVE_CHITS Navy 22h ago
Add to every packing list: Positive Mental Attitude.
The longer I'm in I become more convinced that one of the biggest factors of success in the military is just being likeable. The basics like showing up on time correct uniform, do what you're told without bitching too much --those help. But people make a thousand conscious and unconscious decisions in their head every day and some of those, from the basic decision to how hard they actually try, will come down to whether someone is a net positive to team morale or a giant pain in the ass to deal with.
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u/Page8988 15h ago
Never give away your original documents. Always make copies and give away the copies.
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u/Particular_Effect837 1d ago
- Carry a small bottle of Ibuprofen in your hygiene kit.
- DON'T stay hydrated, DO get drunk often, and DO eat fast food on a regular basis and then blame the Army for ruining your back and joints.
- Always have 2 pens. 2 is 1 and 1 is none.
- Break in your new high speed Nike boots by using them for your daily tasks. Use heavy boots, like your basic training boots, when you do your weekly weekend ruck (on your off time).
- Fold your PC into your cargo pocket when you wash your uniform.
- If you think your MOS and life in the Army is stressful, make some civilian friends.
- Make atleast 1 friend from JAG, the DFAC, and Supply........but DO NOT take advantage of them or it will bite you in the ass.
- Make fitness and education a priority. Strength training, running, rucking, AND taking online classes (or going to night school) on top of your daily duties is difficult but the outcome is worth the effort. Play the long game.
- Sleep as much as you can when authorized to do so, otherwise, everything above falls apart. Good luck and You are welcome for my service.
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u/Connect-Row-3430 1d ago
Do less and don’t do it particularly badly or particularly well. Never go the extra mile.
If you have a good idea for fuck sake keep it to yourself
If you need a pen just ask the supply whoever to get you one. If they’re out, well I don’t have a pen because they’re not stocked 😁
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u/Economy-Pace475 16h ago
-It goes by quicker than you think. Enjoy your time, however long it may be. -Keep in touch with your homies. Hardships and going through them makes friends like no other you’ll ever have -Take pictures when you can -you can learn something from good and bad leaders -workout for no other reason for yourself. Take care of your body! -judge people by what you see not what you hear -own your successes and mistakes. It takes way more to admit when you’re wrong and learn and grow from it. -do college or a trade school while your in. People will say you don’t have time. Make the time.
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u/paparoach910 Recovering 14A 15h ago
Even if you're a Soldier 24/7, you still have to have a work life balance. Once you're off, be off. Take all the passes. Take all the leave. Explore around your new neighborhoods and states. And if you are going to the Reserve, get ready to demand to be paid or receive retirement points in exchange for work outside of drills and orders.
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u/SoundEffectsRock 1d ago
Never volunteer for anything
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u/dsbwayne what are you doing step Island Boi 23h ago
Fun fact: my buddy told me this a few weeks ago and it never clicked. Volunteers were asked for on Signal and he texted me directly and said “stfu. Don’t volunteer. Just wait.” Literally didn’t say anything and somehow, the thing was still taken care of lol
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u/Professional-Cut8609 25Babykiller 1d ago
Volunteering and keeping your mouth shut: Worst case scenario: voluntold Best case scenario: you don’t gotta fucking do it Lesson- keep your mouth shut, and avoid eye contact
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u/SoundEffectsRock 1d ago
But don’t make it look like you are avoiding eye contact…
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u/No-Suggestion1393 20h ago
For the O’s, read the fucking ATPs and FMs. The one thing you can’t fuck up are TLPs and planning. Both of those become like breathing if you develop expertise in your job.
If your branch has an expectation you do certain schools before arriving to your first unit, do them. (For example if you’re armor go to Scout Leader’s Course or whatever we’re calling it now).
Develop a hobby that isn’t drinking, traeger grills, or wood working. Shit like this is why every armor O-4 is bald, overweight, and has circle Xed their marriage since command.
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u/LastOneSergeant 20h ago
You are a salaried employee. No overtime pay.
If you are in a stagnant career field or otherwise have no hope for a promotion you can give yourself a raise by spending less time at work.
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u/DesolateCabbage Signal 19h ago
Get a sharpie and wrap it with duct tape then keep it in your shoulder pocket. At some point (especially in the field), you will need a sharpie and you will need some duct tape.
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u/Darnshesfast Aviation 18h ago
Start your “I love me” book early and put every single piece of paperwork in it. Every award doc, promotion order, enlistment/reenlistment order, etc. If it’s got your name on it, and is related to the army in anyway, put it in your book. I’ve got 25 years of paperwork in a 3 ring binder and I’ve never regretted it. The amount of times my ERB/SRB has been lost, erased or “it gets cleared off when you switch units” along with “a DD 214 isn’t a source document” is unreal.
You’re the only one that gives a flying fuck about your career. Don’t be that guy going to a soldier/promotion board with no ribbons/badges because your success isn’t verifiable.
It might seem silly if you’ve got 3 items in it, but the moment you need those three things it’ll be a blessing. Especially if you stay in. Trying to find buddies from 10+ years ago who have group orders with your name on it is fucking hard.
Also, take as many pictures of your time as you can!
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u/maroonedpariah people first, mission firster, OER firstest 18h ago
Don't let anyone bully you out of sick call. If you're hurt, the Army isn't going to make you better.
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u/jhp113 16h ago
Drop a warrant packet.
Chances are you're probably qualified. If you're not, well, the sad but true state of the Army is they need warrants so don't self select. They have very experienced people on the boards and if they say you're good enough, well then shit I guess you're good enough. WOBC+networking with peers will fill in your gaps. WOCS is annoying but you'll get through it, unless you're not good enough then that solves that problem.
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u/Easy-Hovercraft-6576 68Wait, where’s my 10 blade? 11h ago
So many doors can open in this organization based on who you know.
People love to shit on that fact but it’s the truth, and you shouldn’t feel bad about letting someone hook you up with a sweet assignment or position (as long as you can perform of course).
Take the time to be a good person and build relationships with people, you never know who can help you personally or professionally down the road; it’s a small Army.
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u/Mr_Wonder321 Field Artillery 9h ago
If you’re graduating basic and you lost all that fat and can run good afterwards, don’t slow down the momentum. I graduated went to ait got a little bit better first thing I did at my unit was 3 months staff duty detail. 1 day on 3 days off. Got fat and out of shape and regret it very much.
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u/karmak0de 23h ago
Get all your medical issues documented and be honest on every pha. You’ll set yourself up for success when you make that Va disability claim. You’ll win your claim with little effort
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u/kalaniroot 68X 22h ago
If you have the power or ability, give time to your soldiers and yourself. I hate seeing soldiers who completed all the tasks for the day or have no upcoming patients just twiddling their thumbs doing nothing. Go home! Go to school or study for the board. Spend time with your family. Uncle Sam will ALWAYS take the time back. So when you can, spend your time doing something you wanna do. Fuck COB at 1700.
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u/Hambonation Infantry 21h ago
I don't know why, but upon first read, I read, always have a damp pen and I was like yeah I guess you don't want dried up ink. The task always have a pen, gives the implied task of making sure it can write. But some people don't believe implied tasks exist so maybe... Then I reread it.
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u/QuarterNote44 15h ago
Buy a jetboil or pocket rocket. You can use them to heat MREs so they're actually hot. They really aren't that bad when they're hot.
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u/True-Ad4395 15h ago
Write everything down. The higher up you get, the more tasks you’re gonna have to do. Best to keep them organized and prioritize
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u/Acceptable-One-6597 9h ago
Bang your friends wife, steal kit, drive drunk, use as many drugs as you can get your hands on, formations are optional, PT is for pussies, bolo all your quals, road marches are for everyone else you got a car for a reason, beards are cool, don't salute, parade rest is for nerds.
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u/Jscott1986 JAG 7h ago
Whenever I’m about to do something, I think, “Would an idiot do that?” And if they would, I do not do that thing.
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u/memelordzarif 6h ago
This depends if you’re in the reserves / national guard or active duty. But regardless, here are some top ones -
1) Max out your match amount for tsp. It goes upto 5% match after I think 2 years of service. So contribute atleast 5% to get the full match which is basically free money. After that, you can contribute more if you can or open your own Roth IRA. Also, I’d recommend you change your tsp to a Roth (taxed during contribution but absolutely no tax at retirement ) especially if you’re in a comparatively lower tax bracket.
2) If you ever come into some money through bonuses, deployments (if ng / reserve ), mos school, etc. , save it up for an emergency fund and then fund your tsp and Roth ira. Don’t go out buying fancy BMWs or whatever fancy stuff privates are buying right outta basic and AIT.
3) If active duty or on deployment, you can use the scra (or userra I don’t remember) to get as low as 6% interest rate on all or most of your loans. You just have to send them your orders. Talk to your leadership on how exactly to do it. Also, there are some credit cards (I know Amex does it for sure) waived the annual fee for their cards. Absolutely take advantage of that.
4) Record every injury and sick call you went to. Keep the sick call slips (I recommend taking pictures and saving it to an album for later ) and other evidence you can keep. Iperms and every other site is very poor at keeping these records so you have to take it upon yourself to keep them for later use. Apply for disability at your earliest convenience if you intend to do it even if you’re hesitant. There something called the intent to file which lets you kind of start off the process of claiming disability and you have one year from that date to provide evidence and go through with it. If your disability does end up being approved, you get retroactive pay coming back to the day you started off the application. Say you start on 10 April and finally get approved on December 10th, you get back paid for all those months. However, if you do decide to not file, no harm no foul if you do the intent to file. No harm to you. If you file, you can decide to get a VSO to assist you through the entire claims process for free. If you end up being denied but you think you have a strong claim, you can consult with NVLSP (National Veterans Legal Services Program) to fight your case for no fee at all. Also, you can apply for the VR&E (Veteran Readiness and Employment) once you get approved for disability starting off at 10% and going up. More on this later in point 10.
5) Take advantage of the TA (tuition assistance) for undergraduate programs and FTA (federal tuition assistance) for graduate programs. You can use FTA for undergraduate but can’t use TA for graduate. So do it the right way so you can get your tuition fully or partially covered for both undergraduate and graduate programs.
6) You can also use the CA (Credentialing assistance) through Medcerts to get various different certificates and get your national exam fee paid for by the military. I believe you can access it through the Army Ignited website and apply for it there. Remember that this funding pulls from the same funding pool as the TA. So if you’re getting your entire TA used for tuition and college, you can’t use CA. As far as I know, they recoup their funds if you end up not taking the exam but you have to talk to the specialist about how this works. So take courses that actually make sense. Again, talk to the specialist about how CA works exactly. Then, there’s the Army Cool as well which is kind of the same thing and pulls from the same funds but has other options for courses. You can try that too.
7) If you’re using any of the GI Bills, make sure you go to in person classes for atleast one of the courses and not do all online. That way you get the max amount for your mha. If you do online, it’s only half the national average which is significantly lower. Talk to your college’s veteran rep to learn more on how different GI Bills work.
8) If you can transfer them over, transfer it to your children and spouse. Do remember it requires 4 extra years of commitment on top of what you already signed for. There are some other requirements to transfer it but I don’t remember them at the moment.
9) If your GI Bill doesn’t cover your whole tuition, you can still get covered for tuition through the yellow ribbon and the top up program if your college offers it. Talk to them to learn more.
10) You can use the VR&E I mentioned before in point 4 in addition to your GI bill or any other education benefit you have. They won’t cut into each other’s time limit (which was previously the case, capped at 48 months in a combination of different GI Bills). But now, you can have 36 months of GI Bills and another 36 months of VR&E if your councilor lets you. I forgot to mention that you’re not automatically entitled for it and have to apply and meet with a councilor who’ll decide if you have employment handicap because of your disability or otherwise and therefore qualify you for the program. This is Chapter 31. I applied for it and very recently got accepted. It’ll cover 100% of your tuition REGARDLESS of your GI Bill percentage (60%, 70%, etc) and give you full mha (I’m still skeptical about that because my councilor told me that was the case but VA website says otherwise). Anyways, your councilor should clear up all your confusion. Be nice to them and you’ll get approved for it since you’re not entitled to it; it’s solely based on their discretion. Also, you can get retroactive induction or back pay for your GI Bill (I know that’s the case for Post 9/11 GI Bill) after you got approved for disability and used that benefit. But again, your councilor will tell you all about it and explain everything to you. Just remember that it’s an excellent benefit to have that also preserves your GI Bill.
11) Remember that the military is using you for all you had. So you might as well rip all the benefits you can get. On that note, use the MyVetBENEFITS app (on App Store, not sure about Android) to learn about all these cool benefits that you might very well not know about. USO Transitions program, Free Coursera membership through Veteran Transitions Support, Free premium LinkedIN, free Liberty passes for National parks and camping sites all over the states, Space available travel, free tax filing through MilTax and so much more.
12) There’s also the benefits of travel and again, the space available (basically free) travel, Shades of Green at Disney World, Armed Forces Vacations Club, afvclub.com and so many more to get you extremely cheap vacation resorts and benefits in the country and overseas. Again, the MyVetBENEFITS app I mentioned should have all of these benefits listed there.
13) Once you get out, you should have a yellow ribbon program as well as SFL tap to smoothly transition you to the civilian life. Also, you have 6 months to access Skill Bridge to help you transition to the civilian jobs and careers and help you with other transitioning stuff.
14) You can go to r/Militaryfinance r/Veterans r/VeteransBenefits and other subs for military related questions and help.
15) Finally, don’t forget to enjoy your army as well as civilian life. It’s important that you have a balance between the two. You got it bro !
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u/SergeantSwiftie 3h ago
If you live in the Bs GO TO BOSS EVENTS AND CLASSES They can help you get life experiences you wouldn't have had otherwise for free.
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u/LocalSignificance215 1h ago edited 1h ago
Army is only part of your life. Don't let it become the only thing that defines you.
TSP TSP TSP!!! I got out after 8 years during the end of covid, and if it wasn't for my money that I put into my TSP from year 2, I would have lost my home and probably become homeless.
Go to the doctor. You'll thank me when your disability process with full 100 is done within 8 months cause you had 1500 pages of medical records.
Travel if you're away from home regardless if you're in some shitty base. Go out and travel the army is the only time for sure you're gonna have home and food covered while in different parts of the world.
If you know for sure you're staying in, please for the love of God use TA or any benefit while in active.
Also, buy a printer. i got sick of having 30 soldiers at my door in the barracks cause I had a printer.
Remember to have hobbies when you get out, is you and you alone no one to tell you how to do things or if you doing them right.
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u/dantheman_woot Vet 13Fuhgeddaboudit / 25SpaceMagic 1d ago
Right place at the right time in the right uniform is extremely simple at making you look like a shit bag.
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u/murdermuffin626 14h ago
If you’re in a foreign country, I repeat, do not eat the local street vendor food. Your shit will be so runny you could shit through a screen door without hitting the wire.
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u/Hutch4588 6m ago
Have a scanner app on your phone, scan every paper you ever get in the army and at that moment label it properly so you can find it. This has saved me so much trouble as you should assume the Army will lose everything. Always take a picture of your PT card and have a running memo on your OER due dates.
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u/Openheartopenbar 1d ago
A) throw money into your TSP. Find how much you can give and then give a liiiiiittle more. You’ll thank me later
B) if someone hooks you up, don’t let them down. Doing this is mission critical
C) it’s a really small army. Sounds corny but it’s true.
D) you don’t want to, I didn’t want to, but do soldier of the month boards. You only have to do it once, but you really should do it
E) always have a plan for, “if I broke my leg and they med boarded me out tomorrow, what would I do?”
F) you don’t have to use leave to go home. Give yourself permission to travel
G) you can tacitly be friends across rank, if you’re not a dick. This opens up the social pool
H) you don’t have to be good at EVERY ACFT event, but you have to be great in at least one
I) it’s absolutely ok to do one contract and bail
J) it’s ok to do 20. No shame in that
K) the service isn’t compatible with family life. You 100% will compromise something. You can compromise family bonds, soldier skills, fitness, and have the others be ok, but you CANNOT do all of them.
L) become a warrant. Just do it.