#
10. Apperance Matters
#
#
I spent most of the first few months of my training learning how to iron
my new uniform and polish my boots, not to mention having my haircut
shorter than it ever had been and shaving twice a day.
The military’s
apparent obsession with appearance is something that baffles outsiders,
but it’s not as silly as it sometimes seems.
Leaving the military and interviewing for civilian jobs, I
couldn’t believe how inappropriately some people dressed. It’s not a
question of fashion, but of self-respect and situational
awareness -- what you’d wear in the desert, you wouldn’t wear at home.
I’ve worked with a few different armies, good and bad, and there’s truth
to the old saying that a smart soldier is a good soldier and that when
you look the part, you act the part.
I spent most of the first few months of my training
learning how to iron my new uniform and polish my boots, not to mention
having my haircut shorter than it ever had been and shaving twice a day
(as if I could have grown a beard if I’d wanted). The military’s
apparent obsession with appearance is something that baffles outsiders,
but it’s not as silly as it sometimes seems.
Leaving the military and interviewing for civilian jobs, I couldn’t believe how inappropriately some people dressed. It’s not a question of fashion, but of self-respect and situational awareness -- what you’d wear in the desert, you wouldn’t wear at home. I’ve worked with a few different Armies, good and bad, and there’s truth to the old saying that a smart soldier is a good soldier and that when you look the part, you act the part.
9. You Are What You Eat And Drink
#
Soldiers eat dinner in the field after completing a training fire mission
#
Soldiers have a complex relationship with food and drink; as Napoleon
knew, an army marches on its stomach. In training, I ate more than I
ever have in my life and still lost weight. Out in the desert we would
drink liters and liters of water a day and still lose guys to
dehydration. On operations, a decent meal in a rear base might be the
only thing a squad can look forward to in weeks.
Soldiers learn a great respect for food as fuel and how your body
responds to what you put in it. Those who have ever spent months on end
eating cardboard-tasting rations also value good cooking and real food
with real flavors as well. Guys at home eating trash have no excuses --
cook well, eat well, live well.
8. You Can't Do Everything On Your Own
Two Army soldiers clear a building as part of an evaluated exercises.
#
More of us live on our own and work for ourselves than at any other time
in history, but all soldiers know that there are just some things you
can’t do on your own. At the most basic level, the “buddy system” keeps
you alive in a fight, but understanding that there are times when the
individual is less than the team is an important life lesson.
As a soldier, you’re always a small cog in a bigger machine, trusting
invisible comrades to your flanks, in the air, even back in base
watching over you on GPS and drone live-feeds. I’ve seen civilian mates
get frustrated when there’s a specific problem they can’t solve
themselves or get uncomfortable trusting others with important stuff --
learn to be a team player and everything runs more smoothly.
7. Value Your Sleep
#
Army Pfc. Jordan Strepko brackets a call for fire mission
during night indirect fire training outside Drawsko Pomorskie, Poland
#
#
In training, it sometimes felt like you’d barely closed your eyes after
an exhausting day before you were being woken at 4:00 a.m. by a
screaming sergeant for a room inspection. Out on operations the tempo is
high and the enemy is no respecter of fatigue, and months can pass when
more than four uninterrupted hours of sleep can seem a distant and
luxurious memory. However, anyone who’s worked in the army has seen
firsthand how sleep deprivation degrades performance, how quickly tired
soldiers make the wrong choices and lose their edge.
I’ve noticed a macho culture among civilian friends, particularly in
high-powered office jobs, boasting about working 36 hours straight on a
deal as if it’s a good thing; however, someone that tired, or jittery on
caffeine, can’t perform and is no good to anyone. Soldiers know sleep
is the ultimate restorative, which is why they try to get their heads
down whenever they can -- we should all try to do the same more often.
6. Confidence Is King — Be Decisive
#
Army Pfc. David Boucher, Alpha Company,
provides security in Chak district, Wardak province, Afghanistan
#
There’s as fine a line between arrogance and confidence as there is
between stupidity and bravery, but there’s no place for uncertainty or
hesitancy on the battlefield. Individuals and teams get in trouble when
they get caught in the middle ground; out in the open in a vulnerable
position or not exactly certain of their objectives or location.
As a leader at any level, having confidence in your decisions is
crucial and at any level once you’ve decided on a course of action,
carrying it out to the best of your abilities is invariably the way to
get it done.
5. Learn From The Experience Of Others
#
An instructor gives a instructions to a sniper candidate during training
Old hands often say there’s nothing new in war, just stuff you haven’t
yet learned. When you’re young and ambitious, the grizzled old timer
telling you how he did it may seem prehistoric, but he’s seen and knows a
lot more than you. In the army, you quickly learn to listen to and
respect the opinions of senior guys -- those opinions often save your
life.
4. There Are Worse Things Than Being Bored
#
Army Pfc. Jordan Adams pulls security during a senior leader engagement
with Afghan National Police in Bagram, Parwan province, Afghanistan.
#
#
Most soldiers join the military for a bit of excitement, and nothing
gets the adrenaline pumping like being in contact with others. However,
an adrenaline high has a bad come down and after a while soldiers who
were keen to get out and see some "action" would be quiet and happy back
in a rear base.
We live in a society relentlessly chasing the next thrill, where
being bored is the ultimate sin. Guys coming back off a hard tour will
tell you that just sitting around and relaxing is actually a luxury to
be enjoyed from time to time -- the alternative could always be a lot
worse.
3. You Can't Rely On Technology
#
Sgt. Van Shiroma, a CH-47F Chinook helicopter door gunner,
monitors a
maintenance instrument panel on his aircraft
during engine shut-down
procedures
to ensure the aircraft is performing to standard.
We live in a technology-driven age and
nowhere more so than on the battlefield: drones overhead,
thermal-imaging systems, advanced weapons, and virtually indestructible
vehicles. But a wise man once said that to take a town, some bastard
still has to crawl into the middle of it and raise a flag.
Iraq and Afghanistan have reminded those who
had forgotten that soldiering still requires face-to-face interaction
and boots on the ground and, what is more, that technology can always
fail you. To the guys who couldn’t find the party because their iPhone
map app wasn’t working: Next time check a real map !
2. You Always Have Something More To Give
#
An Army Special Forces member
fires a Mark 19 belt-fed grenade launcher at a training target.
I think it would be fair to say that before I joined the
army, I didn’t really know my limits. These days, very few of us have
ever been really uncomfortable, really tired or really in pain.
The mind starts to play tricks on you when you get to extremes -- it
tells you that you can’t go faster, can’t keep running, can’t push
through the barrier, but you almost always can. Knowing that you have
that capacity somewhere inside you not only gives you confidence in
whatever it is you’re doing, it’s the difference between success
and failure and, for soldiers, often life and death. Dig deeper into
your reserves, you’ll be surprised what you have in there.
1. Appreciate Your Friends
#
Engaging in friendly competition,
Spc. Nathan B. Joachim arm wrestles an
Afghan National Army soldier
at Afghan Combat Outpost Kaligu,
Afghanistan
#
#
Most servicemen are patriots, a few may be religious, but
none of them die and get injured for their country or their God; they
do it for the men on either side of them. We live in an age when “buddy
movies” suggest the height of male friendship is getting a friend out of
trouble with a stripper in Vegas.
I’ve seen men dead on their feet with exhaustion and
knowing the threat outside the gate, stand up and volunteer to go
straight back out on patrol because their mates were in trouble --
that’s true ”bromance,” and it’s a precious thing.
#Source:
10 Things Learned In The Military That Can Be Applied To Life
Editor's note: This post originally appeared on Quora, as an answer to the question:
Aug. 20, 2014
#
#
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου