If you’re thinking about joining the Army.

I hope to do two things in the next series of posts: fulfill the promise that I made to myself that I’d write about and document my experiences, and to give those who are thinking about signing up some advice and tidbits. When I first made the decision join the Army, I did what I usually do and turned to the internet to get some help. I really didn’t know shit about the Army, besides what I’d absorbed via history books and movies, so I had a lot of questions and preconceived notions. I didn’t find exactly what I was looking for, so here I am to write it myself.

First things first

Why are you joining the Army? Make sure you have an answer to that question that satisfies you. People join for all kinds of reasons, some smart and others not so smart. Rest assured that some one in a position of authority will ask you this question at some point, and not having a well-thought out answer isn’t going to create a favorable impression. Once you’re at peace with your answer, you’re ready to take the next step and talk to a recruiter.

I have 36 days left

It’s been almost a month since I signed my contract and in some ways I am ready, and in other ways I’m not ready for what BCT is going to bring.

To be fair, I went from an exercise routine consisting mainly of opening and closing my car door to 3 solid weeks of PT with my sergeants. Still a long way to go to maxing that APFT score, but at least the first few weeks of training won’t be quite as brutal as they would have been 17 pounds ago.

I have one Future Soldier Training exam to go, and I’ll have finished the first part of the “mental” preparation part of my current training. I feel pretty good about my ability to discern ranks, how to march and even how to dress a wound with a tourniquet. Oddly enough, the “motivation” part of my FST has been the one I’ve enjoyed the most.

Setting goals (part of the motivation training) has been pounded into my brain since I left Silicon Valley, so it’ll be interesting to see what I can carry over from what I’ve been calling my old life as a web designer. I don’t think my interest in web design will every really fade away, but in the near future I’ll probably be more concerned about mile times and steady breathing than ems and pixels.

I’ll get back to it someday.