Echo_Four_Bravo
05-20-08, 11:36 PM
There have been several threads where people give you advice about your future, how to get ready for boot camp, and what to expect. I’m going to follow suit, but mine is going to be a little different. Take it for what it is worth, one man’s opinion on his time in the Marine Corps.
First, quit worrying so much. Most of the Marines on this site went to boot camp totally blind. We may have had a friend or two that had gone before us, or family members that had been there years before, but it is nothing like you have today. You have the ability to sit at a computer and find everything you ever wanted to know about recruit training. However, it isn’t that difficult really. All you have to do is be in decent physical condition and then do what you are told to do. The life of a recruit is really pretty simple, you make no decisions for yourself. Boot camp is not really something you need to spend your life preparing for if you are an average person. If you show up able to do five pull ups, 75 crunches, and run the mile and a half in 11:00 minutes, you will become a Marine unless you quit on yourself.
Life in the Marine Corps doesn’t really get interesting until you leave boot camp. Since I was a communications guy, I’m going to talk about that route. There is plenty out there for the infantry people to see where things are different- but much of it is pretty close once you get to the fleet.
I went to MCT and joined my fellow Marines in complaining that we were not really treated like Marines. It felt more like the 4th phase of boot camp than life as a Marine. Mind you, we were there a little longer than people are now, so we did get days off. The days off were really the only thing different to that point. But, it is a lot of fun. Where else can you get paid to go on a hike, shoot some machine guns, and relive your childhood days of playing war? Despite the seriousness of MCT and the fact that you are learning things that may well save your life one day, that is basically what it boils down to.
After MCT I reported to school in 29 Palms. For the first time there were actually a chance to live life more like a Marine. After a week in receiving we were given barracks rooms (four people to a room). You were expected to wake up in the morning and be in formation for school or PT. There was nobody there waiting for you to get dressed or telling you what to do. You just do what needs to be done, and get to the proper place, in the proper uniform, at the proper time. We went to school all day, and were basically on our own in the evenings. You needed to make sure your uniform was ready for the next day (a little different when it has to be starched and pressed and boots have to be highly shined) you had to study to ensure you knew the material, and that was about it. On Thursday night we had field day, which means that was the only night where your time was taken. However, there was fire watch at the barracks, most people did not get it more than once or twice.
At the end of MOS school we went to the fleet. That was one of the most surprising parts of my Marine Corps career. I checked in knowing that I knew my job, had been one of the most proficient people in my MOS school, and was ready to do my job. However, I spent very little time actually doing my job. In a typical week we would do the preventative maintenance on the HMMWVs on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday we would go on working parties for supply, NBC, or anyone else that needed warm bodies to do the work. On Friday we would often wear Charlies and spend the day getting classes about a variety of military subjects. It was a shock, having people of the same rank bossing you around and making your life pretty uncomfortable. You think that it is the NCOs that will cause problems for you, but it isn’t. For the most part, the NCOs didn’t even talk to us all that much.
As training continued, I quickly learned that the more technical aspects of the job were going to be done by the NCOs and that we were little more than monkeys that were supposed to run to their master if there was a problem. The time and expense of the MOS school seemed totally wasted. We did not do the things we were taught to do, and the people that performed the functions did it in such a way that you would have failed the tests at the MOS school.
However, over time you gain seniority. Eventually you are known to be a good Marine or as one of the problems. Likewise, the NCOs learn whether you have been paying attention and know how to do your job or if you’ll always just be able to go get someone else when there is a problem. If you’ve proven yourself you will be rewarded. As a LCPL it was not unusual for me to be a “site chief” in charge of the radio site where I was. Of course, the other LCPLs that were with me were expected to do as they were told, even if we were of the same rank. You begin to see that you get from the Marine Corps what you put into the Marine Corps. If you want to just skate by and not be noticed (as everyone tells you to do in boot camp) you can do that for your entire enlistment. If you want to excel and be a leader, you can do that as well. And of course, there are those that are less than stellar Marines that get into trouble and just take up space. If you want to be one of them, that option is open as well.
That brings me to what I believe is the most important point. When you get to your unit some people will shun you because you’re just a new boot. Other people may try to reach out and help you adjust. Be friendly to everyone, but don’t get too wrapped up with any person or group of people. Take a few weeks to get used to your new surroundings, to what is expected of you, and to your new responsibilities. Also watch the new people you meet. Decide if they are the type of Marine you want to be. Even if you want to be a great Marine, being friends with the bad Marines will lead you down the wrong path. Once you find people that are the type of Marines you think you should be, make friends with them.
My final point is to take time to remember your Marine Corps career. Fact is, most people are getting out after four years. Whether you think it is your life long career or you only intend to do one enlistment, chances are good that you’re going to be out of uniform four years after you first put it on. Even if you do stay in, most of your friends will move on and do other things with their lives. So take the time to enjoy what is going on around you. The nights spent in the field with nothing more than a poncho liner and your uniform while it is raining and cold may well be some of your best memories later in life. The hump that makes you wish you didn’t have feet will be a story you’re platoon will talk about for years. The Gunny that screams and cusses all the time and gets even madder if he spills his coffee is really a gift. Find the enjoyment in things. They’ll be gone before you know it.
First, quit worrying so much. Most of the Marines on this site went to boot camp totally blind. We may have had a friend or two that had gone before us, or family members that had been there years before, but it is nothing like you have today. You have the ability to sit at a computer and find everything you ever wanted to know about recruit training. However, it isn’t that difficult really. All you have to do is be in decent physical condition and then do what you are told to do. The life of a recruit is really pretty simple, you make no decisions for yourself. Boot camp is not really something you need to spend your life preparing for if you are an average person. If you show up able to do five pull ups, 75 crunches, and run the mile and a half in 11:00 minutes, you will become a Marine unless you quit on yourself.
Life in the Marine Corps doesn’t really get interesting until you leave boot camp. Since I was a communications guy, I’m going to talk about that route. There is plenty out there for the infantry people to see where things are different- but much of it is pretty close once you get to the fleet.
I went to MCT and joined my fellow Marines in complaining that we were not really treated like Marines. It felt more like the 4th phase of boot camp than life as a Marine. Mind you, we were there a little longer than people are now, so we did get days off. The days off were really the only thing different to that point. But, it is a lot of fun. Where else can you get paid to go on a hike, shoot some machine guns, and relive your childhood days of playing war? Despite the seriousness of MCT and the fact that you are learning things that may well save your life one day, that is basically what it boils down to.
After MCT I reported to school in 29 Palms. For the first time there were actually a chance to live life more like a Marine. After a week in receiving we were given barracks rooms (four people to a room). You were expected to wake up in the morning and be in formation for school or PT. There was nobody there waiting for you to get dressed or telling you what to do. You just do what needs to be done, and get to the proper place, in the proper uniform, at the proper time. We went to school all day, and were basically on our own in the evenings. You needed to make sure your uniform was ready for the next day (a little different when it has to be starched and pressed and boots have to be highly shined) you had to study to ensure you knew the material, and that was about it. On Thursday night we had field day, which means that was the only night where your time was taken. However, there was fire watch at the barracks, most people did not get it more than once or twice.
At the end of MOS school we went to the fleet. That was one of the most surprising parts of my Marine Corps career. I checked in knowing that I knew my job, had been one of the most proficient people in my MOS school, and was ready to do my job. However, I spent very little time actually doing my job. In a typical week we would do the preventative maintenance on the HMMWVs on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday we would go on working parties for supply, NBC, or anyone else that needed warm bodies to do the work. On Friday we would often wear Charlies and spend the day getting classes about a variety of military subjects. It was a shock, having people of the same rank bossing you around and making your life pretty uncomfortable. You think that it is the NCOs that will cause problems for you, but it isn’t. For the most part, the NCOs didn’t even talk to us all that much.
As training continued, I quickly learned that the more technical aspects of the job were going to be done by the NCOs and that we were little more than monkeys that were supposed to run to their master if there was a problem. The time and expense of the MOS school seemed totally wasted. We did not do the things we were taught to do, and the people that performed the functions did it in such a way that you would have failed the tests at the MOS school.
However, over time you gain seniority. Eventually you are known to be a good Marine or as one of the problems. Likewise, the NCOs learn whether you have been paying attention and know how to do your job or if you’ll always just be able to go get someone else when there is a problem. If you’ve proven yourself you will be rewarded. As a LCPL it was not unusual for me to be a “site chief” in charge of the radio site where I was. Of course, the other LCPLs that were with me were expected to do as they were told, even if we were of the same rank. You begin to see that you get from the Marine Corps what you put into the Marine Corps. If you want to just skate by and not be noticed (as everyone tells you to do in boot camp) you can do that for your entire enlistment. If you want to excel and be a leader, you can do that as well. And of course, there are those that are less than stellar Marines that get into trouble and just take up space. If you want to be one of them, that option is open as well.
That brings me to what I believe is the most important point. When you get to your unit some people will shun you because you’re just a new boot. Other people may try to reach out and help you adjust. Be friendly to everyone, but don’t get too wrapped up with any person or group of people. Take a few weeks to get used to your new surroundings, to what is expected of you, and to your new responsibilities. Also watch the new people you meet. Decide if they are the type of Marine you want to be. Even if you want to be a great Marine, being friends with the bad Marines will lead you down the wrong path. Once you find people that are the type of Marines you think you should be, make friends with them.
My final point is to take time to remember your Marine Corps career. Fact is, most people are getting out after four years. Whether you think it is your life long career or you only intend to do one enlistment, chances are good that you’re going to be out of uniform four years after you first put it on. Even if you do stay in, most of your friends will move on and do other things with their lives. So take the time to enjoy what is going on around you. The nights spent in the field with nothing more than a poncho liner and your uniform while it is raining and cold may well be some of your best memories later in life. The hump that makes you wish you didn’t have feet will be a story you’re platoon will talk about for years. The Gunny that screams and cusses all the time and gets even madder if he spills his coffee is really a gift. Find the enjoyment in things. They’ll be gone before you know it.