Quitting good job for OCS?

[Twolf]

Hello and thanks for finding time to read this; it's probably going to be a long one.

I'm soon to be a 24 with a 4 year degree (3.6 gpa) making about $80k/year. After a stint at Microsoft as an intern I walked away for a job in the
power sports industry. By most standards, I have an awesome job. I seldom work long hours and enjoy a work environment that is better than most.
After two years on the job I have a house, car, and motorcycle (the latter two of which I own free and clear) and have also banked $15k for
retirement. I have the toys I always wanted and I'm on the fast track to climb into middle management as long as I keep my nose down.

However, for the last year or so I've slowly come to realize that I feel largely unfulfilled with my job. I'm orginally from a very small town just
south of the border in Minnesota and am learning to absolutely despise living in the 'burbs of Minneapolis, commuting with all the other lemmings,
and working 45 hours a week to only have fun on the weekends. My daily routine normally consists of work, workout, eat, read, sleep. Talk about the
grind. At the end of the day, I don't ENJOY work and certainly don't feel like I made the world a better place. I don't want that to be the rest of my life and any job I take with my degree seems to end at the same destination.

A lot of things in life have always come easily to me and I've generally followed my successes from one challenge to the next without realizing what I really want out of life. Now that I've truly hit the 8-5 grind, the achievements that once made me feel fullfilled are far and few between.
After the recent end of a long term relationship with my girlfriend, I've realized I have little more than a job holding me down where I'm at. I've
been racking my brains for a career move that'll be honorable, fulfilling, and makes the world a betteer place. I LOVE to travel and enjoy staying fit (I do triathalons) and while I know that someday I want to set down roots and have a family, I generally feel like I'm goin to miss out on a lot of the good stuff that comes with my early twenties if I continue you down this path.

So, all that being said, if you folks were in my shoes do you think the Marines can fill the void in my life? While I don't know a ton about the process, OCS seems like a viable route.

Anyone been in my shoes?


Do you fill happy about what you do most days? Sense of accomplishment?

Do you ever regret not just climbing the corporate ladder and making more money? I fear that two years into the Marines, I'll get bored/feel unfulfilled and it'll feel just like another job (but pays less). I've read a number of threads that say that it's just like working any other job.

I appreciate the input.
Thank you,
John

Similar Threads:

• Quitting Cigarettes?
• Quitting Smoking?
• quitting dep?
• Quitting the books

[Tennessee Top]

John,

I don't have much in common with you. I do have a BS degree which I earned on active duty but never climbed the corporate ladder and never had your salary/perks. I was never an officer so can't shed any light on OCS or life in the officer ranks.

As a career Staff Noncommissioned Officer (SNCO), I did successfully lead troops for many years and can tell you (IMO), there is no better job than leading Marines (but I'm biased). It is both emotionally and physically demanding but the rewards gained from the experience are unmatched anywhere else. There is no other job in this world, besides being a SNCO or officer, where you have the opportunity to lead such fine men and women as those who wear our uniform (if you know anything about our history you know the type of people I'm referring to and you also know it's true). Saying being a Marine officer is just like working any other job is as far from reality as it gets. Is it possible being an officer will not meet your expectations and you'll get bored with it after a couple years? Of course; like everything else in life, it's not for everyone. It's possible you could find yourself a Supply Officer counting beans, bullets, and bandages (not literally of course but you get the idea). You may be a personnel officer overseeing assignments or a comptroller managing budgets. On the other hand, you could be an infantry officer or provost marshall (PMO) with a military police unit. What you end up doing is contingent on how well you do at OCS.

Your next step, if you are serious enough to take it, is to talk to your area Officer Selection Officer (OSO). They can explain the selection process to you and then take it from there. Contact the recruiting office near you and they can give you the OSO's contact info.

[josephd]

My $.02....

Being that you already graduated you would go to OCS via OCC(officer candidates course). OCC is EXTREMELY competitive and has no active duty slots through fiscal year 2014. All of the active duty seats are going to the PLC candidates who are in college, going to OCS in the summers. My suggestion would be to stick with whatever you are doing already.

[Tennessee Top]

Have you thought about other Federal agencies that recruit college grads such as the FBI, CIA, DOS (foreign service officer with the Department of State)? Any of these positions would be challenging and afford some degree of travel depending on your assignments. In addition, depending on your viewpoint, they may serve to make the world a better place. As a foreign service officer, you would be posted to one of our diplomatic missions abroad providing the greatest opportunity for travel overseas (most of those missions are protected by a small detachment of US Marines by the way).

[Twolf]

Hi all,

Thanks for the speedy responses. A couple of you made some points that rang home with me. This is definitley something I'll sit and chew on for the next few months. I'm not one to rush into decisions, especially committments this large.

Thanks for all that you do and have done.

John

[SPENCE0351]

If you wana keep your job and still be a Marine you can consider the reserves. Although there are a million difference between active duty and reserve you will still go through the exact same training, opportunities to deploy, and maybe you'll get a taste of what your missing at your current job.