When Reality Hits, Did You Have Regrets?

[davidc1220]

Hey Everyone,

It's been a while since I have posted on here and a lot has changed since then.

First off, My times working with the Marines has pretty much come to an end. My OSO and I were very honest with each other and we made a deal and stuck to it. He gave me until September to basically "get my sh*t together" and get my PFT up to what I need it to be to be competitive for OCS. I took it extremely seriously and put in the work for a solid 4 months, but life,age, and human physiology have a funny way of doing things and we both came to the agreement that maybe the Marine Corps isn't meant to be.

Instead of taking this as a crushing end to a dream, I see this as an opening to new opportunities. I have reached out to both the Air Force and the Navy, with the Navy looking like a very promising option. Since I have my ASTB done and MEPS already completed, all i'd need is to get NAMI done and I'm set. Unfortunately National Guard at my location is not taking anyone for pilot slots for the next 3 years.

But I was wondering,
1. Has anyone ever had an experience where you had to let go of something you were working on for years and years, and then completely shift to something completely new and foreign?

2. Did you ever have regrets for not doing what you originally intended to do?

3. If or when reality hit you at some point in your career, what did you do and how did you react?

I'm honestly excited about these new opportunities because at the end of the day, I have to do whatever I have to do to get to the goal of becoming a military aviator

Thanks again for the replies, this site is awesome and I'm glad to be a part of it!

 

[OscarMyers]

At the end of the day you should never regret your original intent if you know you gave it your best effort. Sometimes things don't workout and you continue to forge forward. I'm not entirely sure what is driving you, but if being an aviator is your end goal, then a Navy or AF opportunity will be just as fulfilling. The important part is when an opportunity doesn't workout or you fail at something, you keep a positive attitude and perceiver. Trust me, I have plenty of failures under my belt.

 

[davidc1220]

At the end of the day you should never regret your original intent if you know you gave it your best effort. Sometimes things don't workout and you continue to forge forward. I'm not entirely sure what is driving you, but if being an aviator is your end goal, then a Navy or AF opportunity will be just as fulfilling. The important part is when an opportunity doesn't workout or you fail at something, you keep a positive attitude and perceiver. Trust me, I have plenty of failures under my belt.

That's honestly how i took this event. As i've gotten older, my priorities have changed and now that I'm 25 turning 26 in December, I've begun to realize that I'm not getting any younger and that it's time to move on to something else. But you are right about giving everything, because when they gave me that opportunity for those couple months, I told myself not to take it lightly and to really push hard. Overall I'm proud of myself and content with what I did, even if I never made it to the end goal of being a "Marine". Who knows, maybe this new opportunity will bring more opportunities that will be just as rewarding.

 

[whitesoxnation]

Don't worry about it, homie, none of the TMS out there require the ability to do 23 pull-ups, whatever the ungodly amount of ammo can lifts is, or run 3 miles as fast as a Kenyan.

Look on the bright side... with all the time you are going to save not doing ammo can lifts and getting haircuts, you will have more time to do what you are wanting to join the military for.

 

[davidc1220]

Don't worry about it, homie, none of the TMS out there require the ability to do 23 pull-ups, whatever the ungodly amount of ammo can lifts is, or run 3 miles as fast as a Kenyan.

Look on the bright side... with all the time you are going to save not doing ammo can lifts and getting haircuts, you will have more time to do what you are wanting to join the military for.

Hahaha, yeah I couldn't keep up anymore with the 21 year olds in my pool. Reminded me of when I first started the program. Now they made me feel like an old man out there lol

 

[AllYourBass]

But I was wondering,
1. Has anyone ever had an experience where you had to let go of something you were working on for years and years, and then completely shift to something completely new and foreign?

2. Did you ever have regrets for not doing what you originally intended to do?

3. If or when reality hit you at some point in your career, what did you do and how did you react?

I'm honestly excited about these new opportunities because at the end of the day, I have to do whatever I have to do to get to the goal of becoming a military aviator

Thanks again for the replies, this site is awesome and I'm glad to be a part of it!

1. Yes. Jumped ship from a corporate job to the Navy on what was, in the comparative scheme of time, a whim.

2. No. But the mind does wonder.

3. Remind myself that nobody knows the future, most people I encounter don't actually know what they're doing (but some people know how to look good doing it), and that whatever it is I'm doing, I can at least focus on doing a good job of it while I ponder life's bigger questions. Also helps to remind myself that life can be quite long if we're lucky, and we're in this thing at a fairly young point in our timelines.

 

[Griz882]

Things happen…you keep moving. You’ll be fine as long as you keep setting and pursuing goals.

 

[exNavyOffRec]

Instead of taking this as a crushing end to a dream, I see this as an opening to new opportunities. I have reached out to both the Air Force and the Navy, with the Navy looking like a very promising option. Since I have my ASTB done and MEPS already completed, all i'd need is to get NAMI done and I'm set. Unfortunately National Guard at my location is not taking anyone for pilot slots for the next 3 years.

If you have MEPS done that is all you have to do, the USN doesn't send people to NAMI, that part is done after you get to OCS and you have a good ASTB score for SNA.

You will need to wait for a little while, the new board schedule came out and the next board you could be seen at is in May.

 

[davidc1220]

1. Yes. Jumped ship from a corporate job to the Navy on what was, in the comparative scheme of time, a whim.

2. No. But the mind does wonder.

3. Remind myself that nobody knows the future, most people I encounter don't actually know what they're doing (but some people know how to look good doing it), and that whatever it is I'm doing, I can at least focus on doing a good job of it while I ponder life's bigger questions. Also helps to remind myself that life can be quite long if we're lucky, and we're in this thing at a fairly young point in our timelines.

Thats the best part of life honestly, is how it can humble you really quickly with or without you knowing it. I wouldn't believe anyone telling me that id be doing the job I have now, or that I'd graduate college with the degree that I had. Among other things in life, it seems like everything I try to plan, goes another direction, which can be good or bad, but again equally humbling

 

[davidc1220]

Things happen…you keep moving. You’ll be fine as long as you keep setting and pursuing goals.

View attachment 33094

Life don't stop for no one, thats why I'm not viewing this as a negative moment in time, but rather as a teaching moment

 

[davidc1220]

Good to know Rec, I have yet to actually meet in person with the Navy recruiter I contacted but we're meeting this Tuesday. I also would like to hear from the Air Force, but with about 90% done with the Navy, I dont know if it's worth it to take someone else's spot in their program

 

[zippy]

You might have dodged a bullet looking to fly and be a Marine. The leadership of that service has a long history of terribly managing its aviation assets and people.

If your local guard isn’t hiring, look elsewhere nationally and be willing to move if needed.

looking for another avenue to get into flying?
http://www.aacadetacademy.com/CadetAcademy/Index

 

[Treetop Flyer]

Why are you limiting yourself to the local guard unit? Going Marine/Navy/AF will all involve moving.

 

[davidc1220]

You might have dodged a bullet looking to fly and be a Marine. The leadership of that service has a long history of terribly managing its aviation assets and people.

If your local guard isn’t hiring, look elsewhere nationally and be willing to move if needed.

looking for another avenue to get into flying?
http://www.aacadetacademy.com/CadetAcademy/Index

I am still looking around at other places in the state, also in the surrounding states. From what the Guard recruiter told me, A lot of Guard units are opening up positions really slowly since they got hit with COVID. However, the Navy is also looking very promising and may be my biggest contender at the moment. It's a big change to embrace from what I've been doing for a long time, but in the military and in life, things change and I have to basically sh*t or get off the can,

Thats a good program btw, I've been looking at that as a backup if the military doesn't work. They have one of the schools at my major airport, and the good thing is American's main hub is only 4 hours away north

 

[davidc1220]

Why are you limiting yourself to the local guard unit? Going Marine/Navy/AF will all involve moving.

I don't want to limit myself, I've already done that enough with the Marines, So this time i'm keeping all my options open until one really hits well. Currently if I had to pick, the Navy is my best option since I'm pretty much good on majority of the paperwork. But that could change after tomorrow when I meet the Recruiter for the first time face to face.