hello everyone, first let me provide some context for my question. i'm 19 and about to go in my sop****re year of college which i can't start until I come up with $290.00 for the remaining of my tuition. however besides that my life is in disarray i have no job and have no real aim in life except for a vague idea in something related to psychology.
i've started thinking about it and i decided i need some discipline in my life. i've just begun thinking about the army and have yet to visit a recruiter and am in the process of just researching online right now. anyways on to my question. i've read on here that most people here join just to serve there country. compared to them i feel like i shouldn't join. my main reasons are to get away from my parents and really start living on my terms, figure out what my priorities are and whanot.
i realize that i will have to make sacrafices and even ship out to Iraq, and if thats what the job calls for, i'm all for it. i understand the army will own me if i join. what i'm asking is, is joining the army in order to gain discipline and whatnot selfish on my part? should i join only because i want to serve my country?
sorry if i went on a tangent there and i appreciate any and all answers i get.
People join for many reasons: to serve, to help with school, to travel, to get out of their situation and hopefully find a new path, for discipline....you name it, it's there.
That said, in the end you seem to know that you are called upon for a service when they need you. No matter what your bottom line is for actually joining, as long as you can see that you will be fine (it's those that don't who struggle). For example, my initial/main reasons for joining were education, travel and to be on my own, but I also knew that I was doing a service to the country (the country was not doing a service to me) and I felt it was an honor and a privlidge to serve to that end. As a result, I had a successful career (one I am heavily concidering going back to), but others who lost that struggled much more.
Originally posted by Virgil1808: i realize that i will have to make sacrafices and even ship out to Iraq, and if thats what the job calls for, i'm all for it. i understand the army will own me if i join. what i'm asking is, is joining the army in order to gain discipline and whatnot selfish on my part? should i join only because i want to serve my country?
That's a better reason for joining than for the college money or bonuses if you ask me!
I used to teach the class on enlisted careers to recruits at my last assignment in the Coast Guard before I retired. At the start of the class, I used to ask recruits why they joined. Usually the number one reason was education, followed by needed a job and to be involved in law enforcement. Other reasons included a chance to travel, gain training in a job skill, and to serve my country. Probably included in the "needed a job" reason was to get out of the house and get a job that held a future and better benefits. There was also a form given to recruits and the reasons ranked in pretty much the same order.
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what i'm asking is, is joining the army in order to gain discipline and whatnot selfish on my part?
In a word, no. You sound like you're willing to do whatever your service calls for. So whatever you get out of your service, you will have earned by giving. Good luck.
