Posted on Feb 12, 2016
Do you ever struggle with feeling like you haven't done enough in your military career?
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Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 80
I took alot of "sacrifice bunts" for the better of my Soldiers....which in turn stoped me from promotions, awards and better evals. Also some self inflicted wounds. But I'm happy with my career and the privilege of serving with some of the best Americans.
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COL Mike Humphrey
A lot of us have taken "sacrifice bunts" especially for our soldiers. To me its a sign of a leader who cares about his soldiers, but yes It can hurt.
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I struggle with survivor's guilt for not getting my ass shot off like a good infantryman. No joke. I screwed up my military career by bullying senior officers I served under in a division headquarters because I wasn't where "I belonged"
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COL Mike Humphrey
I know what you mean, I have pissed off many superior officers in my time, mostly trying to take care of my soldiers. Probably since we are both mustang officers. I agree 100% with PO2 Barker, even though I was not in Vietnam, will stand shoulder to shoulder with you on that journey to the wall. You are worthy.
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MAJ (Join to see)
I understand where you're coming from. I deployed as a tanker running convoy security. I ran 19 missions into Iraq and got as far north as Balad. On one particularly bad night I remember 2 troops being killed and more injured from an IED. I was on the same route, just further behind them. My wife was actually a CAO for a young troop who was killed by a mortar while sleeping in his rack while I was there. Even within my Battalion we had IED strikes, RPG attacks, small arms fire, and troops hit with mortar shrapnel.
I made it home without firing my weapon and without a scratch. The only reason I can come up with is that I was just lucky. There's still times I feel like I got over though.
I made it home without firing my weapon and without a scratch. The only reason I can come up with is that I was just lucky. There's still times I feel like I got over though.
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My career has endured for 37 years (so far), so I have had a long time to reflect on what I’ve done. What I struggle with is wondering if I did everything I could when it came to helping fellow Soldiers or other servicemembers who were in need of help, professionally or personally. I’ve been at a point where I don’t worry much about consequences to my career for a long time – I don’t need that promotion, medal or top block evaluation. I think I’ve always placed the needs of others above my own but over the last ten years or so I’ve stuck my neck out there a little farther than in the past. Maybe I’m a little guilty of my own following criticism. Hopefully, no leader’s first thought is their own career when it comes to providing assistance that may not be “popular” when help is needed but unfortunately, we have many “leaders” who ARE more concerned about themselves and their career than with doing the right thing. Hindsight is always 20/20. I suppose the lesson to be learned is to never forget and apply past experiences to the future. To answer your question: If you know you’ve done your best, I don’t think you should be worried about whether you’ve done enough or not. If you haven’t done your best – start now.
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