What do you wish you would have known before you Joined the Army?

Oh! so many answers to choose from! i think " how to work on trucks" whould have come in handy... i didnt know, so i spent quite a bit of time as a PVT sweeping floors in the Maint Bay.

I joined in 1971, I wish I would have known how screwed up the Army was at that time. I went to Baumholder Germany and with all the druggies and race problems, I honestly thought I joined the wrong Army. My first day in Baumholder, Germany, someone stole all of my civilian clothes! I did learn that being a good soldier at that time paid dividends and it was easy because a majority of them were totally messed up!

I was so "green" when I joined the Army, I wish I had known something, anything, about the Army. I was probably lucky that I had an honest and caring recruiter who helped me, tolerated my naivete, and answered my questions.

I guess I wish I had known that I was planning to do 30 years of active duty. That might have motivated me more, day by day, to soldier a little harder, put in a little more effort. I think I did my best, but there's always a little more to give.