I am coming close to my ETS and I have no idea if I want to stay in or get out. For those who have ETS'd how is it?

Honest answer is it's tough. It's hard to beat the military with BAH BAQ and the pay.

reenlist if they will make it possible for you to become an officer; otherwise no!

If you "love it" stay if you "like it" move on.

I ETS'd out of the military about 5 years ago and truth be told I really did miss it. I did mess up a little and didn't set solid plans for when i got out. Like employment and housing, but with some hard work i did make it happen (like we all do). But instead of getting back in I found a job that allowed me to continue to work with Veterans and now i am an Outreach Worker for the United States Veterans Initiative. This gives me the brother-hood that i missed from the Marine Corps and allows me to give back to our brothers and sisters in arms. Good Luck Brother!!!

i don't know what skills you have but good jobs in the civilian world are still hard to find, if you enjoy the military life you should stay! i ended up at the Post Office and i love my job and the benefits are good but nothing beats going to work and knowing you are protecting this great nation!!!

I can tell you I ETS'd because I was sick. My plan was to go see a civilian doctor in the States, get well and then reenlist in armored cavalry before my enlistment expired. I cashed in about 45 days of terminal leave and went home and. . . I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease which ruled out another enlistment. The adjustment from the service life to civilian life is like Superman giving up his powers for Lois Lane in Superman II and becoming just Clark Kent. In the military, whether you realize it now or not, you actually live a fast life and you have stuff to do every day. As a civililan, that world STOPS. Time stops. Life stops. I tried to join my Dad in his business but I just did not have the same skillsets or the same interests. Ultimately, in order to move forward, I had to do what I did by enlisting and that was to make my own decision to get out of my parents place, use my GI Bill and go to college in a place where I would be on my own but the parents a phone call away if I needed them. Today, my Dad is a retired aviation machinist. I am a Certified Public Accountant who has worked in many areas of finance up and down the West Coast. Even though the pay is great, the best job I will ever have is that of Lance Missile Crewmember (Field Artillery!!!) 24 years ago! BOOM!!!!!

Yesterday, I posted a picture of a tank on Facebook and the tank is submerged almost to the turret. I posted that this reminds me of Max (one of my Sergeants) and the LT when Max took the LT four-wheeling in a Hummer during a FTX and for some reason slowed before getting into the water and killed the engine! After laughing our asses off and calling them names, we finally backed the track in and pulled them out. We had to call Maintenance and get another Hummer. Max commented, "Good times, my friend. Good times indeed." Even though we moved on, we always remember a job we loved.

i will echo everyone else and have a plan because civilian life is a complete 180 degree from military life.
i will give you the advice that my first sgt gave me 20 years ago.
if you have less than ten years in then go ahead and get out,
but if you have hit the ten year mark go ahead and stay in for the 20 year retirement

You may wanna stay in with poor economy and downsizing now is better time to make full use of those free offered training programs and skills that will better your chances on the civilian side of the world. Plus you can travel at Government expense and choose what areas have more to offer all paid for. Cannot do that when you are on straight salary and no good benefits any longer?

I ets'ed 30 years ago I have a good life outside of the military.Many people consider "that I have made it" close to retirement and its a good retirement I will be able to do what I want ,live pretty much anywhere, but truthfully I have missed the army's Be All You Can Be attitude also the comradeship It simply does not exist outside. Do as little as you can seems to be the motto and whats in for me is the rule ,,not being cynical but I have owned my own company for 30 + years and have seen the quantity of people go thru the doors The military is demanding but they give back so much Its a life that I have missed many many times

The decision is all yours. Gather the facts and do your homework. Weigh out the pros and cons of each option and make an informed decision. Otherwise, flip a coin or try rock-paper-scissors. There are advantages to both lifestyles, yes you will miss the day-to-day military regimen and your brothers and sisters that support you, but there are lots of veterans outside and we will welcome you into our civilian family. You will have a chain-of-command to follow and a dress code. You may still travel overseas or during the week, depending on the job you get or may find a job that is Monday through Friday with weekends and holidays off. Will you miss the military, I can guarantee that you will have separation anxiety, especially if you are enjoying what you do and where. But, like every adventure, you have to move on someday. It can wait another 4 years or 16 years, depending on what your personal goals are. If you do all this and still aren't really sure, try reenlist in for 3 years and reevaluate then.
Sorry, there is no easy answer, we each have our own path to follow. Ooh rah!