I was told that I'm going to the Soldier of the Month board with 3 days notice and I'm not ready. Any suggestions to help?

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:32:44 -0500

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 7:36 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:36:09 -0500

Cram as much of the material listed in the LOI as possible. Make sure your uniform is straight and gave your sponsor check it out. Go in confidently, and don't make any excuses. Let the chips fall as they may. In the future, learn all the material so when this situation does arise, you're better prepared. I learned a long time ago that there aren't too many opportunities to truly set yourself apart from your peers, so when you get one, you have to kill it. Use this as a learning experience. Good luck!

Response by SFC George Smith made Dec 1 at 2016 7:39 PM

SFC George Smith — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:39:02 -0500

1... current events
2... Military history and general orders
3... know the D+C
4... face the president of the board when quizzed address the person asking the Questions .
5... know your MOS

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 7:52 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:52:11 -0500

If they are sending you, you are probably already squared away. Know your job and relax. I am sure you will do fine. More than likely, this will only be the first of many boards you will be in front of and addressing!

Response by SPC Erich Guenther made Dec 1 at 2016 7:52 PM

SPC Erich Guenther — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:52:32 -0500

Study as much as you can and ask who was the last person to pass and email or sit down with them and ask lots of questions.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 7:54 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:54:43 -0500

Make sure your sponsor is also squared away and know your job, history, current events etc.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 7:56 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:56:15 -0500

And oh are you related to Kevin Hart lol

Response by 2LT Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 8:23 PM

2LT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 20:23:50 -0500

That stinks, such little notice! But just study the Army Study Guide. Ask your sponsor or COC if they can at least give you the topics you will be questioned on.

Response by 1SG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 8:47 PM

1SG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 20:47:42 -0500

Take a deep breath. You literally have nothing to loose. They don't take anything away from you if you do poorly. So there's really nothing to worry about. You can only gain in this scenario. If your leadership's disappointed with the outcome tell them to give you more notice next time.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 1 at 2016 11:03 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 23:03:31 -0500

Get your uniform in shape now. Work on memorizing the creeds, and songs. Have your leader conduct a mock board for you. Go do it, give it your best and good luck.

Response by SSG Drew Cook made Dec 1 at 2016 11:22 PM

SSG Drew Cook — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 23:22:42 -0500

It speaks volumes for you to show courage and go in there, doing the best you can. They're well aware that you have little time to prepare, but if they have faith in you enough to send you to a board, you probably already have what it takes to succeed. Good luck!

Response by 1SG Al Brown made Dec 2 at 2016 7:53 AM

1SG Al Brown — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 07:53:11 -0500

Somebody thinks your ready. Practice reporting procedure and go in with no expectations. You'll do better than you think, because you're nervous thinking about it. This one gets you over the nerves for the promotion board, with no penalty for performance.

Response by SFC Daniel McIntire made Dec 2 at 2016 9:24 AM

SFC Daniel McIntire — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 09:24:07 -0500

Follow the advise of previous responses. Yea it stinks to get word in such short notice. However, take it for the challenge it is. This action and your results can determine your future. Do great things!

Response by MSG Dan Castaneda made Dec 2 at 2016 11:34 AM

MSG Dan Castaneda — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 11:34:24 -0500

Just relax and believe in yourself. I'm pretty sure your chain of command recommended you because they too believe you can do it. Show them why you are there. Good luck buddy.

Response by Cpl Justin Goolsby made Dec 2 at 2016 12:27 PM

Cpl Justin Goolsby — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 12:27:22 -0500

Biggest one is don't stress it. Most people fail their first board. Spend the weekend studying. Look over your uniforms and make sure you're on point. Just go in with confidence and you'll probably do fine.

Most boards have each member pick 3 questions to ask and they'll just rotate for each person. So you could get easy questions or hard questions. Just don't overthink it.

Look up uniform regulations. Don't forget the female regulations. Some board members like to ask males the female regulations as "trick" questions.

Study up some of your history. Notable heroes, important battles, etc. You never know if you'll be asked to Name someone you look up to or the significance of a certain battle.

Lastly, I'd probably say know a little bit about your personal unit. History, chain of command etc. I've known some people who could name every major event in the Marine Corps... but they didn't know what their COs name was.

But just relax, make yourself look shit hot. Literally half of the board is just bearing and confidence. So keep your cool. If you fail the board, don't stress it, because then you'll be even more prepared and know what to expect for the next one.

Response by MSG Frederick Otero made Dec 3 at 2016 3:22 PM

MSG Frederick Otero — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 15:22:39 -0500

I would not do it if your not ready but if the pressure is on get with those that have attended the board for any helpful hints and some units use to have some example questions of past boards. One last suggestion if you do not know the answer just say so and let the board know that you will be certain to look it up after dismissed from the board, then buckle down and prepare yourself to volunteer for the next board. Good Luck.

Response by SGT Dave Tracy made Dec 5 at 2016 11:48 AM

SGT Dave Tracy — Mon, 05 Dec 2016 11:48:55 -0500

As of this writing, it's too late to give you my 2-cents worth--because if you only had 3 days notice when you posted this on the 1st, you may be sitting at the board this very second--but hopefully you took your base Army knowledge, sprinkled in a dash of study this weekend, and with an air of confidence and purpose presented yourself well.
Best of luck to you.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 16 at 2017 11:12 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 16 Nov 2017 23:12:19 -0500

Same situation here.. Few days prior weekend drill got a message "by the way bring your ASU for E4 board".. What?!!! I have grasp on some topics, but NCO creed it's a big chunk to memorize in 2 nights. I wish I would have more time to prepare because not being ready gives me performance anxiety... So now studying questions, trying to memorize creed and expecting the best. Only hope that whole unit's E4s are forced to do the board.. I wish there would be any free will involved...

Response by SGT Frank Pritchett made Nov 16 at 2017 11:39 PM

SGT Frank Pritchett — Thu, 16 Nov 2017 23:39:37 -0500

Study and pray, knowledge is in you so study you have three days.