What is the most "Real Statement" you have ever been told?

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 17:50:01 -0400

I will say that the military in general is full of fluff and buff when it comes to speaking. Everyone is a winner and we all matter. You get a medal for showing up or for just not messing up. So many times you rarely find a soldier that is willing to tell you what you need to hear. They would rather tell you what you want to hear.

What wisdom have you found in Army? Not the fluff and buff stuff. Not that "Army of One" stuff that was the worst slogan of the Army but the stuff that you realized was the truth and had to be said?

Response by Sgt David G Duchesneau made Aug 8 at 2015 5:57 PM

Sgt David G Duchesneau — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 17:57:08 -0400

In August of 1969 near Cam Lo Vietnam, the Skipper told us one thing. "Things are going to get real shitty real fast, do what your were trained to do to stay alive!" Think about that one for a minute. That firefight lasted all night long. In the end, the Skipper, his radio man and my Lieutenant were among the ones that were KIA. Haunts me everyday!

Response by CW4 Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 8 at 2015 5:58 PM

CW4 Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 17:58:56 -0400

My first Platoon SGT told me this. "The Army is what you put into it. If you give the Army 100% and actually try to e successful in the Army, then the Army will be good to you."
He also said, "don't judge the entire Army based off of your first unit or duty station."

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 8 at 2015 6:13 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:13:30 -0400

Told to me by my AIT drill sergeant ,"if you don't like what you see in the army, make the rank and make the change"

Also, my favorite one to use, "it does what it's told"

Response by SSgt Alex Robinson made Aug 8 at 2015 6:13 PM

SSgt Alex Robinson — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:13:56 -0400

Work hard, keep your mouth shut, and learn.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 8 at 2015 6:15 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:15:47 -0400

"No one cares more about your career than you." Don't just cruise through your time in the Army assuming that your leadership has your best interests at heart. Make yourself the type of soldier that the Army is looking to retain and promote ahead of your peers.

Response by CSM Michael J. Uhlig made Aug 8 at 2015 6:32 PM

CSM Michael J. Uhlig — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:32:46 -0400

My first PSG was a Vietnam Veteran and would say
"for those of you that understand I wont have to explain it, and if I explain it, it's because you don't understand, now we got work to do, any questions?"

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 8 at 2015 6:47 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:47:41 -0400

I never noticed that everyone gets a medal mentality in the Marines. I always hear phrases like "Chucks don't lie" meaning you may outrank someone, but that doesn't mean you have more experience than them, as demonstrated by the ribbon racks- the highest of course being that coveted combat action ribbon. If there is a rainbow medal, it has probably become the black belt- it didn't used to be that way, as in 2005, most Sergeants had a Grey belt, maybe a Green belt here and there. Now it seems like having a Black belt is required for Sergeants to have on Active Duty... From the outside looking in, it just shows me that these NCOs had so little to do, they wasted time not doing their jobs to get them, either that or the standards for the Belt have dropped so low that they are no longer earned, just given.

All in all I can see what that officer was saying- but he shouldn't have said it outright in my opinion. You never tell someone "hey, great job on that 5000 piece puzzle, now I'm going to turn it over to my 3 year old daughter and watch her demolish it so bad that you won't ever be able to put it back together." The griping he mentioned among units is real, but I think it is dumbed down how it was explained; it's frustrating when you are sitting in a port-a-John and out of toilet paper, and the only way to request more is to go to H&S Co, who then has to take it to Battalion, who has to push up the request from Regiment... All the way to DC just for a roll of tp. It has a lot to do with micro management at high levels trickling down to subordinate units, and we can only hope that within the next decade, lessons will be learned from those taking over and subordinate units can run more independently. I guess that's my wisdom.

PS Army Strong was way worse than Army of One, WTF is Army Strong?! How many hours did they spend wasting tax dollars crapping out that garbage?!

Response by LTC John Shaw made Aug 8 at 2015 6:54 PM

LTC John Shaw — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 18:54:59 -0400

CPT Private RallyPoint Member BG Gentry, (then COL) my Commander and rater in Afghanistan told me, don't be afraid to set outrageous expectation and measure people on results. Bad people need to be called out on their lack of effort and work. Plenty of good and great people who can't get the work done. They are still good people but they must be coached and mentored with specifics to get results.
I did not always like BG Gentry's gut decisions and he could be a harsh leader, but he got results out our group and many other groups. Probably why he made the BG.

Response by LTC Bink Romanick made Aug 8 at 2015 7:27 PM

LTC Bink Romanick — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 19:27:12 -0400

For a fat guy you don't sweat much...

Response by SFC Everett Oliver made Aug 8 at 2015 8:33 PM

SFC Everett Oliver — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 20:33:28 -0400

The most real advice I ever received was when I was getting ready to retire. I was called into the SGM's office as part of my lead up to Retirement . I always remembered what he told me and I've passed it on many times.
"You won't live on your retirement, you'll need a job. You go out there and find something you enjoy doing and you'll never work another day in your life."
So no combat talk ups or pats on the back. Just plain common sense. And I haven't actually worked a day since September 1993........

Response by SMSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 8 at 2015 9:59 PM

SMSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 21:59:32 -0400

I like a leader like that. Transparency is an important asset to a leader. Plus I firmly believe it is better to tell the truth and earn respect than blow smoke and lose credibility.

As a young E6 I found myself in charge of a shift of firefighters in Iraq. One day I was frustrated and felt overwhelmed by the amount of work I had to do. I went to my boss and told him my plate was full. He looked me in the eye and said get a bigger plate and turned around.

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Aug 8 at 2015 11:27 PM

Capt Seid Waddell — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 23:27:52 -0400

When I shipped out to Viet Nam my father told me - "Son, keep your head down and your pants up and you'll come back O.K."

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 9 at 2015 2:09 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 02:09:03 -0400

"It is what it is". I forgot which junior enlisted Soldier told me that the first time, but it's something that has stuck by me for years. It helps brighten even the most BS situations the military throws at us all.

Response by SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. made Aug 9 at 2015 10:13 AM

SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 10:13:39 -0400

"Your chances of survival are inversely proportional to the time it takes for you to eat your first maggot"
Survival School Instructor

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 10 at 2015 10:04 AM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 10:04:26 -0400

"If you ain't cheatin you ain't tryin" made me laugh at first, but afterwards thinking about it I took it to mean that if you aren't doing everything within your power to push forward and accomplish the mission then you really aren't trying hard enough. Also at the end of my third lap on my first pt test I had stopped to catch my breath. I told my SGT I couldn't run any more because I couldn't breathe. His response "I bet if a giant tiger came out the bushes chasin' your ass you could run some more." Just a little motivation in the right direction will last a lifetime with your soldiers.

Response by SSG Richard Reilly made Aug 10 at 2015 10:31 AM

SSG Richard Reilly — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 10:31:48 -0400

I got told I was too honest during a military Justice class when I mentioned the "butt hurt" effect.

Details: Butt hurt effect is when your buddy knows every little secret about you. Everything you've done wrong...but your buddy's so it's cool....until they get butt hurt about something and figure it's a good idea to send the video of you doing a line of cocaine to your 1SG. Doing crimes is wrong. Filming them made my job easier. And having your buddy there watching is even better. Thanks for helping the government convict you. Don't do drugs!

Response by SSG Warren Swan made Aug 10 at 2015 11:58 AM

SSG Warren Swan — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 11:58:40 -0400

One day you will take off that uniform and swear you're making the right decision...right after that, you'll miss it like crazy.

The 80/20 rule...80% of your time will be spent doing mindless and stupid tasks that will piss you off, 20% of the time you'll have some excitement that will make those tasks make sense. This applies to life when deployed too.

Response by Courtney Tomasz made Aug 10 at 2015 12:18 PM

Courtney Tomasz — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 12:18:03 -0400

XO: " I hear you are being very hard on your sailors.... But they probably need it, so keep doing what you're doing"

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Aug 10 at 2015 3:04 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 15:04:54 -0400

I had a policy of honest and open dialogue, where someone who speaks the truth is appreciated.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 11 at 2015 12:33 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Aug 2015 00:33:12 -0400

Something that has always stuck with me is something that my current Battalion Commander said.

"Your Soldiers are your legacy."

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 11 at 2015 1:02 AM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Aug 2015 01:02:42 -0400

If you can't be batman, be the best you can be. If you can be batman, be batman.

Response by Sgt Jon Mcvay made Apr 10 at 2018 8:46 AM

Sgt Jon Mcvay — Tue, 10 Apr 2018 08:46:46 -0400

The most real statement is this: "Even the highest rank can and should learn from his/her subordinates. Sgt. York and Audie Murphy were privates and changed the way combat is done. There were many others that took chances against the rules in a book and we Americans are better for them". "Brigadier General Grey USMC, at Camp LeJeune in 1985 addressing 1st Bn. 2nd Marines" this is a no shitter.