What is your opinion on army infantry trying to Reach retirement?

Infantry has the best promotion rate of any of the branches. If you're infantry, about a third to half of your career will be doing Force Generating assignments such as Drill, Recruiter, ROTC Instructor, Defense Attaché, some other type of instructor, Inspector General, or EEO. Then once you hit MSG you'll be back and forth between planning and commanding. Of course, you're not actually commanding as a 1SG or CSM, but you are part of the command team. Once you hit E8 you're generally either on the operations section doing the planning, or the command team executing that plan. The first few years for an infantryman are definitely the most physically demanding and also the ones where you really get a chance to set the path and tone of your career.

I spent 9 years in the Infantry. I had to move on. It wasn’t for any other reason other than I had to move on to bigger and better things.

I will say that if you plan to stay in the Infatry that long, earn a Ranger tab.

As a retired infantrymen, I’ll give you a couple pointers since you haven’t signed up yet. I spent 24 years in and out of active duty and my last 3/4 of my time was as an 11B with the 82nd at Ft Bragg.
1.) Be all you can be, you drive your career no matter what your CMF/MOS becomes.
2.) The army will give you anything you ask for, you just have to learn how to articulate the question and to whom you must ask.
3.) there is nothing it upset me more than being called a dumb Grant. Because the grant the infantry man has to be the smartest, articulate, and cunning soldier on the battlefield. You have to know your deadly craft to the nth degree. Because you will have to close with and kill the enemy. If you are a dumb grunt the enemy will kill you.
4.) Education will be your friend and or your enemy. You need to read everything you can get your hands on about great battles and great general and great men. I have just completed reading call sign chaos, written by general Mathes get the book read it and start reading his reading suggestions.
If you do not educate yourself and those around you then you will be a follower, as others that are in the know will be making the decisions. Learn what it takes to do the job to ranks above you as a need to private you need to understand and have the wherewithal to become an Asst team leader, as a SAW gunner or a Grenadier/203. In a combat situation you might have to take over a team. As a PFC E3 you need to learn What it takes to become a team leader,, as a corporal 44 no need to know how to maneuver two teams as a squad leader as Staff Sgt.
5.) Infantry is the pinnacle of all of the CMF’s in the army except for special forces/CMF 18. Infantry is your is platform and your forte foundation for all other schools and skills.
6.) here is my career progression for you, it may be somewhat confusing, anyone else that has read this far can chime in to help.
Don’t sign up for a ranger or special forces contract straight out the door. Reason being if you are injured, or fail a subject, or not get selected, then you go back to the good of the army.
From Enlistment E-1 go to basic and AIT. Then go to jump school, put in for hometown recruiter, and then go to the 82nd Airborne division at Fort Bragg North Carolina.
After spending two years there you’ll be looking at E4, put in for Ranger school, after two years of being in the 82nd you have learned all of your basics of being an Infantryman. as a sergeant E5, go to jumpmaster school, once you complete the requirements for senior parachutist you were a star over your wings. Anybody that sees him knows that you’ve been a jump status somewhere.
as Master Sergeant Castaneda stated above, I’ll start looking around for other opportunities a bigger responsibilities or an airborne ranger. Maybe you need to go to the Ranger Battalion, or some otherSpecial Operations.

Don’t look too far forward in the future as you will stumble on the small stones in front of you. Enjoy your time in the military. Don’t look too far forward in the future as you will stumble on the small stones in front of you. Enjoy your time in the military, as it is part of the rest of your life. Don’t for sake your family and your children for your career. You will be Son, husband, father or, Grandpa to your extended family longer, but you were only be SGT Alex Rydholm for just a short time in the grand scheme of things.

HtH, AATW
Tim

I didn't make it, but it's certainly not a waste of time.

If by currently serving as an Infantryman is your sampling, you are thinking about this the wrong way. Just like there is no such thing as an Ex-Marine, you never really stop being an Infantryman. While you may not take long romantic walks in the dark carrying everything you were ever issued and then some while it rains/snows/scorches or freeze dries you you are still an Infantryman at heart. You will question your career choice the 3rd, 4th or 5th time you re-enter that swamp because the Platoon Leader can't navigate his way out of a paper bag with either a compass or a GPS.

Back when I joined being Infantry was considered the door prize that everyone qualified for by just breathing and we were looked down upon by all those MENSA MOS's. Weapons systems had those quote cartoon drawings, Mines had those helpful directional suggestions and you felt like command was talking with the short bus crowd daily. You never "SURVIVE" the Infantry, you get constant reminders right up to your dirt nap that you served as a grunt. The back, neck, hand, shoulder, hip, knee and ankle pain to name a few. These are just friendly reminders to bring your life choices to the front of your concussed mind. While promotions are fairly fast, you are expected to step up and lead sooner and for longer than many which takes t toll others ways. Every few decades it possible to lose that rank and gain it back with minimal career damage as your learn what works and what doesn't.

Depending on the Type of Infantry, Mech, Airborne, light etc you gain different perspectives as well as damage. You could say I survived over 35 years starting off as an Infantryman and ending as one with brief visits to other MOS's as needs of the Army and career advancement came into play. I have 15 years of Active duty and a little over 20 in the Reserves and I wouldn't trade the memories both good and bad for anything. Being Infantry made it possible to survive the most toxic and greatest leadership around, it madam laugh at bad weather as I go about my daily activities and it taught me how to make my work easier by critical thinking and goal achievement.

Lastly this can apply to many other MOS's and branches as each has their own defining characteristics as well as the good and bad things that occur. While this is my personal opinion based upon my experiences I believe that being an Infantryman better prepared me for life and dealing with problems , while most issues can be dealt with as it it were a tactical problem I have found that my time as a Staff NCO helped me develop a filter that prevented me in most cases from allowing my fowl language and direct thinking from being looked upon in horror by non military exployers and employees as well as the general public as I rage over some F-Tard that disrupts the harmony of the job.

And lastly being an Infantryman is a job/life choice that allows you to expend vast quantities of ammunition, explosives and mainly "SARCASM with like minded individuals and units and get paid for it while forming strong bonds with friends you can compare back pain with in your 60's as you try to outdo who has the worst service related gifts from Uncle Sam. As a bonus you also get to tell war stories about the most braindead Soldiers, NCO's and Officers you have run into while in and out of uniform as you try to beat others with their stories.

Take care of your feet knees hips and back.

Your wondering about retirement and you havent been to Basic Training yet? I like your optimism, but ... Your 5 meter target should be getting out of basic first.

I have just over 4 years till retirement, I wouldn't want to do anything else. Now don't get me wrong, my body hurts somewhere more often then not, but it was totally worth it. Even with the pain I outperform 3/4 of the young ones gunning for my job.
The Infantry isn't as hard as it used to be anymore either. We used to just run 5 miles a day for PT, we were not even allowed in the gym. We have gotten alot smarter about our PT and how we do things in general.
As far as after military- SFC and up you are more managerial than anything. I'll retire with a BS in leadership and management and go for a job as a project manager. Is it an exact fit of what I'm doing now? Not quite, but pretty close.

First things first ,the 11 Bravo route is by nature very taxing mentally and physically ,be prepared for a lifestyle mostly devoid of creature comforts,along with times you will feel tedious,boring ,training routines never ending,did it for my whole three year enlistment, Vietnam the whole ball of wax,never regretted a day but could not have done a twenty year bit,only a special few can,good luck young man going Infantry you are going to need it!

Cross one bridge at a time. Talking about retirement as an Infantrymen is something you shouldn't even be thinking about right now.