Angry Iron Majors (A.I.M.)

COL Ross Coffman, sir, there are so many disgruntled Majors due to the cliff retirement system. Take away this financial coercision and many would leave. Currently, at the 20 year mark you are left with two groupings, incredible Patriots that want to serve and mediocre officers that are scared to leave.

COL (Join to see), I always kind of looked at it the other way. When I was promoted to major, I was a field grade officer and got to wear scrambled eggs on my service cap! I outranked everyone below major. I made more money. Granted, I was a staff weanie the entire time I was a major, but I thought the positives outweighed the negatives. Yes, I did a ton of staffing and writing but that was just part of being a major.
A fellow classmate at a non-resident phase of the C&GSOC helped me gain a proper perspective. Most of us were captains, and one Monday evening, this fellow student walked in wearing his new gold oak leaves. We were in awe and asked him what it felt like to now be a major. He looked at us, laughed and said, "Hell, I'm two grades higher than I ever thought I'd be!" LTC (Join to see)

So, I don't know if I am just off my rocker or that I disagree with most on here is just who I am. I am not an Angry Iron Major, I can be angry at times and when needed but it serves no greater purpose to just be angry all the time. Yes, as a Major we are staff officers for the duration of our time at this level, but that does not mean that you are not still a leader with influence. Part of the problem is that people allow themselves to be placed into a box, and once there they do as they are told to within the confines of the box. I always try to use the guidance from my boss, and higher HQs as a reference point as long as it is understood what the desired end state is we can deviate to make something better.
I was lucky to be a part of an LPD last month by a great senior leader. Within this forum he opened it up to questions at the end, and while I don't remember what the question was I will always remember what the answer was. He said "The most fun job in the Army (for an Officer) is Battalion Commander, the most rewarding is being a Brigade Commander, the path to both of those starts (at which point he points at the few Majors in the room) as a Major. If you want to get to the fun job and the rewarding job, you have to put in the long hours and the changing priorities and the issues at higher and higher levels. You say that you don't want their jobs (CPTs referring to MAJs) that you don't want to be them. Well if you aren't them, then you don't get to the other." [All of this is as close as I can remember paraphrase to the direct quote]