Best advice for Soldier of the Month board??

A bit long but you asked:

If you get a board memo and actually study
you will do well. If you go beyond that and do most of the things below you
will win. Good luck and understand your NCOs think you are squared away already
or they would not have asked – told.

1) Make sure you were given the board memo so
you know which subjects to study.

2) Know who will be sitting on the Board -
situational awareness only.

3) Talk to past members who went to a similar
board - especially if you know a past winner.

4) Have your fellow Soldiers ask you question
at work. Let everyone know you are going and want help learning. See if your
NCOs will set up a mock board so you understand how the board proceedings will
work and it will give you practice under pressure.

5) Confidence is number 1 - even if you get
an answer wrong it is best to be confidant it is correct answer than sound
like you are guessing. ***I cannot overstate enough that your military bearing
and confidence as a Soldier is very important. Probably the most important
thing when going to boards.

6) Practice your opening statement - meaning
if they ask you to tell them about yourself you are prepared. Don’t draw it out
and hit the main points, the highlight of your career so far. You’re your short
term and long term goals. Focus mostly on your military goals but schools and education
is okay as well. 

7) Don’t
just use study guides. Soldiers and Leaders will tell you to go to
studyguide.com and study the area your board published. True a lot of boards
use study guides but be familiar with the regulation, ARs, FMs etc… Also, if
military programs are on your Board memo do one important thing.   GO TO those agencies. You will learn far
more than any a piece of paper and be able to answer more than just the basic
stuff everyone else says.

8) Don’t
forget what you have learned. It is not just about a board but making you a
better Soldier and future leader. What you learn during the process will make
you successful throughout your career. It will help you take care of your
Soldiers in the future.

Your
NCOs must have some faith in you otherwise they would not want you to go and represent
them at a board. So be proud they asked and even if you don’t win know you
already succeded by representing your command. 
If you win there will be more boards ahead and if not ask if you can go
back again later. Don’t give up and quit just because you lost a board. Do all
of the above and I am confidant you will be successful.

Finally
understand the Army has huge repect for its Medics. Here is a little of your history with Aviation
Medics.

Major Charles L. Kelly was DUSTOFF and DUSTOFF was
"Combat Kelly." The two became synonymous in Vietnam in 1964. As
commander of the 57th Medical Detachment (Helicopter Ambulance), Kelly assumed
the call sign "DUSTOFF." His skill, aplomb, dedication, and daring
soon made both famous throughout the Delta. The silence of many an outpost was
broken by his radio draw, "...this is DUSTOFF. Just checking in to see if
everything is okay." And when there were wounded, in came Kelly
"hell-bent for leather!" On 1 July 1964 Kelly approached a hot area
to pick up wounded only to find the enemy waiting with a withering barrage of
fire. Advised repeatedly to withdraw, he calmly replied to the ground element's
advisor, "When I have your wounded." Moments later, he was killed by
a single bullet. Kelly was dead but his "DUSTOFF" became the call
sign for all aeromedical missions in Vietnam. "When I have your wounded"
became the personal and collective credo of the gallant DUSTOFF pilots who
followed him. Major Charles L. Kelly was inducted into the DUSTOFF Hall of Fame
on 17 February 2001.