10 Relevant AF Lessons You Learn Growing Up as a Military Brat
When you grow up in a tight-knit community like the military, there are certain expectations and lessons that you learn along the way. Some through experience, and others through being told.
Regardless of how your life turns out, those lessons you learned as a kid stick with you and will probs shape your life. These are just a few of the still relevant life lessons that the military community taught me.
1. Everything in life, no matter how awful, is temporary.
A deployment, a presidency; all are temporary and life keeps going. The sun will rise, and tomorrow will come.
2. When you’re told to do something, you fucking do it. Questions later.
Your parents, your boss and your teachers have probably told you at some point to do something that you didn’t want to do, and you really wanted to ask why. Well, don’t.
3. Take initiative.
Don’t wait for someone to tell you to do something. If you see something that needs to be done, just do it. Waiting around for others to tell you what to do it wastes time that could have been spent being productive.
4. Your fam is your greatest resource.
Your family is your unit, and will always be there to support you no matter what. Nine moves and 20 years later, my family is and always be my backbone.
5. There’s no job that is below you.
Everyone is the fridge-bitch at some point in their lives. It’s how you handle that seemingly meaningless work that proves your worth.
6. Your bed is never truly made if your corners are not perfect.
For those of you who don’t know, the sheets on your cannot just be sloppily tucked underneath your mattress. Your dad tells you all the time about how in boot camp, this was the way things were done, so that’s how your bed must be made. Okay, dad.
7. Anyone can be your friend, and you can’t be afraid of making the first move.
Showing that you’re not afraid to start a conversation with a complete stranger is so beneficial, and nine times out of ten, that person is just as nervous to talk to you as you are.
8. Hard work shows.
Life is full of shortcuts, but deciding to take the harder route and putting in the hours will always pay off in the end.
9. Respect gets you much further than disrespect.
Mouthing off and thinking you’re better than those around you doesn’t make you look smarter. In fact, people will think so much better of you if you handle things in a respectful manner.
10. Plan ahead, and expect the unexpected.
The unexpected can, and probably will, happen. In any situation, being unprepared is so much worse than being over-prepared.
