[Untamed]

Paul,

I know advice is like ******** and opinions - everyone has one. But consider this for your military career:

1. No one will wave your flag for you. Keep on your platoon seargent and make sure he knows what you're doing. Most people take the humble side and hope others will notice - they wont. You don't have to be arrogant about it, but make sure they know you are busting your ass. The goal here is...

2. ... getting into PLDC. Find out from your platoon leader (Lieutenant) if there are any E5 (SGT) slots available. Tell your LT you are gunning for it and wanna know what it'll take to get to the top of the list in your unity. Be candid, don't be shy or humble. Make it look like you're ready for PLDC BEFORE you get deployed, that way you either get the E5 before deployment, or right after since you'll have the schooling.

3. The idea of "pulling rank" really doesn't happen until you get your SGT stripes. Below E5, everyone is a grunt and expected to be manual labor whenever needed. If you're a PFC and you are among 3 PV2's, you're looked at as one of them, by the higher-ups. If someone needs a detail formed out of your group without a SGT leading, you might be seen as the detail lead, but that's no big deal. Concentrate on 1 and 2 above, don't sweat the ranks below E5.

Good luck man and congrats on the delayed promotion.