Dealing With Adversity

I spent this morning trying to study for the NCO of the Quarter board. Half of me didn’t want to go because it would be just too embarrassing. I needed a haircut, I don’t have a pressed uniform, and I haven’t studied one bit. How in the heck am I supposed to even look presentable? I’ll just embarrass myself by showing up. I’ll look like a fool. It does help a little that I went to a promotion board over a year ago but I’ve forgot a lot of the stuff I studied.

Nothing went right. I tried to get a haircut this morning but the barber was closed because the shop had no electricity. I was already frustrated because I had little time to study. Fortunately I had a study guide saved on my laptop. I studied stuff like current events, the chain of command, and basic specs for my M2 and M4. I tried to stick to studying stuff I thought they would ask. Luckily this was just a company NCO board so I wouldn’t embarrass the Battalion or Brigade as well.

I did my best and that was as good as I could do. I don’t feel too bad about it. I did alright for not having enough time to study and prepare. Do I feel bad about it? A little but it doesn’t bother me too much.