u/Plantain-Fast

You should enjoy what you do. You should be proud of the work your doing and you should find meaning in it, it’s how you are going to make it a career. But it should not be the thing that gives your life meaning. A lot of people in the military that want to be successful makes it to where the Army has to be their identity or the army needs to fulfill them. It seems like without the Army their life falls apart. I feel like your job is not who you are. You need things outside of work. Relationships, hobbies, health, or family. Different goals, personal goals outside your career. Things that will still exist whether you are in the Army or not. People get hurt, people get chaptered, you can lose your career. If your entire sense of purpose is tied to your job you are giving something outside your control way too much power over your actual long term happiness. By all means find fulfillment in the work you do just don’t expect work to fulfill your entire life

Imagine being an NCO then getting a FG ART15 and then demoted to a specialist for. Been a specialist for 2 years after my art 15. Have 5 years TIS. Got 18 months left. Im not trying to shit bag. I put all the effort into PT and I complete tasks when directed to. Im feel that I’m not the right person to pick to be an NCO. I messed up the first time then I realized that role wasn’t for me. I bond with the joes and have that big brother role. I just want to finish college and then transition into the civilian life. When I got to my new unit I was already on the list to go to the promotion board.

I want a leadership perspective of how that looks.

Trying to choose an IT career path with a high income ceiling — Sec+, CCNA, cloud, cybersecurity?

I’m currently active duty Army and working on my bachelor’s degree in Information Technology. I’ll eventually be transitioning out of the military, and I’m trying to start preparing now instead of waiting until I’m close to getting out.

One of my biggest goals is financial. I want to eventually be able to live a pretty luxurious/comfortable lifestyle — nice home, nice cars, vacations, provide well for my family, invest, and not constantly worry about money. I understand I’m obviously not going to graduate and immediately make $200k, and I’m willing to work my way up.

Right now I’m trying to figure out which IT field gives me the best combination of job opportunities and long-term earning potential.

From what I’ve been reading, I’m considering something like:

IT degree → Security+ → CCNA → first IT/DoD contractor job → AWS/Azure → specialize in cybersecurity, cloud security, networking, etc.

I’ve had people tell me Security+ is almost a requirement for a lot of DoD contractor positions, while others have recommended CCNA because networking gives you a strong foundation for almost everything else.

Long term, I’ve been looking at paths like:

• Cybersecurity / Security Engineering
• Cloud Engineering
• Cloud Security
• Networking / Network Engineering
• Eventually becoming a Security/Cloud Architect
• Possibly IT management much later in my career

For people who have actually worked in these fields: if your goal was to eventually reach the $150k–$200k+ range, which direction would you take?

I’m not expecting a shortcut. I’m more interested in choosing a good foundation now so that 5–10 years from now I’m not stuck in a low-ceiling position because I chose the wrong specialization.

Would you start with Security+ and CCNA? Skip one? Focus on cloud? Cybersecurity? Something completely different?

Any advice from people who transitioned from the military into IT/DoD contracting would be especially appreciated.

I’m currently active duty Army and I’m planning to transition into IT when I ETS in early 2028.

I’m working on my Bachelor’s in Information Technology and should finish around the same time I ETS. I’ve already taken courses in networking, operating systems, system administration/security, programming, computer architecture, and some other IT subjects.

I don’t currently work in an IT MOS, so I’m trying to use the time I have left in the Army to make myself as competitive as possible for civilian IT jobs.

I’m considering starting certifications now. Security+ is the one I’m looking at first, followed by possibly Network+, CCNA, Azure/AWS, or something else depending on the direction I choose.

My biggest questions are:

1. If you had about 18 months before leaving the military, what certifications would you prioritize?
2. Would you bother with A+ at this point, or go straight to Security+/CCNA?
3. What should I be doing besides certifications — homelabs, projects, internships, SkillBridge, etc.?
4. For veterans who transitioned into IT, what do you wish you had done while you were still active duty?

I’m not expecting certifications alone to get me a job. I’m trying to build a good combination of the degree, certifications, hands-on experience, and military experience before I separate.

Any advice is appreciated.

I want to remodel my bathroom. How to do that. What did you guys do and what did you guys install? I want peoples experiences and ideas

I been practing spanish since 2024. I can understand majority of conversations if the person speaks slowly. Vocabulary isn't much of an issue. The biggest issue I have been dealing with is I have a hard time forming sentences with proper grammar. I watch videos and shows in spanish. Can you guys give me some tips to assist me with being able to speak properly and to be able to hold deeper conversations.