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- Greetings all!
As a long time lurker in these forums and a long awaiting applicant for the Reserves forces I thought I might start a new thread explaining on the what NOT to do and the what TO DO along with general information when visiting your local armory. This is intended for all of us reserve applicants or even first timers thinking of joining before they make that first trip to their respective local Armoury.
Some of these are from my own personal experiences and from watching others mistakes and/or good traits. Others is just common sense.
Believe it or not having some form of etiquette when you are at the armory may help your application process faster and really make good connections with your desired unit. On the other hand having bad habits could send you out the door and face flat on the floor sort of speak. (Yes I planned that rhyme
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So I shall start with a couple of pointers. Other members of the forum please feel free to add to the list from your personal experiences and/or just good old common sense.
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1. Please for the love of god never, let me repeat NEVER CHEW GUM while talking to your recruiter and/or any other staff while visiting. Extremely annoying and disrespectful
2. Dress like you mean business, nothing overkill like a suit and tie or tuxedo. A simple dress plaid shirt and nice pair of dark or tame colored jeans will suffice. Wearing a bright colored shirt with a hipster beanie on and roughed up pants will get you noticed for the wrong reasons, don't be that guy. For women as well wearing how shall I say "Provocative" clothing such as yoga pants with a tube top and the words "Juicy" scrawled on the back will not be such a great idea.
3. Be professional in your speech and clear, be careful on using slang such as "Yep" and "Yo" or dare I even think "Sup man". That is just a no no!
4. It's a good trend to address personal by their Rank and Last name when talking to them even when your still an applicant or visitor. It shows respect and good mannerism which in turn helps them remember you and they may be more interested in helping you along the way each time you come to visit.
5. NEVER call the Sergeant a "Sir" or "Madame" they are not officers yet. They are NCO. Watched that happen with a soldier and his Sgt. and then the air was blue the next minute.
6. When greeting your recruiter it never hurts to give them a firm hand shake and say "Good afternoon/evening Rank.Name how are you tonight/today" and carry on from there. Did I mention the handshake yet?
7. When walking to the armoury front entrance for the first time look for an intercom system if the doors are locked, wait a few minutes and someone from the unit may show up and you can be taken care of from there. If not try again at a later time. If you are constantly trying to open the door profusely you will give quite a show to passing onlookers or people who may be inside.
8. When coming into the armoury on a parade night be mindful of giving space to soldiers and staff coming in and out of offices and the parade ground. What I mean by this is when you enter do not directly walk across the middle of the parade ground near the soldiers and incoming/outcoming staff for obvious reason. I tend to walk around the square up to the intended location.
9. Upon arrival its a good idea to simply and quietly walk up to and wait patiently outside the Recruiting office and/or Administration office as chances are your recruiter is not there yet he/she will probably go there first when they arrive. If he/she is there they may be in a meeting or attending to an important task and they will come out and speak with you in due time. Be patient
10. If you have any questions or concerns about something and your recruiter is not there you can ask someone if the timing is appropriate and say "Excuse me" or "Sorry to bother you but could you help me with a question I have". Even if you wait it out someone will eventually ask if you need help with something.
11. Being inquisitive is a good thing when talking to personal or your recruiter, but being trivial is another. There is no such thing as a dumb question but an endless amount is taxing. An example of this is when I was watching another applicant talk the ear off of a poor Sgt. as he was about to address his section or platoon for the night, the kid didn't give him a break and in turn the Sgt explained to him its not that hes being rude but there is work to be done and has to keep his eye open.
12. Posture believe it or not is a good thing to practice, when you get in the unit its going to be like second nature. Slouching or leaning isn't usually comfortable either.
13. Eye contact, Eye contact, Eye contact when talking or addressing your recruiter.
14. Arriving intoxicated or impaired is just bad news. Enough said...
15. Going back to mannerisms, just as if at the dinner table don't forget your please and thank you's. If applying for officer your mannerism is really going to help you!
16. Holding the door open for incoming and outgoing personal near you equals brownie points.
17. Kind of going back to the gum thing, if you have food or drink with you try to finish it before going in. Drinks necessarily aren't a huge negative but usually its just good practice to not bring in any food. Water bottle is ok I suppose if really necessary. You would look silly if that drink spilled all over the ground and on the personal. Yikes...
18. If you must have a smoke do it before leaving your place or in a well ventilated area away from the Armoury grounds, wreaking of smoke while talking to your recruiter may be distracting or off putting. Actually try and quit it before getting into your unit, but that takes personal initiative. That's a another whole story however....
19. Going on the previous fragrance thing try not to go overboard on the cologne or perfume.
20. Don't be afraid to ask questions to your recruiter about their BMQ and Unit experience when they first started out with the regiment.
21. Watch yourself on how you talk about your past work experience and education if asked.
22. If you want to as well you can ask the recruiter if you may stay for a while and watch the unit in action if they are staying within the armoury that night. They may say yes or no, if yes you can watch from above on the second floor provided the armoury has one or from the sidelines and just as long as you don't interfere when they are training.
23. Smile, Smile, and Smile, look happy and excited to be there. Show the recruiter that you really are interested and want a position within the regiment.
24. Leave your cell phone on vibrate and in your pocket when inside and for the love do not answer and begin to talk loudly with your buddy about last nights party or hot broad you picked up this week. Especially when talking with your recruiter or staff. That's just a whole lot of NOPE.
25. Always bring a pen, notebook, and army folder (should you be provided with one) with you to take down and store vital information that you will need later on whether it be phone numbers, course information, and/or key dates.
26. For guys try and stay clean shaven when visiting unless you have proper groomed facial hair. This lets them know you take care of yourself and are intent on getting in and mean business. None of those pink soul patches now...
27. Upon arrival be courteous to the regiment's parking space. Leave the inside gated spots for them. Park your car across the street or even a little bit downwards so there is more for them when they arrive and your car isn't smack dab in the middle getting funny looks.
28. If you happen to see a senior staff member "correcting" a subordinate don't just stare at them and watch, just keep walking or look away pretending you aren't paying attention to it. It may be awkward if the senior staff member is the person you need to talk to and you've just been there oogling over how he/she "corrects" the persons action.
29. Don't be nervous when going in for the first time or when wanting to ask something. They are there to help you! As long as you show them respect and initiative they will give it back to you in return to get you in.
30. If personnel walk right past you and don't notice or greet you don't be offended.
Well that's all I can think of from the top of my head, now I turn the page over to you all. What do you think?
