Tips for people thinking about joining the US military

I am a US Navy veteran with three deployments completed in less than 4 years. I want to give some tips for people thinking about joining the US military.
First and foremost get in shape, running, push ups, pull ups, biking whatever you'd like but be in good shape or else you will be in more pain through out your journey and if you are in pain sometimes you'll begin to question if you took the right choice. Check the minimum requirements for the branch you are going for.

Pro-tip I quit smoking six months before joining, after having smoked for 3 years right after I turned 18. Probably one of the best decisions I ever took.

Once you have decided what branch to go with. There are some things to think about. One, never ever join because of money or benefits, or because you want to be the next Rambo gun-ho. Think about what you would like to do once you leave the military. It is extremely crucial that you do. With that in mind, for example if you want to do a job that involves electronics. Then you could potentially join as an ET. Also keep in mind that some MOS/Rates do not transfer quite well into civilian jobs. For example a missile technician. Unless you get a career in Lockheed or something along those lines.
Research, research, research the jobs and even go into military forums. So you can get a clear picture of the job you will pick.

OK now onto the joining process. I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH. Do not believe everything the recruiters tell you. Bottom line if is not under your contract, it will never happen. Recruiters have some sneaky tactics to get people to join and they have to meet a quota.

Before the recruiter can do anything with you, you will need to take a pre-asvab to see how you are doing. If you do good, then you will go onto the real ASVAB. The test itself is easy, there are time-sections, math, grammar, reasoning, mechanics, etc. If you aren't joining after high school I suggest you brush up a bit. Your asvab score is very important as this will decide which jobs you can join as well with current availability.
If you didn't get a good score, by all means take it again. DO NOT FALL for the recruiter telling you is hard to re-take it.

Once you get a decent score which nowadays is 65+, the recruiter will send you to the nearest MEPS. There you will be processed, physical, dental, etc, and more importantly job selection. When I joined I was given 6 or so options. Never settle for less, if what you want to do is not available. Do not take a shitty job and there are shitty jobs in the military. For example if the recruiter tells you, you can go un-designated and once you are in you can see all the jobs available and pick the one you like. Kindly walk away very quickly, chances are you will get extremely unmotivated to do anything after you paint/clean for 2 years or so. If you have a good score definitely do not take a job you wouldn't like to do, or if it doesn't align with you post-military career.

OK so you've given the chance to pick the job you want. Great now all is left is to get that on the contract, a recruiter will give you some options. One big one is how many years will you be required to serve, pay close attention on this one. Because once is signed and you are sworn in that's it. You are legally binded to a contract. And while you can get discharge for several reasons, you always want to shoot for Honorable Discharge. Because under certain discharges you won't get any military benefits. Another big one is make sure that whatever schools he promised are on the contract.

Pack very light when you are due to ship. Bootcamp is easy nothing more than a routine, first two weeks or so will be a bit rough as you are adjusting to the military way. I cannot describe bootcamp in words, you have to be there and get a feel for it. Otherwise I will ruin your experience, for me the hardest part was the swimming test, since I wasn't very good at it. And the gas chamber, I was the first one in, and so when we about face I was the last one out. Other than that bootcamp is not hard, if you really want it. One thing DI's or drill instructors hate, is people not giving 100% or trying to cheat so keep that in mind.

One more thing, DI's will always make everything a competition to push you beyond your limits.

Getting close to graduation, your orders will come and you will know where will your first duty station would be. Oh yeah the dream sheet is BS by the way. You will never get what you want as a recruit. And after reporting to your first duty station, the rest is history.

Picture: USS Donald Cook DDG-75 where I served 4 years in Norfolk, VA.

Good luck in your endeavors!

Tl;dr: Get in shape, know the job you are selecting, make your country and family proud!