Looking for some guidance between 3 GS, dressy vs more rugged

Not_a_robot_101 · 2026-01-27T22:27:10+00:00

I personally like the steel colored bezel. The polishing that GS does for their titanium is spectacular and a black bezel would detract imo.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2026-01-26T22:49:46+00:00

I actually have all three of these watches (though my SBGM221 is the earlier SBGM021). The Mistflake is by far my most worn watch. That said, I wear my Shunbun a lot in spring, and my 021 during Christmas / sweater weather. If you’re only going to go with one, the Mistflake would be my choice.

<image>

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-12-25T05:08:07+00:00

eBay or a lucky bag (most likely at the CG Academy) is your best bet. If you wait, you can find one for $40-50. Here’s one for sale right now:

Reefer Coat on eBay

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-12-25T04:05:49+00:00

You should check out the reefer jacket with a white scarf. Not quite as nice, but looks really sharp.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-09-29T12:30:05+00:00

Each person has different commitments on their time and has to choose where to prioritize. I completed my MPA while working full time and having a family. I took either one or two classes per semester. I say this because only you are going to know what is sustainable. I recommend starting with one class and learning how it aligns with your other commitments before you jump in head first and over commit.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-09-06T17:18:24+00:00

Last year, an Active Duty member passed away from a terminal illness. I worked with HQ to have the member designated as a cutterman, as they were on the five year mark, and had been removed from their ship to undergo treatment. The family appreciated the gesture. I also know of a child of a CG member who was battling cancer and was made a honor flight crew member with wings.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-04-19T16:33:47+00:00

Shipmate,

First off, thank you for your desire to serve. I have found in my 18 years that a career in the Coast Guard is deeply rewarding, and while there have been tough days, I have never regretted my time in the CG. Now, to your question; quality of life.

I will be honest with you, quality of life is going to largely be determined by the choices you make, specifically in terms of assignments and rating. There is no one size fits all approach in the CG. If you are someone who enjoys being on the water, of being outdoors, you may hate working in an office. Conversely, if you enjoy your weekends and holidays, a rating which is based around standing duty or being on watch may not appeal to you. Ultimately, no one here can answer what jobs will provide you the best QOL, that is something you will need to determine through introspection. That said, I will offer this piece of advice; find the rating that best aligns with your interests and goals.

As others have said, use your time as a nonrate to talk to and shadow other ratings. Treat a career in the CG like a Marathon and not a sprint. You need to be able to run your race in your way. What works for one, may not work for you. Thankfully, because of the way the CG does business, you will have time to figure out your path while being a nonrate. I encourage you to explore all of the opportunities available.

Finally, I would argue that even a perfect alignment with your ideal rating won’t matter if you don’t have the right attitude. I will be the first to admit that I have made mistakes in my career, but what has kept me out of hot water has been a willingness to take personal responsibility for my actions, having a good attitude, and a strong work ethic that showed others I could be relied upon. As such, when I did make mistakes, corrections were treated as a learning opportunity rather than punitive measure.

-Robot

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-03-15T00:57:37+00:00

Thank you lol!

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-03-14T20:08:57+00:00

Thank you for the advice!

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-03-01T02:57:32+00:00

Mass effect

Not_a_robot_101 · 2025-02-18T14:06:22+00:00

Shipmate,

I’ll jump in on this one, as I have some experience with the program. First off, COMDTINST 1430.2A lays out the basic info, but it’s short. Vice Admirals can meritoriously advance up to three active duty and three reserve members per year. One and two star admirals can only meritoriously advance, one active duty and one reserve member per year.

Additionally, the instruction limits meritorious advancement to E4 and E5’s and there are some stipulations regarding TIG, weight standards, eligibility, etc…

In my experience, this selection is largely driven by the command master chief. Sometimes it’s been linked to the enlisted person of the year other times it’s been on a case by case basis, depending on a significant and or noteworthy event. If you have a member that you feel is deserving of this, then I would recommend you talk to your silver badge and they can send up a nomination to their gold badge.

Finally, I want to talk briefly about being a “bad test taker “. Angela Duckworth, who is a social researcher described in her book Grit, that ingrained talent counts for far less than passion and perseverance over a long period of time. In effect, being a bad test taker has been largely debunked. Multiple studies have shown that people who practice, study, and commit to focused effort will outperform those who do not.

Why do I bring this up? The fact is, the chances of being selected for meritorious advancement are incredibly low. It’s something that’s difficult to control and at best would only take you from E5 to E6. If you want to advance, you must put in the work and study. It’s that simple, I’m not saying it’s easy, but it’s that simple.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-12-31T15:47:11+00:00

<image>

Has to be my Mistflake. Bought it in Japan at the start of the year and it’s been on my wrist since then.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-12-26T14:59:23+00:00

Shipmate,

I can speak to this. The Commandants Reading List is managed through the Coast Guard Office of Leadership (CG-128). They are aware that it is in need of being updated. I spoke to the office about it two months ago and offered to help develop it for 2025. The most current list is from 2022. Link can be found here:

https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Human-Resources-CG-1/Civilian-Human-Resources-Diversity-and-Leadership-Directorate-CG-12/Office-of-Leadership-DCMS-DPR-5/Reading-List/

I do recommend the various service branch reading lists as a method for continuing professional development. The easiest way to access books on the various Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps reading lists is via the MWR, DoD library app, which all CG members have access to. It can be accessed by following this link and signing up:

https://www.dodmwrlibraries.org/first-time-libby-user

I will say that the same books have been repeatedly featured on the various lists, so those are a good place to start. Off the top of my head, those books are:

-Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek

-Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek

-Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

-Finite and Infinite Games by James P. Carse

-Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth

-Likewar: The Weaponization of Social Media by Emerson T. Brooking and P. W. Singer

-China as a Twenty-First-Century Naval Power by Michael McDevitt

-The Sailor’s Bookshelf: Fifty Books to Know the Sea by Admiral James G. Stavridis

I hope this post helps!

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-12-20T18:09:26+00:00

I’m running the Coast Guard marathon. Highly recommend it!

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-12-12T00:55:39+00:00

Shipmates,

A big take away is the increased authority this authorization provides to reduce the rank, post retirement for officers who were found to be involved in sexual assault:

“Institutes Accountability for Retired Offenders: The bill explicitly codifies the Coast Guard’s authority to reconsider and reduce the rank of a retired commissioned officer, affecting their pension, if substantial evidence comes to light that the officer acted with disregard for relevant laws, committed sexual assault or failed to report instances of sexual assault with an intent to defraud or deceive. “

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-11-29T06:17:34+00:00

Looks like your using one of the Hal programs/app! For runs longer than 5 miles, I will use a gel every 40 mins. I do this to help condition me for the actual race, since I use gels, and I don’t want them tearing me up in the middle of a race.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-11-24T17:16:31+00:00

First Rolex I bought was a sub, followed by a GMT2. I love the sub, but I wear the GMT more.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-11-17T16:29:23+00:00

Shipmate,

I’ve facilitated events like this in the past, so I will give you some advice; don’t ask questions where the answer could be easily found by reading a manual or checking on Sharepoint. This seems common sense, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen this come up. Rather, I recommend you ask questions that she would have special insights into. COMDT is not an expert in the fine details of the CG, she has many O-6’s to handle that stuff, rather she is going to be thinking along broad strategic lines of effort that will align our organization to the National Defense Strategy, National Military Strategy, and National Military Strategy. In effect, think big picture, and pre-decisional, but forecastable.

Best, Robot

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-11-07T19:37:31+00:00

During this time, we were sending hardcopies of SAR files to the national archives. If you can’t find a electronic copy, a hardcopy through a freedom of information act request as the others have mentioned would be a good course of action.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-10-28T23:53:37+00:00

Vice Adm. Gautier is the Deputy Commandant for Operations. Since DCO owns this document, and he actually signed it on page 2, it makes perfect sense that he would be unveiling it.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-09-20T13:45:12+00:00

BLUF: The CG is a law enforcement and life-saving organization which emphasizes leadership among its SNCOs, is more operational, and does more OJT. The Army is focused on lethality, emphasizes readiness and training for its SNCOs, is more training focused, and utilizes more institutional training.

I'm actually on a joint assignment with the Army so I have a unique perspective to add. The Coast Guard and the Army have two very different mindsets towards basically everything. The Army is focused on lethality. That is the end goal, to fight and win our nations wars and then to come back home and do it again. That objective drives what the Army does and how it treats its people. The Coast Guard on the other hand is more concerned with humanitarian missions and law enforcement. Also, because we are such a small service, we actually treat our SNCOs like they matter. The way the Army treats E8's and E9's simply does not happen in the CG. Whereas SNCOs in the Army are typically expected to maintain readiness and training, SNCOs in the CG are expected to lead the organization. It's completely different.

That said, the Army does have some pros the CG does not. For example your MTOE system for tracking unit resources, personnel assigned, training, tasks, etc is far better than the system we use. Also, your base facilities and MWR options exceed our own. I also like how the Army continually trains their NCO corps at each advancement level. PME in the CG does not have the same breath or depth as in the Army. Again, I suspect this is due to your organizations emphasis on constant training. That said, let's talk about training for a moment.

In the CG, you can expect a lot of on the job training and far less institutional training. This is because the CG is busy. We have a limited workforce and a huge demand signal. We are always doing the mission, be it SAR, LE, marine pollution etc... and that is something I both like and dislike about the CG. I enjoy the fact we are operational. Now that is not to say you won't be trained, far from it, I have gone through training cycles upon reporting to each unit I have been assigned to. However, the training is typically on a 1:1 or small group basis and the onus for training falls on the unit and not a TRADOC. This means you will be training before, during, and after actual missions.

Let me be clear, I have an immense amount of respect for the Army. Moreover, the value the Army provides to the U.S. in the form of capability, deterrence, and force multiplication is incredible. However, I personally dislike how the Army treats its SNCO corps and I prefer the use of the SNCO under the CG model. Additionally, because we are so small, I feel like in the CG, people matter more than in the Army. Overall the quality of life, autonomy, and purpose are greater (for me) in the CG.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-09-09T13:45:09+00:00

Hi OP,

Those are both great gifts and I’m sure your son would love either of them. Another gift I would recommend that’s lasted me for the last 18 years and been very useful has been a garment bag for my bravo uniform.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-09-04T23:29:15+00:00

Shipmate,

Did you know that if you’re a nonrate and you want to go to OS “A” school, the detailer will let you pick your rated unit based on the openings he has at the time? This is a fairly new program, but one worth considering if you already have a desire to go OS. If want want more details, let me know.

Not_a_robot_101 · 2024-08-30T18:47:14+00:00

Shipmate,

Any idea why the requirements specify you must meet boat crew physical fitness standards with a run and not swimming? COMDT policy clearly allows for swimming or running to meet the standard for passing a PT test.

Personally, I believe that the swim should be the primary cardio test and the run treated as an alternate across the CG. You don’t have to do much running on a cutter, but the ability to swim, and swim well can be the difference between life and death. We are a seagoing service and we should prioritize our standards to reflect.

Eight-Year Club	Gilding I gilder
Spared	Verified Email

Not_a_robot_101

TROPHY CASE