DO YOU HAVE A SUPPORT NETWORK?

Even if you're 18 years old, single, live on base and pretty shit at life there are still things that will need to be taken care of while you're away on deployment, out field or on course. Regardless of your age and relationship status there will be tips in here that will help everyone out... 

WHO IS BACK HOME SUPPORTING YOU WHILE YOU'RE AWAY?
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Even if you're 18 years old, single, live on base and pretty shit at life there are still things that will need to be taken care of while you're away on deployment, out field or on course.

Here are 10 things to consider drawn from our combined 25 years in the army.

• Is your Will up to date? (who do you trust to be your power of attorney, make sure you leave a thousand bucks to put over the bar at your wake)
  
  
• Who will pay your bills? (consider direct debit)​
  
  
• Who will have access to your house in case of emergencies? (get a key cut for your best mate or parent so they can take care of the lawn and check your mail)
  
  
• Consider your partner's welfare and who they have to lean on especially if you just got posted to a new location! (it's tougher for them while you are away, regardless of how "hard" you think you have it on operations)
  
  
• Who is helping out with your children if your partner get's sick? (your defence community is so important for these situations)
  
  
• Who will start your car while you're away? (the day you get home from field or deployment you are going to want to go to the bottle shop and maccas straight away. Can't do that with a flat battery)
  
  
• Who's feeding your dog? (and who is your back up person)
  
  
• Clean out your damn fridge!!!
  
  
• Do NOT promise a return date especially to your partner. It is very unlikely that you'll have exact return dates when you go on deployment. (also consider not promising them when you'll call next because if you don't call your partner when you promised them their first thought is that something bad happened but 99% of the time it's just because you were busy and couldn't get to the phone).
  
  
• Consider having several people you can lean on. Often when we rely on our military mates they too maybe called at last minute to deploy or go on course. So it's essential that you have several people that are in contact with each other who will take care of your affairs while you're away.
  
  

It's so important to surround yourself and your family with good people. You want to make sure you have people you can trust to access your home, pets, cars and to help deal with other personal stuff. Introduce your partner to your workmates partners so that they can get to know people in the wider defence community. 

Don't be afraid to speak to your chain of command if you're having trouble with your personal welfare. They have welfare officers who can help out with ensuring your life is on track and give you a smoother work experience. If everything on the home front is taken care of then you'll be able to provide effective service and give your full attention to your job. 

Start getting to know other applicants now in our awesome community-ADF Recruit Fitness on Facebook. You might end up working alongside these people one day so join the forum and get a head start!