By Brian Delrosario
Plus One Secret Benefit to Launch Your Vet Business Without Taking on a Huge Loan, Sharks, or the Condescending Speeches of Family and Friends
Ask for help, and lose the trust of those who said they’d take care of you
From 2005 to 2017, around 79,000 veterans committed suicide.1 That comes to 17 per day. Some studies put that number at 22 per day. In contrast, the Global War on Terror from 2001 to 2019 took the lives of approximately 7,000 veterans. That’s 79,000 over 12 years vs. 7,000 over 18 years.
Now, how many times have you heard so-called leaders emphasize how they “take care of” their juniors? Taking care of doesn’t mean caring about. The expression carries as much weight as, “My door is always open.” Likewise, the chain of command says it wants a Soldier to express the personal courage to ask for help. But when he does, it turns back around and says to him, “I don’t trust you anymore.”
Back in 2016, I asked for help. I then found myself admitted to the psychiatric ward. The Army suspended my clearance. The suspension remained for three years. The event also left me medically non-deployable for a year, required group therapy, and prevented me from attending a couple of field exercises. For that evaluation period, my battalion commander rated me as qualified (as opposed to highly qualified or best qualified). As part of my career progression, the Army required that I successfully complete company command to promote from Captain to Major. The rating ensured that I wouldn’t ever receive company command and therefore not promote past Captain.
So I questioned the ladder I chose to climb so long ago, and it hit me
But, what would questioning it matter anyway? By then, the ladder that I spent so much time climbing, I couldn’t climb any higher. People would ask why I went to the psych ward as if it represented a rational choice. German philosopher Gotthold Lessing said once that there exist things that cause you to lose reason or you have none to lose.
I questioned whether this ladder still proved worth it for me or whether it pointed in the right direction. I couldn’t rise any higher, yet I couldn’t quit the military just yet. With 15 years served already, given my enlisted time, leaving didn’t make much sense. The up-or-out rule (get promoted or get out) wouldn’t apply to me. This left me with only my own ladder to climb.
And, I found that liberating.
Quite frankly, by lowering my expectations of other people (down to expecting nothing from anyone), I find myself much happier these days. Remember that money you lent a friend? He doesn’t remember. Think of it as a gift. Want your boss to care about your dreams and appreciate your years of hard work? Keep dreaming.
Build and climb our own ladder.
Win or learn · the only failure consists of failing to learn
Of those who serve, only a few remain for the minimum 20-year retirement. We leave the job for many reasons, but when we do, we tell civilians the right story while keeping silent about the real story. If you want to get hired by non-veteran employers, you should probably keep quiet about the true story anyway. Let them feel good about the Hollywood fairytale. You and I know how we had hoped for better. Despite the disappointment, I believe you still value the time you spent in service. I still proudly serve; although, this will count as my last year.
Shortly after my hospitalization, and upon recognizing my ceiling, I began looking for ways to grow and contribute beyond the military. I realized that I wanted to want to work, as opposed to having to. If you meet me and ask what I plan to do when I retire, I’ll kid and say that I plan to sleep in and never work for anyone again. I think most veterans who get this far say something like that, but they don’t really mean it. The retirees I meet still want to do something. They just don’t want to have to, to be stuck, unfulfilled.
I experimented with plenty of small attempts at business before deciding on writing or digital publishing. I find that this niche overlaps my passion for writing, the pain my audience feels, and the direction my audience intends to go.
Where do we go from here · one secret benefit, VR&E Track 3
Writing requires plenty of research. In my book, Side Hustling for Working Adults, I dedicate Chapter 9 to hacking military benefits. I say hacking, but I really mean aligning with what already exists for you as the veteran. America appreciates your service, regardless of whether your immediate chain of command does.
Vocational Rehabilitation & Employment (VR&E) (also called Chapter 31) consists of five service tracks. Track 3 represents its self-employment track.2 If you plan to climb your own ladder by opening a business, Track 3 may bring you up to $100K from the VA to cover your startup costs.3, 4 And that’s money you don’t have to pay back. To qualify, a veteran must rate at least 20% in VA disability compensation. More veterans can do this than they realize. There exists a difference between being disabled vs. receiving disability compensation. Recommend that you get help.
The blogger and entrepreneur cited, Ben Krausse, used around $350K in VR&E benefits. He used Track 4 (long-term services) to attend law school and then later Track 3 to help open a law practice. There exist many more benefits waiting for you to get smart about.
Resources
1. Department of Veteran Affairs. (2019). National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report. MentalHealth.VA.gov. https://www.mentalhealth.va.gov/docs/data-sheets/2019/2019_National_Veteran_Suicide_Prevention_Annual_Report_508.pdf.
2. Department of Veterans Affairs. (3 Dec 2020). VR&E Self-Employment Track. VA.gov. www.va.gov/careers-employment/vocational-rehabilitation/programs/self-employment.
3. Krause, B. (28 Oct 2016). Boise, Idaho, tied for last in veteran self-employment services. DisabledVeterans.org. www.disabledveterans.org/2016/10/28/boise-idaho-worst-disabled-veteran-self-employment-services.
4. Mingey, J. (2019). VA Chapter 31 Services. VeteransBusinessServices.us. www.veteransbusinessservices.us/chapter31.
Brian Delrosario
US Marine | US Army Captain | Entrepreneur
International Best Selling Author
"Side Hustling for Working Adults : Our Military's Secret Yet Shocking Countermovement that the Chain of Command Doesn't Want You to Know About”