On June 11th a MARADMIN was released with the approved selections to Gunnery Sergeant for FY 08.  I eagerly searched this MARADMIN for my name as I was finally in zone for Gunny this year.  I thought that I had done what I needed to do to get promoted even though I had not been deployed I was successful in my last assignment.  Well to my disappointment my name was not on the list.  I was one of many Marines that are “passed over” for selection. 

At first I was stunned that I was not going to be a Gunny this year.  Then I get really pissed off as I looked through the list and saw names of others that I feel that I am a better SSgt than they are.  I sat around had a beer and then I realized that maybe being passed over is a good thing for me.  How can that be good do you ask?  Well this is why I think it will be good:

1.  I had become complacent.  I was going through the motions figuring that I was good to go and I had nothing to worry about.  Now I am going to have to refocus myself to my unit and to the Corps and in turn become a better Marine.

2.   I will be able to take this experience and ensure that my younger Marines in zone (the SSgt zone has been published) have all their I’s dotted and their T’s crossed. 

Overall this experience has been both good and bad.  The bad is obvious but I think in the long run this is going to help me in my career hopefully this time next year I will be happy as my name will be on that list of approved selections to Gunnery Sergeant and in the future it will be on the approved selection to MSgt and MGySgt which I don’t know would have been the case if I had gotten selected this time around.