Diving into Military Culture

What can we learn about military culture from a cult survivor? Check out Daniella Mestyanek Young’s experience of growing up in a cult, bootstrapping her way through high school and college, serving in the military, and now the work she does around diving deep into the culture. Her book Uncultured being released in Fall 2022 covers these topics. In this week’s interview, we dived into some of the aspects of her book and her experience in the military.

Women of the Military would like to thank Sabio Coding Bootcamp for sponsoring this week’s episode! Sabio Coding Bootcamp is a top-ranked coding Bootcamp that is 100% dedicated to helping smart and highly motivated individuals become exceptional software engineers. Visit their website www.Sabio.la to learn how you may be able to use your GI Bill benefits to train at Sabio. Your tuition and a monthly BAH stipend may be paid during your training period. They also are 100% committed to helping you find your first job in tech. Don’t forget to head over to www.Sabio.la to learn more today.

Diving into Military Culture

Daniella Mestyanek Young left a cult in high school and with determination and grit worked to graduate from college. She graduated in 2009 and with an English degree and a downturned economy did not have a lot of options. She saw the military as an option and looked into military service with the Army. From her research, she determined the Officer Candidate School (OCS) where she would complete boot camp and then spend twelve weeks at OCS was the best option for her.

Military intelligence

She wanted to be a military intelligence officer and the only way to get that career field was to be competitive. She was prepared for training in coming in with the ability to score exceed expectations in the physical fitness standards and get full marks. Immediately she felt a challenge to both be strong and be a woman. It was good she was able to meet and exceed standards but it also put a target on her back though out her training. She was able to excel at training and become a military intelligence officer.

Deploying to Afghanistan

She went off to training and when she arrived at her first base she was told she would be deploying to Afghanistan in two months. The deployment was an interesting welcome to the Army. She had missed all the pre-deployment spin-up training and then deployed with a unit as a new person. She faced a number of challenges but also learned a lot. It was also during this deployment she was given the opportunity to be attached to an infantry unit outside of her traditional duties.

Military culture

This episode talks a lot about how women are viewed in the military and how the culture around women is changing. How women on social media are stepping up and being a voice for change. The experiences and challenges women face in the military have often gone untold. But the culture is changing and it starts with leaders standing up and saying things were wrong and now change is happening.

She ended the interview with the advice to do your research as you consider military service. Ask women about their experience and use the knowledge you gain from your research to help you prepare to determine if the military is right for you. You can also use this information-gathering idea for transitioning out of the military.