Navy Joe Update

It has been a little bit since my last post on this site.  Work tempo and family life have been as hectic as ever.

I pay for the site out of pocket and do all the writing with a few posts by my wife.   I do this on top of my military responsibilities as an LPO.  I've given a lot of thought to letting others post on the site but have no method of compensation for writers.

If you are interested in helping out writing for this site send me an email nickitnite@gmail.com for more info and we could talk some small compensation.

Haze Gray and Underway: 5 Items to Make an Underway Better.

When you get underway you have no control over how long it is.  Here is a list of 10 items that are essential to every underway.

Quick Guide to Find any PQS....

I have help a lot of people come to me unable to find a PQS’s.  It is super simple yet few know where to look.  Here are a few simple steps to find ANY PQS you need without GOOGLE.

New Ribbon in Bootcamp for Being the Best!

That is right now when you go through boot camp if you are in the top 3% you can get a ribbon for “Honor Graduate”…..

NEW PRT Standards but not till After the 2nd 2015 Cycle.....

The NAVADMIN Dropped today and it outlines the rules for the NEW PRT standards.... So what are the takeaways from the message?

100+ Places That Give a Military Discounts

Here is a list of 100+ places that give a military discount.  Some are based on location and may vary from store to store it is always good practice to ask. 

Quotas for Chief are out!!!

Overall numbers are down from 24.09% to 23.64%.  Ratings like PR and MM are down a few pts but  most hard hit was CTN and CTI GRP4 dropping 30 pts.. Other rating saw 10+ point increases giving some 1st some much needed hope.  To see all the quotas Click here.

No more CAP now it’s MAP

The Navy has replaced the Command Advancement Program or CAP with the Meritorious Advancement Program or MAP.  Why did CAP get replaced with MAP and what changed other than the name and will it affect you?   

 

You May Want to Rethink Your Facebook Habbits.

NAVADMIN 129/15 released in May gives a guideline for “Standards of Conduct” on social media.  It applies to all DOD personnel contractor and Civilian and could affect how you treat social media.  As always I would suggest reading the full message but if you are lazy here is the abridged version.

Say goodbye to DON Requiered NKO GMT's......

I’ve been checking NKO and FLTMPS for the last couple days to see if GMT requirements would actually change like the SECNAV said.  Finally today they updated to the NEW required GMT list.  So what all training was removed from requirement by the navy?

Secretary of The Navy Announces BIG Policy Changes…..

In a recent speech the Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus talked about why we have seen so many changes and announced some big changes coming to the navy.

“Some Changes will take place at the speed of my pen, some changes at the speed of congress.”

----Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus 

So what are these changes?

The 2015 September Navy Exam Message is out! Are you Eligible to Take the Exam?

2015 Exams start in September.  What questions do you  need to ask to make sure  you’re  eligible for the exam?

 

New Selective Reenlistment Bonus' 2015

Many SRB's have lowered or gone completely away but overall there has been an increase in bonus'.  How could this affect you and your money?

Congratulations to all Who Were Selected for Master Chief!

The list is out so go and see if a Senior Chief you know made it.

Go here to see the list.

Things My Recruiter Didn’t Tell Me: How to Survive “Cranking”

This will be the first of hopefully many posts on “Things My Recruiter Didn’t Tell Me.” These posts will be about stuff you may want to know about that the recruiter probably won’t/didn’t tell you.    

How to Survive “Cranking”

When I joined the Navy everyone told me including my recruiter “If you have the chance go to a ship first do it.  You will learn a lot and advance quicker.”  That advice turned out to be very true. My first and second commands were ships and I prospered, I learned my rating and advanced very fast.  After a few months at my first shore duty I put on First Class Petty Officer.  In only 6 years I had advance from E1 to E6 I attribute that to going to a ship first.

What they didn’t tell me about being going to a ship was that I would go Cranking.  I had no idea what Cranking was, even after my first couple weeks on the big deck amphib I was oblivious to what Cranking really was. 

A Navy Spouse's Perspective #2 "What to expect when your spouse goes to Boot Camp"

Once your spouse is enlisted into the Navy you must understand that the Navy practically owns them now. He will undergo physical and mental training and be unable to communicate back home for most of the duration of his boot camp time. You must also prepare yourself for the limited pay that you will be receiving during this period. Your spouse will not start making a decent salary until they start working regular hours after A school. During the entirety of their training it is advised that you get a side job or stay with family because it is impossible to get by on what your spouse will be receiving.

A Task Force for Innovation

In a recent message to the fleet the honorable Ray Mabus, Secretary of the Navy, discussed innovation in the navy and his vision of the coming years for Task Force Innovation.  

What is CIP?

Career Intermission Program (CIP) right now is in a small-scale pilot program. The pilot only allows 20 officer and 20 enlisted  each year until this year (2015) and gives them the opportunity to seek out an advanced degree at a prestigious university of their choosing while also allowing them the ability to continue their career in the naval service.

Piping on the Whites is official release date

E-8 selection rate drops, but its more even across ratings

A Navy Spouse's Perspective #1 "Preparing for a Deployment"

 Navy spouses have a lot of expectations placed upon them. We go into the relationship and Navy life knowing some facts but never fully prepared for the commitment required. In my case, I had some idea of what I would be giving up when my husband enlisted because I grew up a Navy brat and had experienced separation and single parenting due to the military life. Most civilians do not go into this life prepared for it. A few pointers can be helpful and an amazing gift. Here are a few of my tips for getting ready for your spouse's approaching deployment.

NEW requierments for IT's and Cybersecurity DOD members

All IT’s and Navy Cybersecurity Workforce have NEW requirements to maintain your job.  I am not going to go into full detail and would suggest you read the NAVADMIN but here are the basics.

 

Navy Women on Subs

The Navy is taking a big leap this year by finally allowing Females to join the submarine force. There are a few NAVADMINS are out right now that can help you find out if you qualify to join the submarine force.

Happy 122 Birthday Chiefs!

Navy chiefs have help shape the navy for 122 years.  Today is recognized birthday of the Chiefs and I just wanted to put out a few milestones in the lengthy history.  

New Name, New URL and Writers Needed, Accepting Essays.

I recently purchased NavyJoe.com and as such some changes will be happening to the site.  As of today you can link to the site by using the NavyJoe.com the old URLs will continue to work.  The Name of the site will also be changed from Navy Help to Navy Joe for continuity.

Writers Needed

Everything on this site I did as a passion project.  I want to make the navy a better place and get information out to everyone.  That is why I made this site and pay for the Domain out of pocket.  It’s been fun but now I am looking for fellow likeminded (or even not so likeminded) sailors to join me in this benificiel endeavor.   If you are interested Email me @ webadmin@navyjoe.com  

Accepting Essay

I am adding the ability for anyone to submit essays, links or any information you think would be beneficial to fellow Sailors.  To submit something send it to submit@navyjoe.com

Thank you for visiting the site and here’s to making the Navy a better place.

Tablets Headed to Your Navy Sea-bag the Pros and Cons

A recent article on the Navy Times website announced in April 200 Tablets will be distributed to a test Group of new recruits and trainers.   According to the article MCPON Stevens believes it to be a way forward the Navy MCPON stated “This is really the tip of the iceberg with regards to training,” Stevens went on "one day a sailor will sign up in the Delayed Entry Program and we will issue them mobile technology, and it will become their career companion, and everything they do with regards to personnel and personnel training."

As an IT I like the idea of having a tablet.  I can see many good things but I also can see some bad.  Here is a list of a few pros and cons of this proposal.

A Hot Minute

It has been a hot minute since my last post and I apologize for that.  I took on two collage classes, the tempo at work picked up and we had a loss in the family.  These many things made it imposable for me to post informative stuff.   NOW I am back and ready to go. 

This is an outlet for me is to give back the many things I learn every day about the ever evolving Navy.  I plan to post at least once a week some sort of new information I have learned.   Things I will be sharing are articles, NAVADMIN’s, and anything I think can be useful for navy personnel.

 If you have suggestions for the site feel free to post them or email me