Deployment Toolkit
Personal Factors
There is a fairly exhaustive list of personal factors which, can effect us and place added demands on deployment. The most common are family problems. Separation, young children, child care, arguments, domestic accidents and family illness all rate in the 'top ten'. These factors are demanding not just because they happen but also because you are not immediately on hand to help sort it out or support the family in the situation.
Your perception of the job you are going to do is important. In the services, we are called upon to do very different jobs, jobs which most of the population would never dream of doing. When we are informed of our impending deployment we often do a very natural thing, think about what it will be like. This 'fantasy' we construct rarely meets with reality and for some people this is a great disappointment.
Experience and training are also worth noting. For any person, going into a strange or new environment can be demanding. Previous experience can be of help with this as can training. If you are new to this, it may be helpful to use others who have the experience and use your team for support. There are two important things to remember:
- If in doubt about anything, ASK.
- All those experienced people around you had a first deployment and probably felt the same way as you do now.
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