Remind me why we do what we do
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What else would you do?
26 years done as cadet and CFAV. Thought it was my extended family but now I have doubted do I continue
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Itâs clichĂ©d but itâs for the kids.
Their faces after theyâve just been flying or them having a laugh with other cadets, learning something they didnât know before or just having a good time.
Knowing you have in some way helped facilitate that and make an impact.
Thatâs why.
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I donât think we can tell you. My best bit of advice is to go out and do an activity away from squadron, something youâre good at and enjoy. Refuel yourself. I did it last weekend and it has rejuvenated my enthusiasm no end.
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Baldrick is right.
The grind particularly as an OC is relentless.
In the now 10 plus years I have been doing that it has never resulted in more paperwork, mandatory training or life sapping nonsense.
But 1 day for me.on the range or out doing AT or getting your whole Sqn through a qualification makes it worthwhile.
That and the glamour! 
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seconding @SecretSquirrel and @Baldrick
i have felt like this almost on an annual basis - typically it lasts until the following morning after I have slept on it after a particularly troubling evening at Squadron
other times I remind myself that I would genuinely miss it - and at the end of the month will be a reminder of that because i am going on X, Y or Z
if you are not going on an X, Y or Z - try to, whatever it is that makes you tick and gives your that warm fuzzy feeling have another go at it - if having given it another go and that failed to raise the smile it used then you have reason to walk away with head held high saying you gave it all you had until you didnt enjoy itâŠ
the organisation has helped me, given me focus when i had very little during a dark period. having that commitment not only kept me going but raised a smile and that warm fuzzy feeling again
Sorry, but you only think that⊠I have now left the organisation and donât miss it 1 bit,
a close friend of mine who had been in for over 40 years felt they would miss it too, NOPE
they said it is as if a weight has been lifted of their shoulders, donât need to worry about a thing
THERE IS LIFE AFTER THE CADETS!
I pulled the ejection handle for a number of reasons, I wonât discuss them openly but I gave everything I could and only found it getting worse. The Corps does become your extended family, but unfortunately now it seems that the family you speak of is not really interested in you unless it is for their gain.
My suggestion to you is do as Balderik suggests, go and find some activities YOU like doing and see if the fire can be relit, but if after that you feel its just too much then find someone you can really trust and talk to them about how you feel. Only then can you make the right decision for you
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oh absolutely!
each case is personal
I appreciate there is more than the RAFAC but i am not one to sit still - if i didnât do it I would throw myself into my other hobbies more or end up picking up one I have until now ignoredâŠ
there is time and drive in my life which the RAFAC scratch can itch - i would miss it if it stopped - others donât feel the same and that is fine.
i am not one to sit still and sitting on the sofa watching telly two nights a week more than I do doesnât appeal - so i would find something else to doâŠ
Totally agree, for people like us you need to find something to do
Of the people I still keep in touch with itâs scary how they feel their lives have changed for the better now they are no longer in the organisation.
IF someone from HQAC reads this then I would suggest that you have someone from the value the volunteers group contact these people and see how their lives have changed and then see how this can be used to better the lives of the volunteers still with the corps
When I bin a cadets in SMS there is a question asking why they left and whether there is any reason why HQAC should not contact them as a follow-up.
Leaving aside that the question may now fall foul of GDPR, I wonder if anybody has ever been contacted and, relevant to this thread, whether any such mechanism was ever conceived for staff.
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As someone who has very recently left. Im not missing it one jot . Im still in touch with the people who were my staff as they are friends too.It is as has been said âlike a weight liftedâ.Ive also found something else to do which a-Doesnt take over my life b-Bombard me with endless e mails and threats.Finally I had my BP taken the other day whilst visiting the docs and its gone down a full 10 points.
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Gone down the NEP Route and not missing it one bit.
It would be like retiring from work.
All the old boys and girls I see from work, look 5-10 years younger after a month of being retired and the oft heard comment is ânever miss work and never boredâ.
When we have a stand down during the summer and at Christmas and when I go on holiday I donât miss the ATC and in fact itâs a struggle to get back into to it, but like with work, holidays soon become a distant memory.
I do several other things apart from the ATC just to keep me sane and if these sometimes take a priority so be it.
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I fully respect people who decide to leave rather than remain part of the Corps and have a negative attitude or allow it to negatively impact on their personal life. That said however, I find it somewhat contradictory for someone to take the view that you donât miss it at all, yet spend your spare time reading the threads and posting in this forum. If thatâs what you do then can you really say that the cadets is no longer a part of your life when a not-insignificant amount of your time is spent on here talking about the Corps and emersing yourself in the day-to-day happenings etc on this forum? If you donât miss it, why come to AIR CADET central?
I completely understand people on this forum who have left through retirement or a change in circumstances but to be here whilst claiming that Cadets is no longer a part of your life and you donât miss it just doesnât make sense to me. It obviously is and in some way you obviously do.
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I understand your pointâŠ
However I feel if I can help someone in anyway then I will do so.
The organisation gave me a lot and I gave it more in return. I have a life outside the corps now which I thoroughly enjoy and has made me much happier.
The main reason I left was with issues primarily with people not the cadets
There are people on here who may ask a question as they donât know the answer but to me itâs second nature so why not still share what knowledge I have and perhaps as the organisation changes which it will the knowledge I have will be redundant so there will be a time I no longer will be on these forums assisting in some way.
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Having earlier today supervised an activity that I am passionate about it has give me that buzz especially when cadets achieve something.
I wonât let people put me down. I will however be very wary of whom I help out in the future.
If I get âissuesâ by people I will remind them that I am a volunteer who gives up my spare time for the benefit of others
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Having been in the Corps since 1978, in every role, the last 20 years as a squadron commander, I left last year after a lot of soul searching.
I didnât expect the massive feeling of relief I felt. I havenât missed the organisation for one single second.
Iâm not here to knock the RAFAC but to let you know that life without it can be just as rewarding.
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