#2: Believing six-figure salaries await them on the outside

After an intel Airman is at their first duty station and they've passed some sort of training for their new duty, they'll begin to notice maybe one or two (or ten) plain clothes individuals working among them.  Actually, these days, they may have been trained by them.  These fine people are defense contractors and to some, the luckiest people on earth.  These contractors work side-by-side with the Airman and generally do the exact same thing as the Airman.  The only difference, besides what they wear to work: the contractors get paid double, sometimes triple, what the Airman receives.  After a few months of learning about the contracting world, the Airman's head will begin to fill will days of multiple interviews because, "your top secret clearance and military training are so damn valuable".  Yes, after about a solid year of working with contractors, they'll believe they are now ready for, nay, entitled to, a six-figure salary after they separate.

To compound the Airman's frustration about not being paid a massive sum is if the contractor doing the same job isn't even good at it.  Nothing hurts more than having to tell the contractor how to do their job properly after hearing over and over how much their paid.  Now, in defense of the contractors, they are instructed not to speak of salary and benefits to anyone at work.  Presumably to assure a happy workplace and to not upset other co-workers of the same company.  Even more painful for the Airman is if they are stationed overseas: now they get to hear how the contractor doesn't even pay federal taxes up to roughly $80,000 per year.  By now, the Airman's head is spinning.  They've hit the mother-load and picked the best career the Air Force has to offer.

However, what the Airman fails to acknowledge due to selective hearing or pure ignorance, is generally the contractor holds many things over the Airman.  They've probably retired from the military after at least 20 solid years of doing intel.  They've probably received a college degree.  Some have their sword razor sharp on both edges and attained 20+ years experience whilst graduating college.  To the Airman, this is just something that single contractor had on their resume.  It's okay to them because "your top secret clearance and military training are so damn valuable."  What the Airman fails to understand is that their four year enlistment isn't really four years of intel work.  They spent two months in basic training; six to seven months in technical training school; one to one and half months in First Term Airman Course (FTAC); and two to three months of training just to sit and do their job at an actual intel unit.  Let us not forget the Airman probably dropped leave after training school and/or after FTAC.  Additionally, since you get 30-days per year in leave, an Airman will gladly take it.  Thus, we have an Airman that has done about 2.75 years worth of actual intel work [queue Office Space voice over].  This is not what the Airman see's; however, it is glaringly obvious to a hiring department.

Airman have no leadership function other than being in charge of the Snack Fund that must be well stocked 7-days a week for their 24/7 office.  Aside from snack fund and trash duty, an Airman generally sits and observes.  They sit, they learn, and they satisfy their urge to explore the contracting world by sneaking a peek at indeed.com, usajobs.com, and topsecretclearanceexpo.com looking for something they could possibly fill. They'll tell their friends stories of "a guy they knew who got out and started at $105K a year..." so they can get feedback on how possible it really is.  Airman love to think of the great six-figure salary that awaits them, if they want it, right on the other side of the military.