military reserve for startup owners?
gexla: I was in the Army Reserves and then the National Guard.  The biggest problem for me was the 7 months of straight training before I could get started with my unit.What the experience will be like almost entirely depends on the job you get.  Some units are very active and actually a lot of fun.  With other units you might do absolutely nothing, and the weekend ends up being a long nap.I was in an aviation unit and my unit allowed me to fly in the Chinook helicopters.  We did a lot of civil stuff like helping carry supplies to the top of Mount Ranier for the forest service.  I also met a lot of new people and got do to some interesting jobs.  One of my "2 week trainings" was  really a two week party and sleep during the day.  Really, it could be a good way to break things up.Really what you need to do is go talk to your recruiter.  Make sure you figure out what sort of units and jobs are available.  If you can, talk to the unit you would be joining first.  Ask your prospective unit about the sort of jobs they need filled.  You might find something that interests you before you even start the process.Also take a look at the other branches and see what is available for them.  You might find you won't be able to do exactly what you thought you might be able to do with the Coast Guard but something else might interest you in another branch.  As I mentioned, aviation can be a lot of fun as well.When looking for other branches, the likelihood of getting deployed overseas really depends on the job and the unit.  If you have a unit that has horrible readiness than you might not get sent out because of that, but those units are not as fun to join.  The job is also a big factor.  If you are in a high demand unit, then you would be screwed.  Chinook units are fun to be in but they are probably more likely to go to war.  Also, steer clear of infantry.  ;)You don't get much pay so the money won't really be worth it if you are a decent earner.  You get access to things like a break in health insurance but you have to consider how much that is really worth to you.  As you mentioned, there are other perks available only to people in the service.  Again, you have to decide if the reward is good enough.Personally, I couldn't do it.  I would have to kill all my freelance jobs, put my networks on hold and generally get stale for at least 3 months.  I would hate to be out of the loop for that long and it would negatively impact my real "day job."If you are not in this situation, I say go for it.