How difficult was your personal transition back to civilian life and employment?

Perfectly seamless transition... Went to a company/job very similar to what I did in the Army; para-military security for critical national security assets. My TS security clearance transferred with no problem. Most of my peers in my new vocation were folks I have known and worked with in the Army for years.

My recommendation is to start early, network and be ready to adjust your target departure date, up or back, as opportunities present themselves. Don't just take any job, as you may not be happy in it. Wait for something that interests you and that, for the most part, meets your needs. Holding out for the "perfect" job may work out for you, but that is probably the exception. Take a job that is acceptable and work your way into that perfect job by doing the same thing you did in the military -- Do your very best in any job you have.

I used to tell my assignment officers and counseled my personnel to do the same: "I'll go to a bad place for a good job; I'll go to a good place for a bad job; but I won't go to a bad place for a bad job." -- That always worked for me (I was lucky -- got good jobs in good places). I offer the same advice in seeking civilian employment.

My hobby helped me out. I like riding horses and owned several of them. I went into the rodeo circuit as labor and stock contracting; been bucked off, bitten, chewed on, stepped on, kicked, mauled, thrown in the air, chased and pooped/urinated on by bucking stock, horses and bulls; steers and mutton. So when someone asks me whats wrong with me, I tell that...plus I wear a hearing aid, and I need both ears corrected. Sometimes, when people ask why I phase out, I tell them that I go places (in the mind) on occasion. I make the conversation interesting. If I tell people its an army thing, they don't get it. One has to have a sense of humor to live in a progressive, capitalistic, free and independent society; Highly individualistic. 

When I left Fort Hood I found a temporary job working for Acer right there in Temple since I had some computer technical skills.  But since I've moved back to Missouri it's been really tough finding good job leads.  My MOS really doesn't have many civilian job equivalents except for maybe working for Dish Network, DirectTV, or a local cable company.  My biggest problem is probably a stable work history which is a vicious trap since I haven't been able to get a job at this point. 

I think part of it is expectation. There are plenty of jobs out there and plenty of people hiring as well as looking for work.
But employers aren't wanting to pay what most veterans are asking and most veterans aren't willing to accept what most employers are offering.
Small businesses with limited budgets don't have the resources to hire at a wage that most service members are used to living on. While I'm a big fan of getting in on the ground floor of a start-up that is going places, reality is that most of them don't go anywhere and entrepreneurs operating on a shoestring aren't always easy to work with or for.
Right now, I make more as a professional student than I would working for anyone that would take a second look at my resume as is (in a career field I'm willing to work in right now). Of course, school opens up the resume and lets me correlate military experience in a manner that is quantifiable to the civilian market, which is one of my regrets about not completing a degree while in the service.

What I am reading here is that the ACAP or Transition Assistance Program sucked for most of you. The take-away from either transition program should have been to translate your military knowledge, skills and abilities into civilian jargon, identify careers that require these skills, use your GI Bill to get the certs or education required to validate your capabilities (if needed) and search and discover the companies that need these KSAs.

If we look at the trend, DoD is downsizing. Contract companies will be hard pressed to fill positions for existing employees. I joined the government four years ago because I saw the writing on the wall - DoD is not in the hiring boom as it was just after 9/11 and the subsequent 12 years. Find industries that are growing and apply your KSAs there.

The missions of each civilian organization and company is different; but, in most cases, it's about the money. The company has to earn enough to pay its employees and to build its products and service its customers. Maybe your experience can show them how to hold ground (marketing) or winning the hearts and minds of the local population (loyal customers). It's all about how you phrase your KSAs into terms the employer can understand and needs. Don't go in expecting to receive a job - that's a military mindset where you PCS to a unit and the unit tells you where you plug in. Tell the company how you are going to use your KSAs to satisfy their problems...this means you must know the company before you sit down and write your resume.

You can find additional insightful tidbits on my blog at fundamentalguru.com

This is what I have been telling my mother who works in HR at a Hospital. But she and my aunt, who also works in HR, do not believe me. I even refuse to apply for jobs their unless it is working on oxygen equipment. Also, a lot of places do not want to see you in person. They will tell you to apply on line. I have applied to several places, and nobody calls. I did get interviews twice with Home Depot. But was not hired. I even tried to get back with Sears since I used to work for them. And I have already said screw Wal-mart, since their application system is so screwy.

I just can not believe all the excuses that the HR's come up with concerning Vets. We are to rigid, we can not conform, we have PTSD, etc. When in reality, we are better assets than those that have never served in the military. Because we know how to adapt and overcome anything. I am going back to school right now to get my degree in IT with security. But right now I just want a job.

Virtually Seamless. I was a Technician, A Network/Communications Specialist for the Navy Intelligence Community/NSA.

I was able to get a job in the clearance industry as a defense contractor thanks to my TS SCI clearance. That clearance opened so many doors for me after leaving the Air Force. I was able to get some industry certifications such as ITIL V3 and Security +. Additionally I was able to use the post 9/11 GI bill to advance myself. It hasn't been an easy journey to transition from military life.

For me, I had no plan of getting out, I wanted a career in the military and the climate of the Air Force and the new regs caused me to get the denied a reenlistment. I had no real savings and almost went homeless, thankfully I got a job a few months after separation. However it was a big cut in salary and to this day I haven't gotten out of the hole financially. What I find hard about civilian employment is a two parter. One, is that I feel that I am not qualified for any of these jobs, I am not a tech savvy guy and I know nothing of computers. I would love to get an A&P and work on airplanes again, but I can not afford to not work, even with the GI bill. Two, most employers do not care about your experience and only education, so the young enlisted man/woman who does not have the education yet already is in the hole. They very few that do consider your experience in value either do not pay well or do not pay to relocate you to them. There is no way I could afford to move where I am at now to somewhere else. It sucks being an aircraft mechanic of "small" type aircraft because that experience does not carry over to the "bigger" planes in the civilian world. If I had a job in intel or some kind of networking specialty then I could almost work for any company. I was limited on civilian employment as soon as I signed my life away to the Air Force to be an aircraft mechanic.

I'm in the Phoenix area and have been dropping resumes like crazy. No luck so far. As far as transitioning....I was medically retired against my will and went LOUDLY into that goodnight. I would have had a much smoother transition if I would have been better prepared but who expects to make the transition with 18,5 years in? It took about a year to finally let go of the anger. It's been 4 years and I still miss the life.