Is it possible that your military service isn't that big a deal and you aren't the leader you think you are (searching for civilian job)?

2017-09-30T22:13:43-04:00

I am searching for a civilian job. I have typed up my resume that...no one outside of the military, and even some in, would really understand what I did.....staff officer stuff. I was a power point briefing badass!!
What I find, civilians appreciate your service, but they don't hire you. They are looking for someone with the exact experience that they are hiring for.
I am also guessing, they don't see us as a bunch of future US POTUS and CEOs.
So, my question...does the military sort of prop us up and feed our ego, telling us we can do anything (as we change jobs so often) and that we are such awesome leaders - because of enlisted and the UCMJ??

Response by SPC Margaret Higgins made Sep 30 at 2017 10:15 PM

2017-09-30T22:15:34-04:00

MAJ Jim Steven: I believe that my military service is a big deal; and, that I am the leader others think that I am. -Margaret

Response by Capt Dwayne Conyers made Sep 30 at 2017 10:16 PM

2017-09-30T22:16:29-04:00

My military service is backed up with over a decade of relevant experience... and still I search. Of course, it would help if members of a certain agency would get off my back...

Response by Maj Rob Drury made Sep 30 at 2017 10:36 PM

2017-09-30T22:36:32-04:00

You described the situation perfectly, but you completely missed mentioning the cause of the problem. The civilian world doesn't understand us, and they no longer understand leadership; let alone the value of it. As officers, we changed hats regularly, thriving even when taking on management of vocational areas that may be previously unfamiliar to us. Why? Because in most areas, and particularly in senior management, competence in leadership is far more important than technical competence. The average middle-of-the-road performing military officer is light years ahead of most any civilian manager in terms of fostering teamwork, motivating employees, prioritizing issues, general problem solving, and contingency planning.

The managers of today don't understand these concepts because they are either self-centered, short-sighted millennials, or they're the dim-witted prior generation that raised them. Not only do they not understand leadership as we know it; they don't see a need to understand or possess it. Job experience and technical expertise can be obtained by any monkey. Leaders are far harder to come by--except in the military. Unfortunately, as we witness in the frequent liberal snowflake rants on this site, it's becoming rarer in the military as well.

As members of the United States military, we constitute the highest order of mankind. Unlike almost everywhere in the civilian world, the function of even the lowest among us holds tremendous importance. It's hard to find employers who understand this, but when they do, they know to hire vets.

Response by SPC Erich Guenther made Sep 30 at 2017 10:37 PM

2017-09-30T22:37:04-04:00

This is a good question and I will try to answer it as best I can because times have changed and you younger guys are a LOT more fortunate in the employment market but it does not also mean that Army Service will get you hired. First it depends on the employer. Some employers prefer ex-Military and others avoid them. When I was in the market EDS preferred ex-Military because if it's internal training program was tough and they wanted to max the graduation rate plus Ross Perot had a soft spot in his heart for Veterans as he met his wife at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. So thats the part of military preference some firms do have a preference others can't stand ex-military. I have to say though I know what someone in Logistics does, I have no clue what a Multifunctional Logstician is. So your best bet at getting a job is attempting to align your background with jobs available OR you also have the option of enhancing your background while you search for a job by taking continuing education courses in what your target field is. So if I were a Logistican I would start with the firms you know are going to prefer Military if that is the field you want to stay in. Fed-Ex, any Major Class One Railroad in the United States Intermodal or Operations Department, UPS, etc. Thats where I would start. If you are targeting a different field that is outside your military branch then you need to take a courses of action that makes you more and more attractive to hiring managers in that field. Start networking in professional organizations and see if you need more education in the area or even some classwork to beef up your skills. You have to ask at some point why folks are looking past your resume. BTW, as someone that has worked with Executives, nobody cares if you can do a Powerpoint presentation........it is expected. You can list Powerpoint under skills but I would not go further than that. They want you to also quantify vs being general on your resume. So instead of saying lead men...........they want you to say led x number of men. Instead of saying improved efficiency, they want you to say improved such and such by so much %. Anyways one item ex-Military fails on is quantification vs generalization. If someone is reading your resume they want some hard stats to be able to compare you to the other guy. They want to see innovation. They want to see leadership skills quantified via motivation of an organization that may have been lethargic before you got involved. That kind of crud will grab their eyes more then a general listing of attributes. The biggest hurdle that ex-military has to overcome is being too modest of what they have accomplished in the military. Look through some of your certificates or awards and read them. Anyways......my two cents.

Response by PO1 Gery Bastiani made Sep 30 at 2017 10:47 PM

2017-09-30T22:47:15-04:00

My training, schooling, experience and 20+ yrs in the Navy helped me find employment upon my retirement

Response by MSgt Neil Greenfield made Sep 30 at 2017 11:12 PM

2017-09-30T23:12:04-04:00

A lot of the searching for employment may also be related to how you are targeting your skills. There are plenty of organizations, like mine (https://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/Corporate-Responsibility/military-veterans.htm) that take a real interest in hiring Veterans. Target those organizations. And don’t forget, one of the key activities that you need to do is networking, joining professional organizations and actively participating in them. Learning what the organization does and why is important because you will want to target your resume to the organization. That means translating your military skills, education, experiences, etc., into something civilian hiring managers can understand. What was your undergraduate degree in? As a field grade officer, I would assume that you have a graduate degree. Why did you major in what your degree is in? A lot of this is tied to your own self awareness.
Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of JPMORGAN CHASE, has said that a Emotional Intelligence is a key skill to have. If you don’t have it, he has no use for you. Hint, it’s not the touchy-feely skills you should have, but it does include that. There are some other organizations that can help that I will post also.

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Response by MSgt Neil Greenfield made Sep 30 at 2017 11:13 PM

2017-09-30T23:13:26-04:00

Another site to review: http://www.proudtoserveagain.com

Troops to Teachers

Response by MSgt Neil Greenfield made Sep 30 at 2017 11:14 PM

2017-09-30T23:14:23-04:00

And another one: https://hireourheroes.org/

Hire Our Heroes | Vets Connecting Vets with New Careers...

Hire Our Heroes connects transitioning Veterans to their next careers, with job resources, job training, interview process assistance, networking, veteran mentors, volunteers and sponsors.

Response by MSgt Neil Greenfield made Sep 30 at 2017 11:16 PM

2017-09-30T23:16:03-04:00

And another sit:
https://www.dol.gov/vets/

Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) - U.S. Department of Labor

Replace the word

Response by CAPT James McClure made Sep 30 at 2017 11:19 PM

2017-09-30T23:19:24-04:00

When I entered the civilian job market in 1968, most employers treated my four years in the Navy as lost time and put me on the same footing as a new college grad. One employment counselor advised me to not mention my tour in Vietnam. Fortunately, I found an employer who understood that I had gained experience in managing people and resources as an officer. Veterans are more highly regarded today, but civilians still do not understand what military people do and the responsibility junior officers and NCOs carry. So we have to explain what we've done in civilian terms. I think there are resources out there that will help you translate your military experience to civilianese.

Response by CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana made Sep 30 at 2017 11:23 PM

2017-09-30T23:23:54-04:00

The military definitely beefs our egos that we feel that no employer would even think of rejecting us uniformed brats. However, burst your own bubble and return to reality. An employer wants an MBA then, he will select only an MBA from the Candidate Pool. When an employer is looking for a Chief Security Officer, who is certified CSP, CPP and CISSP then, best believe that talent managers will only screen candidates for that job using these three keywords and, if your resume doesn't have any of the three keywords in it then, you will not be considered. For every post there are 300-1000 potential candidates, so there has to be a criterion to discriminate, which is why keywords.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 30 at 2017 11:31 PM

2017-09-30T23:31:17-04:00

So I once overheard what a recent Joint Chief of Staff said to his son in law who was a Captain in the Army. Do you know what he told him? He said you are better off getting out. Why did he tell him that? The changing climate of the Army was shifting to a direction where the JCS felt his son in law would have been better off getting out.

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 30 at 2017 11:32 PM

2017-09-30T23:32:39-04:00

MAJ Jim Steven Sir, you are a Major, so, yes you are a leader. When I was discharged in 1972, I had to interview with three different managers for a high paying job at a chemical plant. One of the managers did not like the military or veterans, and he let me know it. The other two managers were impressed enough to hire me for the job. When I obtained my degree, I again went through a series of interviews to work on the Space Shuttle program. I was hired and began a 33 year career that I loved. In part, I succeeded because of the determination, discipline, and never quit attitude that I owe to my military service. My service did not help me land jobs, but it sure helped me succeed, once I had the job. Major, keep searching for the right job. If not a member, join LinkedIn, and then become a member of the "Veteran Mentor Network." group. This group can be helpful for job seekers.

Response by PO3 Donald Murphy made Sep 30 at 2017 11:57 PM

2017-09-30T23:57:28-04:00

How long have you been in the military? A lot has changed since you've been "gone." And yes...you have been GONE. The nation you lived in no longer exists. The industry you wish to go in to is one of shareholders and outsourcings and qualifications for the sake of qualifications. Sure you wanna come here? You do? Okay. Then take $100 (no less) and get yourself one of those civilian resume writing firms. Have them turn what you have done into a professional looking resume. "But I did it myself and..."

Again...

Pay **THEM** to do it. They do it everyday for a living and know what civ world is looking for. Have you watched college educated HR civilian folk in action? Trust me - its you. Its not them. Your resume has to match the formula of the day, etc. You don't know that. Because you're not HR. I'm former HR and I don't understand the sh*t they do now...

Next; survey the environment. Once you get **IN** to the civilian job market, will you be able to stay in? Your degree is meaningless. Sorry. Its meaningless. You will need buzzword qualifications and flavor of the week certifications. Are you prepared to do that? No? Then you need to evaluate where you are and how to best stay there. Because your local college rakes in the cash because dumb parent folk send their children there. Those graduating children have to get jobs or the dumb parent folk will smarten up and stop going into debt sending their children there. So go to your local college, meet with any rep (stay away from the veteran/I-love-the-military/retiree rep) and find out what your community is hiring the most of. I guarantee you its not what your TAP/RAP coordinator has said...

Can you turn what you have into a degree in that field? Yes?! BULLY FOR YOU! You're in line. If not, reconsider your options. Here in Florida where I live, every other person you bump into is either a landscaper or medical person. Consider a nursing/hospital career. Also understand that everything in the USA is shareholder based now. Research your companies well. Search for a company that does bad, but not too bad. One that does well, but not too well. Even Disneyworld lays people off (raises hand) to "save money" (yes...you can't make that up).

Does the military blow sunshine up our butts? Of course they do. Why wouldn't they? We're a volunteer force. How else are they going to get you to justify reenlisting?

Sorry I can't be more positive.

Response by LTC Jason Mackay made Oct 1 at 2017 12:03 AM

2017-10-01T00:03:55-04:00

MAJ Jim Steven Jim, you need some resume help. I signed up for USO 360 and Hire Our Heroes and got resume help.

What we have got by accident in the Army, corporate and local government America is desperately trying to train, inculcate, and propagate.

Response by GySgt Ken Norwood made Oct 1 at 2017 1:02 AM

2017-10-01T01:02:16-04:00

When I retired, like you, my resume was loaded with crap no regular civilian could understand. When I went on interviews they had no idea what I was talking about when I answered their questions. In other words I could not talk to civilians. Fortunately for me I found a job, not what I was looking for but a job none the less, and was placed with a guy who was a Marine. He taught me a lot about how civilians talk. Civilians don't take leave they take a vacation. Civilians don't take a 96 the take a long weekend. The list is long.

If civilians do not understand your resume, rewrite it in civilian language. More importantly write it in the language the job is looking for. No one resume is good for all jobs.

Once you land a job your leadership skills will come to light in more ways than you can even manage!

Good luck.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 1 at 2017 1:56 AM

2017-10-01T01:56:46-04:00

My military experiences have made me a great leader and manager. HOWEVER, when in the civilian or a federal civilian worlds it is VERY different leadership styles and tactic that you have to adapt too.
For example, When I was working for a grocery store as a manager, I could fire an employee very easily. Now in federal civilian world, I have to write them up, write them up, write them up, and sooner or later they may be terminated. And during all this, I have to deal with the Union. Now then, when you are looking for a job, the resume say a lot. If you are looking at getting a federal job (i.e. USAJOBS), it took me 3 years before I landed one. I'm sure other people have had better success because they may not be as geographically confined to an area. In other words they are capable of relocating. As far as resumes go, it really depends on how you use the wording. You also have to tailor you resume to the job by hitting on the key works in the announcement and questionnaire on USAJOBS for example. I have a 13 page resume that encompasses everything I did. I took information from my performance reports, decorations, and even things that I did that did not make it into the reports. I use it as a baseline to create a tailored resume for a specific job. You really have to think outside the box on the terminology. For example: When I was an additional duty First Sergeant, I conducted Dormitory inspections. So this is how I translated it to a civilian version "Conducted and documented Environmental of Care Inspections of facilities for proper sanitation, safety, health, and welfare of military personnel". Here is one for leadership "Led and managed 180 civilian and military personnel providing political, military, and counter-terrorism intelligence to United States Africa Command and National Agencies"

Response by AA Joseph Moody made Oct 1 at 2017 6:49 AM

2017-10-01T06:49:11-04:00

MAJ Jim Steven Having watched several people in your situation at the Depot where I worked, I think what you need is a low cost, low risk way to make your social blunders and mistakes while you transition, which going to college is a useful way to do that, but before you do that I would suggest taking online courses from places such as edX and KHANacademy. (You can audit the courses for free or spend like 50 bucks to get a pretty paper saying you were a good student, your choice)

One this will give you a way to padd out some of those softskills while demonstrating an interest in self improvement, and most importantly, it will give you a low risk space to feel out how silly villains operate today. But look for the courses where there will be group discussion and group activities.

But personal advice is to look up their leadership and six sigma courses, feel free to have differing opinions on the subject but it will at the very least introduce you to the culture and language in a low risk environment.

Response by Norah Julmis made Oct 1 at 2017 8:18 AM

2017-10-01T08:18:27-04:00

Here are my thoughts on this. Please don't take this in a bad way, it's just what I've seen and experienced. The majority of civilians are so disconnected from the military that they simply do not care. Or, they have that moment, like OH, you are in the military, that's so patriotic, almost like how most people are super patriotic on the 4th of July, and on the 5th, they are back to not caring.

It's obvious to me that you are a leader and have that experience, which a lot of companies are looking for. The difference is, they do not understand military jargon and most hiring managers do not have the patience to go looking for that information when they have a lot of applicants all applying for the same position. I'm sure your resume is very well written, but I would find a military/civilian to review your resume and to help you rewrite it for civilian jobs.

If you want to highlight your management experience, think of all the people under you. Anyone "in charge" of a group of people could be considered a manager. How many NCOs "reported" to you? This could translate into: I had 50 lower level management reporting to me, and 10 mid-level managers reporting to me. Overall I was in charge of 200 people, etc.

If you want to keep a military resume, your best best is to look for positions with military contractors and military friendly companies that hire a lot of veterans. Many businesses will still want you to have a degree in management or something. The exception might be for manufacturing companies (many of which are very high tech, air conditioned, etc.). A lot of general managers, plant managers, and shift managers do not have degrees, but can make really good money. GMs and PMs are normally top management, only under the President, CEO, VP, etc.

Response by SSG Diane R. made Oct 1 at 2017 9:55 AM

2017-10-01T09:55:11-04:00

If you can afford it and you have GI Bill it might be an option for you to go back to school for a while. There is a huge demand right now for technical people especially CCNA's. Starting salary for these positions are 60 or 70 k, another thing might be to consider an apprenticeship until you get your feet on the ground.

A third and very viable option is to consider Federal service using your military skills they are lots of DOD jobs, and even the Veterans Administration is hiring.

Our military skills are so extensive and varied it's hard to put it all in one resume, so what I have done is create multiple versions, tailored to specific jobs I have applied for. I must have about 25+ now.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 1 at 2017 10:17 AM

2017-10-01T10:17:58-04:00

Searching for a job is a job itself. I'd take the knowledge you have as a staff officer and develop your own Mission Analysis for this task. You have some decisions to make as well. Where do you want to work, what job do you want, where do you want to live. There are more questions as well depending on your background, family needs, schools, ect. Next get on LinkedIn, as a Veteran you get to use the Premium site for free for one year. After you do that join the group Veteran Mentor Network. Next, develop your LI profile, tag lines, and narrative for others to see. You need to start networking on LI. Next, get on Indeed and look at the companies where you want to work and the job title you want. Pull down 20 or so jobs that interest you and start highlighting the keywords. You will need this when you build your resume. Don't sweat the small stuff. Everything you did as a FA90 can be translated on a civilian resume. If you need some assistance on anything you can contact a mentor. I have used Hired Hero for resume and cover letter help and I attended several workshops by Centurion Military Alliance in San Antonio. // As for your original question on service not being a big deal. Once you leave the military everything you did is in the rear view mirror. Civilians will not relate to it so it is best to move on. You have a new objective now. You can seek employment where there are other Veterans or start your own business.

Response by SSG David Bennett made Oct 1 at 2017 11:02 AM

2017-10-01T11:02:37-04:00

I ran into the same issues on the civilian side after returning from Afghanistan. I found that most companies only use the term( Military Preference) as a crutch. Took me 1-1/2 years to find employment.
After finding a job, 3-1/2 years into it I had preexisting Combat injuries Re aggravated and told the company that they were not going to be held accountable since I knew they were preexisting. Let them know I was gonna go to the VA and handle it on my own. Yeah a time afterwards that bit me in the butt and I needed up unemployed yet again. I got the better end of the deal eventually since that company screwed themselves badly. Short story, civilian populas jobs won’t hire us

Response by CSM Darieus ZaGara made Oct 1 at 2017 11:08 AM

2017-10-01T11:08:12-04:00

At the risk of repeating what others may have said, you need to civilianize your resume. I had to do the same thing. I assure you that they will get the translation. What you did is not indifferent to what civilian operational staff does. Also, your leadership time translates as well. Reach out to a transition office nearest you, even if you have separated. You can also contact Veteran organizations as they offer assistance in those area as well.

Thank you for your service.

Response by MSgt John McGowan made Oct 1 at 2017 11:31 AM

2017-10-01T11:31:42-04:00

Major, Sir i worked for a company that hired a lot of ex military officers. They also hired a lot of military also. Never saw a officer at the company with my job, mechanic, but saw a lot in supervision. Engineers etc. The kind that took a education. We even had Academy grads. I worried for a Naval Academy grad and he was one of the best supervisors I had in 18 years. You have been given great advise now it's up to you to either be successful or fail Go get them now Sir

Response by Sgt Wayne Wood made Oct 1 at 2017 12:07 PM

2017-10-01T12:07:49-04:00

FWIW... my military experience isn't on my resume'... better to get civilian experience

Response by SGT Joseph Gunderson made Oct 1 at 2017 12:28 PM

2017-10-01T12:28:24-04:00

See, it sounds like you just haven't translated the entire experience into the kind of language that civilians can understand. It takes a certain kind of breaking down and explaining in order for people with absolutely no military background to fully comprehend what duties and responsibilities you may of had and performed. I believe that, if your skills and experience can be properly translated, there is not very many employers that would not want that kind of person in their office. Especially someone with the kind of stuff that a Major would bring to the table. I've seen PFCs with the right resume get jobs in various fields easily; I am positive that you can do the same.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 1 at 2017 2:15 PM

2017-10-01T14:15:54-04:00

Well Sir, I can tell you that your military service is a big deal and that you are a leader in your own rights for sure. But in the civilian world, unfortunately we have to start from the bottom and work our way up sometime. To be honest, there are plenty of jobs/companies outside of DoD that are seeking that military personnel due to the qualities we possess. My usajob resume have a lot of military jargon, but that's fine since it's dealing with the government; on the other hand I paid monster.com to translate into a civilian resume.......... But just remember one key thing during your job search, it's not good to have a GAP in the resume. I've accepted a job as a cleaning man before until I found a good job so I wouldn't have a time GAP in the resume. If you want sir, I can send you a list of over 200 contracting companies that have positions in the states and overseas if you like.............. Just let me know.

Response by SPC Kevin Ford made Oct 1 at 2017 4:36 PM

2017-10-01T16:36:35-04:00

I looked at your profile because what you did in the military is relevant.

- First thing, like getting a college education where what your degree is in matters, so does your direct experience in the military. If you wrote java and PHP in the military absolutely you will be able to find a job doing that in the civilian world. The less directly applicable your job was to a civilian job you are going for, the more difficult it will be to move into that field.
- Second, just to set expectations leadership jobs that have 100+ people working for you are common in the military. Many Captains see that. That number is much less common in the civilian world where many of the jobs that are available are for companies that have less than 500 people. Of the jobs that do exist like that, the competition is fierce with a lot of people who do have direct industry experience. I'd be cognizant of that reality if your thinking well I have 200+ people working for me now so...
- Third, leadership jobs tend to be filled internally or hired from people who have direct leadership experience in the industry, particularly for mid management jobs. The usual time you can "easily" move between industries is on the C level. You may have to set your sights at a different organizational level than perhaps you held in the military. I used to have a retired Lt Cmdr who worked for me because he switched into a technical industry where he had no direct experience.

That doesn't mean that your military experience is irrelevant. That Lt Cmdr got a chance because a fellow veteran was the hiring manager. If you do start lower on the organizational scale, with peers who are younger than you, don't despair. If your desire is to move into middle and upper management your leadership experience as a Major will likely make you stand out and climb the ladder much more quickly than they do.

But without a specific technical tie into the civilian job, most civilian jobs will likely not be a lateral Xfer. The exception to that is that it may be easier with civilian contractors who work closely with the military but that's mostly because your military experience becomes much more directly relevant.

P.S. In many organizations PP is a necessary evil and not a goal in and of itself. Death by PowerPoint is a common refrain. :) Good luck!

Response by SGT Ty Henderson made Oct 1 at 2017 5:00 PM

2017-10-01T17:00:08-04:00

MAJ Jim Steven Yes, it is possible that military service isn't that big a deal and it's possible that the military props people up. I'll try to address each in reverse order. Regarding the question of propping people up, I have been privy to some OERs and NCOERs that would suggest the recipients walked on water and the raters mastered the use of the thesaurus. Those guys may have a hard transition if they don't learn some humility pretty quickly. Regarding whether service is a big deal, it's not that military experience as a whole is irrelevant, because it isn't, but rather that separating service members need to find and list their military skills that are relevant to the job they are seeking. Chances are good that the medical corps people can slide right into a similar role, but the rest of us need to figure out what we did that is relevant to where we intend to go. A good dose of humility is essential, also, because almost all of my co-workers with military backgrounds entered their civilian jobs as individual contributors just as I did. Whether you like it or not, you may be entry level again. So, let's look at relevant skills. Project Management is the one most overlooked but almost everyone who is an NCO or officer has managed a project and they may not know it. And, the Army sure didn't tell them about it. The Army's 8 troop leading steps (RIMS RCIS) which show up in NCO academies and OCS are similar to PMI's project management process just in a different language. Asset Maintenance is a relevant and valuable skill whether one is turning wrenches or managing the reliability. Inventory Management is relevant and valuable as almost every business has spare parts. Logistics is relevant and valuable as business needs someone to get stuff from A to B on time. Technical Skills are in high demand everywhere, list them if you have them. Lastly, Power Point briefings, while ubiquitous, really aren't that valuable, but I have to stop writing here on Rally Point and get back to my PP briefings for this week's coming meetings.

Response by SGT David T. made Oct 2 at 2017 8:12 AM

2017-10-02T08:12:54-04:00

This was one of the first things I ran into. No one cares. No one cares you were a Soldier, a Major or a great leader in the military. I am not saying it is right, only that it is simply the way it is. A civilian employer most likely has very little if any clue about the military. So the first thing you need to do is demilitarize your resume. Translate everything into terms a civilian can understand. In my case Petroleum Supply Squad Leader became Petroleum Logistics Supervisor as one example. Also, they don't want to see a laundry list of duties. Show impacts in relation to what they are looking for the in job announcement. Another thing I found is if you break your experience back from task focused to the basic concepts behind the task it will fit more jobs and be more understandable to a prospective employer. You also need to remember that they really don't care what you did before only what you can do for them in the here and now. They are hiring to solve a specific problem. You need to show how you would be the right fit to fix it. Just a quick glance at your profile and I can see that you are a logistics person. That can translate to any number of jobs dealing with warehouses, transportation, distribution, project management and so on.

Realistically, you have the education and experience to qualify for any number of jobs. You just need to be able to communicate that to an employer. Another tip, don't expect to walk into a CEO position at first. You need to prove yourself in that field first. I would be looking at entry to mid level jobs to start.

All that being said, keep at it. Something will come along eventually.

Response by SGM Mikel Dawson made Oct 2 at 2017 9:01 AM

2017-10-02T09:01:50-04:00

Not everyone is a leader period. But your military career is a BIG deal. You signed the line, much more than 97% of our country did. Leader or not you learned a mind set, how to work, set goals, get a job done. Remember "Too many cooks spoil the soup".

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 2 at 2017 11:23 AM

2017-10-02T11:23:18-04:00

I recently transitioned from active duty to civilian life. Although my pay grade was no where near yours, and my experiences and leadership skills are not the same as yours, I feel as though civilians look at us as leaders. I have worked a few jobs since being out, and in every job I’ve been looked at as a leader, a person to go to during a deadline, I now work for USAA and I am excelling in that role. I’ve been given several roles within my team on a faster track than others who haven’t served.

Don’t sell yourself short sir, discipline, experience, knowledge, and logic go a long way in the civilian world. Best luck in your transition!

Response by 1SG Bill Farmerie made Oct 2 at 2017 4:26 PM

2017-10-02T16:26:57-04:00

You just need to learn how to change the military lingo and jobs into civilian speak. I know the ACAP office usually has some good tips on that. As a 1SG, most of mine turned into Human Resource experience and assisted me in getting a job as a HR Specialist

Response by Cpl Justin Goolsby made Oct 2 at 2017 4:57 PM

2017-10-02T16:57:06-04:00

I don't really see that as the case. The majority of service members would make great leaders in the civilian sector because we possess that take charge kind of attitude that you'll find lacking around most civilians. So I don't believe it has anything to do with the military feeding our egos. The military made us into leaders whether we wanted to or not. If you give us a task, we'll see it accomplished.

You are correct, civilians do appreciate our service but they don't hire us. It's not a problem with your military service, it's a problem with the civilian sector as a whole. It used to be, if you wanted a good job, you needed a 4 year degree. Now with the market flooded with 4 year degrees, there's nothing to stand out anymore. So people will go one of two ways. They'll require a higher degree, or experience. When I got out of college, I couldn't count the amount of Entry Level positions that required experience to apply for the job. The point of entry level is to get your foot in the door so that you can get that experience.

Sure we've got the skills and the can-do attitude... but do you have 5 years experience working at the very company you're applying for... probably not.

Response by 1SG Ken Rossi made Oct 4 at 2017 1:07 PM

2017-10-04T13:07:38-04:00

I dealt with very issue when I was one of the original counselors in the ACAP program's Job Assistance Centers (JAC). These centers provided transition and job counseling to military and civilian employees and their spouses who were either effected by the downsizing following Desert Storm I or those who were naturally transitioning. There is a place for the skills you developed but you are correct, civilian businesses may not understand exactly what you did, the technical aspects of your jobs but embedded within those jobs are specific, generic skills that do translate to the civilian world. First you need to decide exactly what it is you want to do - not what company you want to work for - but the type of job and the industries that job fits in. Once you know what you want to do then start to do some research about the types of skills required to work in that field. Once oyu have a list of the skills, then start to look at what you did and what skills you used and you will begin to see the similarities between the fields, you just need to shake the camouflage of your skills. This will give you a pretty good list of what you can do. Always keep in mind that your leadership experience and abilities is extremely valuable but it must be described in general, business terms rather than specific military terms. Next step is to start searching for the type of job you desire, match the skills from your list to the desired skills for the job. When you describe your experience, you make it generic to the skills not specific to the military jobs you have done. Its a tough task initially but once you have your skill database, a specific job/career field you want to work in, then it begins to get easier. One of the things I remember most from working at the JAC was the reported 'success' rates for job searchers - in general, you will be successful (getting an interview and a followup offer) about 10% of the time so its a numbers game but don't get discouraged.

Response by Tom Weinert made Oct 4 at 2017 3:38 PM

2017-10-04T15:38:41-04:00

It is very difficult to get companies to look beyond their own requirements and be flexible, it is even harder to get companies to translate military skills because of their lack of knowledge of what specific careers in the military do. Lot's of companies are bound by contracts that very clearly outline mandatory non-negotiable must haves which ads another layer of difficulty. I have been recruiting for the DOD for the last 10 years and could review your resume for you to see if I can help provide some value.

Response by SMSgt Thor Merich made Oct 4 at 2017 7:34 PM

2017-10-04T19:34:27-04:00

The key is to translate military service and experience into civilian experience. A military resume only counts in the military or contractor jobs. You most likely are speaking the wrong language.

Reconfigure your resume to civilian standards, learn how to adapt your military experience to whatever job you are applying for. There are resources out their to help you. Or, you can go the easy route and get a government job where they understand your value and military experience.

Good luck.