What is the best tip you would provide to a fellow military member transitioning into the civilian workforce?

2019-08-07T15:44:43-04:00

Did you know that you can explore careers, improve resumes and connect with viable employers through the USAA Job Finder Tool? With tools, advice and benefits designed specifically for the military, we do more for those who serve.

Response by Lt Col Charlie Brown made Aug 7 at 2019 4:05 PM

2019-08-07T16:05:20-04:00

Excellent tool. We had a USAA rep at the Yellow Ribbon conference here in NC

Response by SSG William Jones made Aug 7 at 2019 4:13 PM

2019-08-07T16:13:03-04:00

Thanks for posting this information.

Response by SSgt Christina Herr made Aug 7 at 2019 4:24 PM

2019-08-07T16:24:46-04:00

Be prepared for the toll it will take on you mentally and emotionally-setting yourself up for success with a support network and the right resiliency skills. What I have experienced is: lack of purpose, shame (from myself and others), and rejection (passive is the worst). Everyone will share with you their successes and how to write a resume and rock an interview. Few will tell you about the time they couldn't get out of bed for a few days and how they managed to crawl to the light. I will. I will listen to your story, too.

Response by SPC Shawn Durnen made Aug 13 at 2019 8:20 PM

2019-08-13T20:20:03-04:00

You will not make a 100,000 dollars out of the gate, so please escape that thought. However take your time, pace your self and remember you have a squad out here too. Ask questions, go to the briefings, file a claim, prepare your family and go over the hypothetical. Everyone's transition is different, but what 90% of us will tell you, prepare for change and don't be to proud to say "I need Help".

Response by SFC Robert Salmon made Aug 21 at 2019 6:19 AM

2019-08-21T06:19:14-04:00

Plan on your tangible experience having more impact to your ability to secure a job than the intangibles. What are the tangible and intangibles? School/education and hands-on experience. The intangibles are leadership/ or for some management skills. Unless your position (experience) and the intangibles align, it’s difficult for civilian employers to put a value to thE intangibles you have. While your soft skills are very important, in my experience as both the guy looking for the job and as a guy interviewing and recommending for hiring or passing, that’s what I have seen. A company is typically looking to fill a gap and the are looking for an individual with hard skills to fill that. In those cases your hard skills are what keeps HR, a recruiter or manager from moving your resume into the “File 13” stack, and your soft skills may be that thing that gives you an edge. So I’m not discounting the soft skills or as I described intangibles, but *NORMALLY* that’s not what grabs their attention right out of the gate, it’s your tangible experience. So be sure to give that your due diligence when you represent yourself on paper or in person. Also don’t over-inflate yourself on your resume. The worst thing for me during an interview is to find out that the individual over-inflated their skills. I’ve had more than one interviewee tell me “Oh I thought my resume would look better wit that on it, I don’t actually know that.” I even heard, “my wife told me I should put that on my resume, but I don’t really know how to do that.” Be honest!!! Those individuals never got past the first interview. If I can’t trust you I don’t want you on my team. So be honest in your assessment of yourself and your skills, at the same time don’t undersell yourself either. (In case you are a humble individual.)

Response by SFC Christopher Taggart made Aug 24 at 2019 9:03 PM

2019-08-24T21:03:06-04:00

Good advice from the respondents. I would like to add, be prepared to take a position that pays less than you would like to make...for those that have families, it'll be tough, no doubt. As you prove yourself to your employer, your pay will increase in time.

Response by PO1 Lyndon Thomas made Aug 26 at 2019 10:28 AM

2019-08-26T10:28:46-04:00

My advise would be to get a mental health checkup, prepare yourself mentally and physically for a world that won't respect or admire you for your service. Some will show no appreciation acceptance or regard whatsoever. The civilian life is nothing like the military and they won't perform like soldiers. You can't make them or force them to be like the men and women you've served with. They haven't bee trained and don't have the experience you have. Best wishes and Never give up!

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Aug 28 at 2019 12:20 PM

2019-08-28T12:20:41-04:00

I have a USAA estimator at my house right now.

Response by SPC Robert Bobo made Aug 28 at 2019 6:56 PM

2019-08-28T18:56:42-04:00

Its easier to get a job when you already have one, take the best opportunity available initially and continue to pursue that position what you want and are qualified for

Response by CPT George Walruff made Aug 29 at 2019 1:44 PM

2019-08-29T13:44:35-04:00

I have found that as a vet, I inexplicably find other vets wherever I have worked. It's as if we have GI radar and we become a inner network of "comrades in work". We can go to one another to solve problems without worrying about the back biting that may occur in the civilian work world. That's probably because we are accustomed to working as a team to accomplish the mission. Working in healthcare, I find the folks from the boomer generation (such as myself) are more apt to work well with vets, but the latest crop of "youngsters" do not have the same discipline, nor the same ability to interact with others as their older peers.
It has gotten to the point where we have classes and/or policies geared towards how we need to respond to our "customers/clients/patients". Be prepared to be insulted by management who feels that you must be taught common courtesy. They do not understand that we have a culture of courtesy and customs from being in the military. And if none of your civilian leaders have been in the military, they may just be in need of those same "human interaction" classes themselves.
I worked in a small rural hospital where the values of the community were very similar to those in the military, and even with the majority of the folks there not having been in the military, their work ethics were by and large similar to ours. It has been in urban facilities where I have encountered the worst of civilian work "ethics". Keep that in mind as you look for places to settle at.
Good luck with your transition. As I told a couple of nurses when I became a nurse having been a medic, "I refuse to drop my standards that I was taught as a medice just because I am now a nurse". It is not based on clinical knowledge standards, but on standards of behavior and how to apply them clinically.