Steve Smith ⋅ Cedar Park, TX U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 10 years served

Hi Brandon. Thank you for your service, and for helping veterans transition.

Great question to help those exiting a military career. I had no advising coming off of active duty, and made a lot of mistakes. This forum should help those looking for advice. Here are some of the things that come to mind that helped me:

1. Find something that you enjoy doing and do it! I enjoy playing golf and building/flying remote control model airplanes. These helped me with work/life ballance issues, and I met some good friends to share experiences with.
2. Don't chase money - find something that you can do well and that you enjoy, or get satisfaction out of, and find a way to earn a living doing it. Many of us in the military were really good at what we did, and we were skilled at it to a high level of proficiency. Employers look for people that will represent them well, work hard, and be good at what they are doing. Carrying that forward to a new job is important.
3. Get a degree or two, or certifications. We did a lot in the military, getting proficient in this, and studying that... In the public/private sectors, some industries won't consider you unless you have an education, or specific certification. Find out what you need and go get it. Getting my degrees was instrumental in getting a series of progressively more important and better paying jobs.

Jeffrey Duck ⋅ Deltona, FL Deploy Tech Services ⋅ 30 years experience

When I got out, I thought my skills were more valuable than the business recruiters did. I came out as an E5 Motor-T mechanic who had excelled beyond a wrench and took on a lot of administrative work for my rank.

After discharge, I was looking for an office position and in retrospect was offered a lot of good jobs but I didn't think they were good enough. Eventually, I burned through the good job offers and ended up working as a machinist and welder.

After I got that job, I found I was able to breath and see the civilian job market was more clearly. In about a year, I was basically running the small 3-man shop, and shortly after that I landed a job in a collections department of an international transportation and logistics company. Collections also wasn't in my plan but it got me into a much larger company. Once there, I got promoted and was given more responsibility about every 6 months. I've gone on to have a more interesting and diverse business life than most people can imagine. Now I make my living from my understanding of military specs and shipping crates that I was first exposed to in my Motor-T unit.

At first, I had a real hard time taking a lesser job but I quickly found out that most civilians had no clue what I could do or how to apply my skills, and for me, that was the big lesson. In the military, someone else gets you and puts you in an existing job opening, but as a civilian I had to put myself somewhere then make my own job. This was all by accident but it was my own drive (given to me courtesy of the military) that eventually got me somewhere.

Deb Miller ⋅ Bardstown, KY US Postal Service ⋅ 16 years experience

Depending on the stress level when you return....I took a cool, zero stress job working in a deli when I first came home. It bought me some much needed time to think things through, and also allowed for some low pressure networking in my hometown. I also pursued a higher degree at the same time. Now that was in the "old days". Now you can also network through LinkedIn for instance. Getting your resume out there electronically and to the old fashioned hard copy style is another great way to integrate back into civilian life. I agree with other comments, reconnecting with old hobbies or discovering new ones is a fabulous way to integrate. (Not to mention a great way to network.) Volunteering. That really helped me. Helping someone else really puts things in perspective for you and hate to keep repeating,....but it is yet another way to network.

Joe Siebert ⋅ Anchorage, AK U.S. Air Force, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 15 years served

I started my transition 4 years before my separation. Everyone takes the uniform off one way or another eventually. For me it was starting a business. Every vet I have met who had a plan and started executing that plan prior to separation had a smooth and happy transition.

For post military I continue to serve and hold the philosophy that "The uniform does not define my service to my country". I do a lot of non-profit and volunteer work. Philanthropic chair for a non profit and help various local organizations with things they need. It gives me purpose and a sense of value to wake up every morning.

Also routines and rituals I created routines and rituals that I do everyday to keep something familiar that I and trust will be there and can fall back on. One of my rituals is I wake up at 4 am make coffee and start writing. Now the smell of coffee is a trigger that inspires creativity and productivity.