I just wanted to share a message with my fellow veterans this lovely Monday afternoon! My message is don't give up hope! I see a lot of veterans on several social media platforms being very negative because they are out of work. I know being out of work is hard! But don't use this time in vain! Use this time to better yourself, your network, and your job search plan.
Yes the government, companies, and individuals are trying to step up and do more to help veterans but the truth is they can't just hire every veteran. You have to do some of the work too! Employers have laws and regulations to follow when hiring employees and plus they still want to hire the best candidate for the position! Our job is prove that we are the best person for that position, just like we had to prove we were the best fit (mentally and physically) for the branch of service we choose. Each of us went through some type of basic training to prove we were fit for the job. Its the same thing here in the civilian world we have to prove to employers that we are the best choice for their company and position.
Take this time to further your education, work on you job preparation, and get to know you outside of your uniform! Also there are many resources out there to help you, please use them! I know I am! Remember it only takes one connection to be the connection to change your life or status! I hope everyone has a great Monday evening! Good luck to all of those that are in search for employment!
Answers
This topic is very interesting and I thank all veterans here for the service. We would not be the country we are without your help! Our children can live safer lives because of you.
Janelle, you seemed to be on the right track, this is the attitude to have when searching for jobs or when trying to better your career. Being persistent and maintain that level of confidence is the key to finding the job or career you desire.
Jose, I agree with you that it is difficult to find a job but know that you are not alone and that everyone here is to help you find a job that would make you happy. I know from experience that job search certainly does not boost your confidence especially when you constantly get rejected. Sometimes this happens because we need to work on our interview skills a little more, or improve our resume, we all have had these issues and it is always good to have some guidance and preparation prior to applying for a job or going to an interview. Tom made some great points too; you need to know your short and long term goals. Feel free to reach out to me if you need some guidance.
Janelle,
Great message. Your leadership is appreciated.
John
Jose,
As a fellow Veteran, I thank you for your service.
If you wish, feel free to message me directly or reply here so others can also offer to help.
How can we help you? What are your goals (immediate, medium, long-term, legacy?) What is your current "status"? (Do you have: (a) mentor(s)? a LinkedIn profile? resume? career-goal? elevator-speech?)
Let us know how we can help.
-Tom
Good to hear that things are going well for you. However, there are many realities we must face today. The job market is not what it seems and people are making hard decisions which at times are not to their satisfaction. Employer's need to change their hiring practices in order to put Americans back to work. For instance, one the many challenges many Americans face today is the background checks that include credit scores and reports. This has evolved into another form of discrimination; "Bad things happen to good people". What I mean is, there are many Americans who have lost their jobs due to layoffs, thus being a cause to not being able to make payments on debts which in turn is a cause in the drop of a person's credit score. In addition, credit scores drop five points every time an employer does that is called a "hard pull" of one's credit report and score. This is not good for anyone trying to find employment in today's job market. Other obstacles being faced today are being "over qualified" or "under qualified" for particular jobs. The jobs being created faster are service and hospitality jobs and not necessarily "high tech" jobs. Therefore, there many individuals graduating from college with high student loan debt and no job.
In my experience, companies do not care if you are or are not a veteran. It does not change anything. The fact is jobs are being created, but they are low-paying, long hours, in some cases a few hours per week (10-25 hours), and hostile environments where management has verbally abused employees and there is a high turnaround rate in the company. Having hope is a good thing, but it alone does not pay the bills.
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