During military transition, networking works best when you do the tasks of each networking “season” in order. In this master class, we talk about the four seasons of networking and what you need to do to be completely prepared to line up the job you want—without any awkward begging, pleading, or asking for a job.
Alien Winter: 9+ months before transition
Prepare and practice your “what kind of job” response with your preferred location and whether you prefer government/defense or industry.
Sign up for VSO programs or coaching.
Reach out to your fellow travelers.
Gather your Elliots—the guides most interested in your transition. (Watch the class to get the complete list of people who expect to assist you with your job hunt).
Make a list of top defense contractors and LURK on their website—collect job titles and job descriptions that interest you. These will give you the questions you need to ask when you talk to a recruiter or colleague.
Expand “career questions sessions” (aka informational interviews) to past work acquaintances currently in civilian work. Aim for at least 10. Some veterans (usually, these are extroverts!) are motivated by the game where you aim to talk to 100 people about jobs before you leave the service.
Reach out to mentors, godmothers, and godfathers now that you have the industry vocabulary. Use the Chris Rock rule to demonstrate what you have already accomplished and prompt their insights.
Reach out to Mr. Keys—the professional veteran recruiters and sourcers (true extroverts!!) who are paid to find you and have open job listings.
Alien Harvest: POST-transition job hunt
Master the art of “circle back around” to capture live job openings.
Employers do want to hire hard-working, self-motivated veterans like you. The command does want you to keep firing on all cylinders until the last minute. Your family wants to know what will happen next right now. That is a lot of pressure. Do yourself a favor and take control over your transition by signing up for our exclusive FREE master classes now.
Jacey Eckhart MA CPCC is Military.com's Transition Master Coach. She is a Certified Professional Career Coach and military sociologist who has been designing workshops and training active duty, National Guardsmen, Reservists and military spouses for decades.