Jean Muller - Resumes and Cover Letters for Military to Civilian Career Transitions

Career Search America / Jean Muller & Margey OBrien

This book is copyrighted material. All rights reserved.

It is against the law to make and distribute copies of this material without getting specific written permission in advance from Jean Muller and Margey OBrien.

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ISBN: 9781623095772

Table of Contents

Introduction

If youre reading this, we already know something very important about you: you know you need to learn, and youre ready to get started.

There are three important principles we stick to throughout the pages that follow. They are:

1. Military-to-civilian career change is both different and more challenging than civilian career change.
2. As someone with military background and experience, you have valuable and marketable qualities to bring to your next career which your civilian competition does not share.
3. Discovering and packaging these qualities requires you to do serious work from the inside out. You have to know what you bring to the table. Beyond that, it is supremely important that you understand how to present yourself and your abilities to a civilian employer in a way that effectively showcases your knowledge, skills and abilities. You have to market yourself, and your resume is your most important marketing tool.

Why this book now

Every month more than 15,000 men and women make the move from military to civilian life. In an economy where there is a large displaced workforce and a shrinking number of jobs, veterans can benefit from sound advice that makes the most of their experience and points the way to fulfillment and success in the private sector.

There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of books available on the topic of career change and resume writing. Some of them are great, others not so much. When deciding which book to use for your career search, its important to keep a few things in mind.

First, the book has to be up-to-date.

Preferences and expectations change in the business world just as they do anywhere else. Todays business environment is dynamic, fast changing and beset by challenges on all sides. In this environment, employers are looking for problem-solvers, and those who promote themselves in this way have the edge.

This climate change affects every aspect of the career search process, including how you write your resume. For example, a few years back, everyone included a Career Objective statement right at the top of their resumes. Today, its a bad idea! Employers generally dont care about your objectives. They have a need or a problem that they are trying to address. When they look at a resume, they want to see evidence that the candidate is someone who can help. Consequently, instead of writing an Objective, smart job seekers include a Qualifications Summary tailored to each prospective employer and their needs.

Second, the book has to be suited to your personality, background and future direction.

Again, there are tons of career advice books out there of every conceivable description. Not all of these are going to suit you. Many books use introspective strategies that have you writing journals and embarking on an almost spiritual journey of self-discovery. Certainly, there are those who enjoy these books. Other authors choose a clinical, psychological approach to career change with an emphasis on tests and assessments. These too have their place.

If you are making the shift from a military to a civilian career, however, chances are you want a hands-on, no-nonsense, practical guide that integrates the best of these approaches but keeps you mission-focused and on task.

Thats where we come in.

Finally, the authors have to be credible.

If you are making the move from a career in uniform to a career in a business suit, wouldnt it be best to consult with human resource professionals who have actually hired people into corporate jobs? Even better, find someone who has worked both with transitioning service personnel and corporate job seekers.

Allow us to introduce ourselves.

Authors background and bios

We, the authors of this bookJean Muller and Margey OBrienhave developed our unique approach over more than 10 years of workshops with retiring and separating military personnel.

Equally important, we have worked extensively in the private sector as consultants and HR professionals. Our client list includes Host Marriott Services and Marriott International, Index Technology, Delta Dental of Rhode Island, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, municipalities in Virginia, a center for homeless vets, and numerous venture capital start-ups.

In addition, weve worked in-house for the USMC, Army and Navy assisting more than 2,000 men and women as they move from military careers into the private sector.

How to Get the Most Out of This Book

The best way to get something valuable out of this book is to use it as a guide to action. If you only read, the only change that happens is in your thinking and attitude. Thought and attitude shifts are importantindeed, essentialbut only as a spur to action.

There are many recommendations in the pages ahead. If any one of them inspires you, do something concrete, dont hesitate! The book will still be waiting for you when you get back, but nothing, absolutely nothing, can take the place of action as long as it is conscious and well-thought-out.

Also, we recommend that you use this book in conjunction with our website www.careersearchamerica.com which we have designed especially for men and women transitioning from the military to civilian careers. In addition to a series of free white papers on many key career-related topics, we also offer a comprehensive online course, and for those who would like our personal assistance, one-on-one coaching is available. Please contact us for details.

Overview

Your resume is the single most important marketing tool you have. But its also likely to be the one thing thats causing you sleepless nights. You may have even gone so far as to attempt a rewrite, but find yourself struck with analysis paralysis. Your career search is a self-marketing campaign, but how do you translate the skills and talents youve built through your years in the military into language that a civilian employer can understand and appreciate?

There is a simple key: know in advance what prospective employers are hoping to find when they scan a resume. Then make sure that you not only satisfy, but exceed, those expectations. The purpose is to pique the curiosity of the reader, be it human resources or your next boss, to examine your resume more fully. Get as much mileage as you can at every point of interaction with your future employer.

Highlights

In the pages that follow, we cover the most important topics you will need to master in order to create a military to civilian career change resume that attracts attention and job offers. These topics include:

• Rethinking the resume
• What is an effective resume?
• Resume writing tips
• Resume Formats: Chronological or Functional?
• Cover Letters

Well end with sample resumes that show you exactly how to showcase your military qualifications and experience to your best advantage. Well also discuss how to format your resume to attract attention and how buzzwords play an important role in resume and cover letter writing.