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Marc Lopez joined the Army 20 years ago and started his career in the intelligence field as a linguist. He transitioned over to become a warrant officer and is now a cyber warfare operator who is preparing to begin a SkillBridge program before he retires. When two of Marc’s closest friends retired three years ago, he was inspired to begin preparing for his own retirement to ensure a successful transition.

Using his background in intelligence, Marc decided his first step was to create notes. He uses Microsoft OneNote to organize his notes and has created tabs for every facet of his transition including his family, LinkedIn and informational interviews. With so many job opportunities in the cyber field using very different titles than the military, Marc knew he needed to better understand civilian terms. He leveraged LinkedIn to find veterans in the cyber field and then set up calls to learn about the various roles and the day-to-day responsibilities. He began to build a glossary of terms that helped him understand the civilian equivalent of cyber roles in the military. From his informational interviews, Marc found several mentors that helped him answer important questions to narrow his focus.

With retirement right around the corner and over 2+ years of transition preparation, Marc has taken advantage of several resources such as the Lessons Learned for Vets podcast, Veterati, ACP, FourBlock and TAP to ensure a smooth transition. He took nuggets of information from each resource and began to find common threads. Resources like this podcast don’t change the fact that the transition journey is full of curves and unexpected challenges, but they do help service members prepare for the unexpected.

The genuine connection and relationships that Marc has built with other people continues to enrich his life. Marc has conducted over 50 informational interviews in 3 years. He learned quickly that a customized note through LinkedIn got better results than a generic, template introduction. Before sending a connection request, he took the time to study the person’s profile and included any commonalities in his customized note. Marc prepared for each informational interview by having questions prepped and staying within the allotted time frame.

Knowing your worth in your chosen industry is important. One of the best ways to assess your worth is through informational interviews. Once you’ve built rapport in the interview, share your experience and any education or certifications you’ve completed. Ask the person what level they think you are at and what salary range you can expect. Salary.com, Glassdoor.com and the Bureau of Labor Statistics are excellent resources as well. Remember that salary isn’t just about the pay. Benefits can play a significant role when deciding to accept or pass on a job opportunity.

The average adult changes careers 7-9 times in their life. It’s okay to make a change or pivot completely. Companies have come to expect applicants to have many prior job experiences. If you find that you’ve made a wrong decision on a job, figure out how you can gain value from the experience and make a plan on how to find a better fit.

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Connect with Marc at https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyber-marc/

Download the AAFMAA transition timeline at https://aafmaa.com/ll4

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We are excited to host Marine Corps veteran, Eric Infanti. By all accounts, Eric had a smooth transition into the corporate world, where he worked for 5 years. When his health began declining, Eric began a healing journey that included 2000 hours of yoga teacher and meditation training. He earned a dual master’s degree in Buddhist psychology and Ayurvedic medicine and is now a PhD candidate with the study on the role of extreme peak flow states on resilience and professional outcomes.

When Eric first transitioned from the military, he was able to use his experience and the education he received while serving in the Marine Corps to land a role in IT. After taking time off to heal, Eric knew he needed to upskill and learn current IT best practices. He sought out low cost or free programs to gain new certifications. He utilized the Veteran Rapid Retraining Assistance Program (VRRAP), ACT Now Education and Boots to Books.

Eric went from running marathons to not being able to move in a short amount of time. After visiting close to a dozen doctors without getting a diagnosis, he went to a naturopathic physician who diagnosed him with late-stage Lyme disease. Eric dove into the world of alternative health and found that yoga relieved his symptoms. From yoga, he dove deeper into Ayurvedic medicine, ancient texts and meditation. It was on the plane coming back from a 2008 trip to India where he started writing his first book, Marine on the Mat. Eric continued a career in alternative health until the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic had a negative impact on his healing business, and Eric knew he needed to shift back into IT. He relied on his network and found mentors that helped him find a role within the IT community that fit his personality. Today he is the UX/UI Design Manager for Combined Arms, a nonprofit dedicated to veterans’ well-being. Eric uses both his healing background and IT knowledge in his design work. He manages his stress through spiritual practices and finds his creativity from the still space of his meditations. He has written 12 books on subjects relating to alternative health and UX design.

One of the core values to every veteran is their resiliency – the ability to handle whatever comes their way. Eric encourages veterans to not give up. You can choose how you manage the stresses of life. Some choose alcohol, rage or video games to cope with their stress. Eric chose athleticism and taking care of his inner self through breathing and meditation. For people who haven’t been practicing self-care and find themselves in an acute situation, Eric advises them to stop and take a break, start a healing practice and seek medical and psychological help if needed. Breath work meditation is simple, effective and can be done anywhere.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel at https://tinyurl.com/llforvets22

Connect with Eric at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericinfanti/

Explore Eric’s books at https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001KHHN4S

Download the AAFMAA transition timeline at https://aafmaa.com/ll4v

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On this episode of the Lessons Learned for Vets podcast, we get back to the basics with best practices for crafting a resume. Certified resume writer and career coach, Lori Norris, shares 5 elements that a resume must contain as well as the role that AI can play during the job search process.

1. Focus. Every resume, from the very first line, must clearly present a focus. There is no such thing as an effective generic resume. A resume that tries to appeal to everyone appeals to no one. Many transitioning veterans mistakenly believe the first thing they should do is write their resume. Finding your focus is the priority. If you start your transition 18-24 months out, then take the first 6 months to research and conduct informational interviews to determine your focus. Informational interviews are invaluable as they will help you start to translate your military skills into civilian terms. After you’ve gathered intel and feel confident with the skills that you need to showcase for your career field, then start crafting a tailored resume. Remember, the focus of your career drives everything in your military transition job search efforts. A targeted resume will set you apart from the crowd, especially in a tough job market. The resume is about where you’re going, not where you’ve been.

2. Your Unique Value. Employers want to know how you are going to make them money or save them money. How are you going to earn the salary that they are going to pay you? Translate your skills to show the employer how you are going to make them money and/or save them money. It’s impossible to showcase your unique value without having a focus. Your resume is not about you. It’s about what you can do for the organization.

3. Measurable Accomplishments. Use metrics and numbers to give the reader scope. Numbers also help to break up words and help the reader to continue absorbing the information on your resume. Numbers help to keep the eye engaged.

4. Translated Terminology. Most people reading your resume will not speak military. Even if the recruiter works with veterans, they may not understand the nuances of terminology in all the different military branches. Make the effort to explain what you do. Translating military terminology also shows the company you are willing and ready to change and adapt to the civilian sector. Help the reader see the value of your military experience by translating military terminology.

5. Examples and Stories. A resume is not a job description or a list of all the things you have ever done. It’s a narrative that explains your accomplishments and the improvements that you made for your previous employer. Give examples of your skills and abilities. Thinking through stories also helps you prepare for the interview process.

AI should be used as a tool. It is not a replacement for writing a tailored resume in your voice. AI’s content was first created by scanning the internet. As we all know, information found on the internet is not always factual. Use AI as an assistant when conducting research.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel at https://tinyurl.com/llforvets22

Connect with Lori at https://getresultsresumes.com/

Download the AAFMAA transition timeline at https://aafmaa.com/ll4v

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