For those of us who have lived a life in the military, the experience of being uncomfortable often became the norm. It seems that during our military career we constantly longed for that next “comfortable” experience. Whether returning from a field exercise, deployment, or simply a hard day at work; that comfortable feeling afterwards felt like a euphoric high.
For many transitioning veterans discovering what industry to pursue a career in can be a complicated and frustrating endeavor. You are not alone. Common questions that probably run through your head are: what would I be good at in the civilian world? Where can I make the most money? What industry has the best opportunity for career growth? What if I choose something I hate?
5-MINUTE READ
Network. Network. Network. It’s the name of the game. Chances are you’ve heard about the importance and power of networking.
The numbers don’t lie… 80% of jobs are filled either internal or through recommendation. 80%! In another context eight out of ten jobs actually are never listed. This stat speaks volumes and validates any time spent on networking.
(1) BE A QUESTION MASTER. Drive the energy of the conversation by researching your mentor and preparing questions ahead of time. Why did you choose your mentor? What do you find interesting about your mentor’s professional background? What questions are top-of-mind for you that your mentor might have an answer to?
(2) SET A PURPOSE. What knowledge would you like to acquire? Express your goal in the first 5 minutes of your conversation.
(3) GIVE THANKS. All our mentors are volunteers, their only reward is knowing they’ve made a difference, and they’ll only know they’ve done this if you let them know. After the call completes, you’ll receive a text message with your mentor’s email address to follow up.
BONUS. Want more? This article gives you 18 tips on building strong networks and mentor relationships.
https://www.veterati.com/3-tips-for-evangelizing-your-mentors/
(1) Your mentee might be nervous. It’s possible that you’ll be the first mentor your mentee has ever spoken with. Bring the energy to the table by asking guiding questions to drive the conversation forward.
(2) Your mentee might not have a career plan. Your mentee might be trying to map out possibilities for the future. Ask questions to illuminate your mentee’s passions, interests, ideal cultures, people they like being around, companies they’re inspired by. Share your own discovery process to help your mentee see a different perspective— how did you find your first job? How did you get where you are today?
(3) Your mentee is looking for actionable, strategic advice. Your mentee may already have an end destination in mind, but is unsure of how to get there. Help your mentee build an action plan by giving advice on sharpening their CV, improving their Linkedin, best networking practices, companies to look into, people you know they should speak with.
BONUS. Your mentee might not have a strong network. Since 80% of jobs exist in our personal networks, introductions are critical to networking into the right job. After your call is complete, we’ll give you your mentee’s email for direct introductions and also give you our auto-generated referral email for any mentors you want to bring into the platform.
We live in a world where certifications, degrees, and titles have been developed for almost every profession and skill set imaginable. Although these designations may or may not mean you are the best at what you do, it does put you a step ahead of your peers.
As a transitioning veteran, it’s important to note that your challenge isn’t over once you’ve received a job offer. You will remain in the process of transition for months after you’ve started work in a new job. There will be new people to meet, new organizational norms to understand, and many new processes which you will need to learn in order to be successful.
1-MINUTE READ
- Who are your mentors? How did you meet them?
- I am attempting to accomplish x, but I have not yet achieved it. What am I doing wrong / what am I doing right?
- What are you most proud of professionally / personally?
- What is have been your greatest inspirations and what is currently inspiring you onward?
- Knowing what you know now, Would you do anything differently in your career?
- Given our discussion, Who else would you recommend I connect with?
- In the future, could I reach out to you for advice, guidance?
- Humbly, is there any way great or small I could be of assistance to you on your end?
- Would love to hear about some of the disasters you ran into during your career and how you navigated them.
- What was the biggest mistake you made? What did you do to recover?
Please respect our community: absolutely no solicitation. Veterati is a safe place for authentic, honest mentorship conversations. If any mentor or mentee reports solicitation, Veterati reserves the right to remove offending users. Veterati Terms and Privacy Policy apply.
1-MINUTE READ
- Have you had a mentor before and if so what worked/didn’t work?
- Why did you decide to join the military?
- What were your proudest moments in service?
- Why did you decide to exit?
- What do you want to accomplish next? What is it that you really want to be and do (bear with me here, it’s hard to know the answer to this but helps me think through how to help you)?
- Tell me about highs & lows of 2018 in terms of career. What are your goals for 2019?
- What are your top priority challenges to accomplishing these goals?
- Let’s brainstorm— what are actionables we can take to meet these challenges?
- What are the questions that keep you up at night?
- Do you have current perceived weaknesses that you would like to work on?
Please respect our community: absolutely no solicitation. Veterati is a safe place for authentic, honest mentorship conversations. If any mentor or mentee reports solicitation, Veterati reserves the right to remove offending users. Veterati Terms and Privacy Policy apply.
- BE A MIRROR. Hone in on your mentee’s actual challenge by mirroring it back to them: “Based on what you said, the challenge I understand you’re facing is …. , is this accurate?”
- CHECK IF YOU’RE ON TARGET. After giving advice to your mentee, to gage whether your advice is on target, say: “Out of all that advice, what sounds helpful to you?”
- ATTENTION IS THE RAREST AND PUREST FORM OF GENEROSITY. We get asked all the time, “Who are the best mentors for Veterati?” Answer: The men and women who volunteer to serve our country are as diverse as any random slice of the American population. So the best mentors come from an equally diverse background, with sole qualifications being compassion, empathy, and a genuine desire to serve those who have served us. Thank you for being a Veterati Mentor!
BONUS. BE A SUPERCONNECTOR. Since 80% of jobs exist in our personal networks, introductions are critical to networking into the right job. After your call is complete, we’ll give you your mentee’s email for direct introductions and also give you our auto-generated referral email for any mentors you want to bring into the platform.
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