When Your Resume Screams 'I'm Not Good Enough'

I know what that feels like to look up from the bottom of the hill. I've been there.

Both times that I left the military, I approached the process of searching for a job as an insurmountable climb. It wasn't just about a job. It was about acceptance. It was about proving my worth. Any success in the military wasn't enough. I was striving to meet the standard of 'good enough' in order to get a chance to step out as a leader in the civilian world. My price of admission into that world was my resume - or so I thought. It was the symbol of my hard work, achievement, and sacrifice. Because my perspective was from the bottom looking up, I wasn't showcasing my potential. I certainly wasn't leading. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was screaming to anyone who could hear me that I was simply not good enough.

4 Considerations for Building Your Military Transition Networking Strategy

I still had about nine months before retirement, so I wasn’t looking for a job per se. I was giving my pound of flesh to feed the beast we call networking. The rhetoric surrounding this process had reached a fevered pitch that surpassed hyperbole and landed firmly in hysteria. For this trip, my goal was to meet with at least 20 organizations and collect as many business cards for follow-up conversations. According to the process, those conversations would lead to other connections. After enough iterations, I hoped to finally connect with the right person for the ideal job opportunity. Unfortunately, it didn't work…

Jason RoncoroniJanuary 15, 2019Retirement, Military Transition, LinkedIn, Resume, Intentions, Networking, Job Search

3 Reasons Why Transition is Harder on Senior Leaders and 3 Things You Can Do About It

Thank you for your service. You've had an impressive career . . . but you're not what we're looking for.

Sound familiar? I've heard that before, and if you're a senior leader, perhaps you've heard it too. Interestingly enough, I didn't hear it when I left the army as a junior captain. I remember attending only one hiring conference about three months before my separation date. From that one event, I had eleven follow-up interviews that landed six job offers! Three of the six offers had compensation packages that exceeded what I was making in the army. Finding a job as a junior officer was easy. But this was not the case when I left the army for a second time after more than 20 years of service. So why does this happen?

Leaving the Military? The 3 Things You Should Know Before You Begin Updating Your Resume

I have a unique perspective on military transition. I did twice. I also did it poorly, twice. The first time I left the military as a junior captain. I put my faith in a junior officer recruiting company to find the best job opportunity. By "best" I meant the option with the most prestigious title and highest paying salary. They did. Unfortunately, it was the wrong job for me, and within a year of my separation, I was miserable. To make matters worse, I was laid off when the tech bubble burst. It was a total disaster. My second transition was my retirement after 21 years of military service. Once again, I ended up in the wrong job. Once again, I was unemployed. Once again, I was miserable.