A recent survey stated that 83% of military personnel are worried about how to enter the civilian workforce. Many of them have never had a civilian job before and a number of them don’t know what to expect. Here are five key soft skills that every veteran should know before going into the civilian work force. 1- Lose The Military Jargon – Business people will not understand your military talk. This will create an immediate communications problem. It will be difficult to do this at first but just work at it. Businesses have their own jargon and if you use military jargon it will just remind them that you are an outsider. Remember, in the business world “Roger” is a name and not an acknowledgement. 2- Dress Up For Success – When going on interviews always dress up. Wear either a suit or sports coat with a pair of slacks or a dress for women. Never wear anything military related. At some point in time during the interview process you will be given a tour of the facility. At that time you will see what the dress code is for the company, but during the interview process, dress up for success. 3- Don’t Use “Sir” Or “Madam” - Our company did a small market research study on recruiting military personnel. Almost every HR department said they did not like being called sir or madam. Once again it was “too military” and some of the women said they felt old when addressed in such a way. It is best to use sir and/or madam only for the top executives. In this day and age, most of them will just want you to call them by their first name. 4- Push Your Strengths – Our survey also revealed that employers hire veterans because they have key traits that they love. Some of these traits are; getting to work on time, taking responsibility, getting the job done, not complaining, having great communications skills, following corporate direction and working hard. Be sure to promote these skills when you are interviewing because not all employers are aware how strong they are in the military. 5- Use Your Sense Of Humor – In a recent study, a number of recruiters said that a lot of veterans did not display a sense of humor. When interviewing, a good sense of humor can really help. It is important not to go “overboard,” but by keeping things “light” the interview will go better. Recruiters want to know that you can fit in with the corporate culture. Use these soft skills and you will be in the civilian workforce in no time! Good luck and thank you for your service! Jim Stedt is a partner at The Business SoftSkills Company (GetSoftSkillsnow.Com) located in Santa Ana, California. They provide job readiness and workforce success videos for education, business, prisons and individual use. Training is available online, on DVD, or through an affiliate program. These products are the most complete and concise soft skills training packages now available for the price of an average college textbook.
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