No need for me to site what is wrong with a system that allows veterans to have an unemployment percentage of over 21%. There is a lot of smart people out there; a lot smarter than me. Researchers, Ph.D’s, subject matter experts in my opinion have all basically failed to resolve the problem. I am not blaming any group in particular. There are plenty of good people out there trying to make a difference; trying to help vets get jobs. And we all need those people should keep trying. But can we all agree that whatever we are doing, it is just not working with an employment rate of veterans at over 21%.
I know this is a complicated subject. Very complicated when you realize what all the veterans have been through. But when something is complicated, at least in my experience as a Lead Recruiter for a Fortune 50 company for nearly 15 years, getting back to the basics is often the best solution.
After talking to many veterans from each of the four major branches of the military, and after doing the research for my book, “Veterans: DO THIS! GET HIRED!” I see why most veterans are having problems getting a job. Veterans do not know the best ways to represent themselves within the job search process. It’s the fundamentals where they need help. They just have not been given the fundamentals. Well at least not until now.
Look, getting a job for veterans is not complicated if you break it down. It really is only three steps: 1. Finding a job opening; 2. Getting an Interview; and, 3. Doing so well in the interview that you get an offer.
The first step is research online, going to job fairs, and networking with your friends and family and letting them know to keep their eye out for you when it comes to openings. The second step is about putting yourself in a position with your resume and online application process, where you spark the interest of an employer enough so they contact you. That is an opportunity for an interview. The third step is performing so well in the interview that they have no choice but to give you an offer.
So here is the problem: there is a ton of advice on these and other job search topics on the internet. But anyone with an opinion can post advice even when they have no idea what they are talking about. I would say about 50% of the advice out there is bad.
What vets need is one comprehensive, easy to follow guide, with specific steps and techniques that are PROVEN to get veterans hired in this difficult job market. It needs to address the real issues that vets say they have when it comes to getting a job. It needs to offer new, fresh, easy to follow, and logical information and advice. The advice needs to be from a trusted source; from someone who actually recruits for a living, every day in this challenging market, so veterans can be assured they are getting the latest information on what works and what doesn’t. Lastly, it needs to work.
This is why I wrote the book/guide “Veterans: DO THIS! GET HIRED!” Simply put: It gets veterans jobs!
Mark Lyden
Mark Lyden is the author: College Students: Do This! Get Hired!; Veterans: Do This! Get Hired!; and Professionals: Do This! Get Hired! (Coming Summer 2011). A substantial portion of the proceeds from book sales are donated back to charity to help veterans and to help the stray and abandoned animals at Logan’s Run Rescue.
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