Down Range: A Transitioning Veterans Career Guide to Lifes Next Phase

Prepare for your next mission—a civilian career. A veteran's transition from military to civilian life is a major life event that requires careful planning. This career guide for veterans is unique and empowering for two reasons. First, it is written by veterans who made the transition and now lead a successful civilian business which consults with corporations large and small all over the world. Second, it explains a simple and effective planning process that has been taught to over 1 million business leaders, a process born of military experience. This book: Challenges veterans to change their mindset and understand just how different the "wilderness" of civilian employment and the world of business is from military experience Helps the reader build an adaptable long-range career "High-Definition Destination" (HDD); identify the resources needed to achieve that career; and develop strategic and tactical courses of action Also contains extensive tools and checklists to help veterans plan "The Afterburner team guided me in my successful career transition using this book's methodology, resulting in my civilian job offer six months prior to retirement. Simply outstanding!" —MARK C. GARDNER, Colonel, U.S. Army (Ret.) " Down Range gives veterans the direction and advice they need to translate their military skills and experiences into the talent sets that companies so desperately need." —JUDY MORRIS, Vice President, Human Resources, Sitel North America " Down Range gets our vets pointed in the right direction, empowers them to take control of their post-military careers, and gives them tools to become highly successful leaders in the civilian business world." —DOUG McCLAIN, Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.) " Down Range lays out a very practical way for a veteran to translate and leverage military career experiences to the corporate workforce. A must-read for every Marine preparing to transition to the civilian workforce." —GARY G. TOLAR, Sargeant Major, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)

Introduction: You Have Everything They Need 1 Chapter 1 Transition Your Mindset: It’s a Brand New Mission 7 Chapter 2 Translating the Values You Bring to Business 21 Chapter 3 Before You Step Outside theWire, Determine Your Objective 31 Chapter 4 Identify the Threats 65 Chapter 5 Identify Your Resources 85 Chapter 6 Evaluate Lessons Learned 101 Chapter 7 Develop a Course of Action 109 Chapter 8 Selling the Most Important Commodity: You! 123 Chapter 9 Interview to Win! 137 Chapter 10 Down Range: Put Your Career Plan into Action 147 Appendix A The Six Steps of Planning 151 Appendix B Career Planning Worksheet 153 Appendix C Example Career Plan 157 Appendix D Resume Construction Template and Tips 161 Appendix E Cover Letter Template and Tips 165 Appendix F Getting Noticed on an ATS Query 167 Appendix G Practice Interview Questions Bank 175 Appendix H Interview/Opportunity Preparation Checklist 185 Appendix I Men’s Interview Attire and Grooming Checklist 191 Appendix J Women’s Interview Attire and Grooming Checklist 193 Appendix K Summary of Veterans’ Career and Transition Resources 195 Appendix L LinkedIn Tips 199 Appendix M List of Common Threats, Resources, and Lessons Learned to Consider While Planning Your Career 201 Appendix N List of Action Verbs for Use in Demonstrations of Effectiveness 203 Appendix O Additional References and Information Resources 205 Appendix P Recommended Tasks to Include in Your Career Course of Action 209 Appendix Q Tips for Preparing Questions to Ask an Interviewer 211 Index 213

JAMES D. MURPHY is the founder and CEO of Afterburner, Inc., established in 1996. A former U.S. Air Force F-15 fighter pilot, Murphy established Afterburner to teach skills inspired by his military training and service to business leaders all over the world. He and his team of veterans led Afterburner to its three-time recognition by Inc. magazine for "fastest growth," and made the Inc. 500 List twice. He has been featured in the Wall Street Journal , BusinessWeek, Inc. , Newsweek , and has appeared on CNN, Fox News, and Bloomberg News. Author of Business Is Combat and Flawless Execution. WILLIAM M. DUKE is a retired U.S. Navy Officer with 23 years of combined active and reserve service. He also worked as an operations and hiring manager in a U.S. Fortune 500 company for eight years. He is Director of Learning and Development for Afterburner, Inc., where he consults and trains corporate managers in a wide variety of industries. He is the coauthor of Flawless Execution Field Manual and The Debrief Imperative with James D. Murphy.