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MWSA Review
Mission Transition: Navigating the Opportunities and Obstacles to Your Post-Military Career is a comprehensive guide and resource for all transitioning military—enlisted or officer—whether leaving after the first hitch or retiring after a long career. The author made a highly successful transition from retiring as a field grade Army officer and becoming an executive in a very prestigious Technology Fast 500 company.
Rather than writing the typical job search, resume, and interview transition book, the author takes on the trend of many veterans finding themselves going through several civilian positions before finding their true career calling. He does this by encouraging those leaving military service to start by using the tools and processes, included in the opening chapters of the book, to focus on career fields best suited to their personality and work/life goals. This approach should be extremely helpful for military members coming from military occupations such as combat arms, which do not have easily translatable skill sets applicable to the civilian world.
In addition to immediate transition, the book is filled with real-world advice for career success and progress. Most notably, the author then encourages veterans who successfully achieve their civilian career goals to “assimilate and give back” to those veterans coming behind them.
Lt. Col. Lewis should be commended for his dedication and hard work in producing this book for his fellow veterans and maintaining the accompanying website that is full of useful resources.
Review by Terry Lloyd (May 2024)
Author's Synopsis
Mission Transition is an essential career-change guide for any transitioning veteran that wants to avoid false starts and make optimal career choices following active duty.
Every year, about a quarter of a million veterans leave the military - most of whom are unprepared for the transition. These service members have developed incredible leadership, problem-solving, and practical skills that are underutilized once they reach the civilian world, a detriment to both themselves and society.
Well-intentioned Transition Assistance Programs and other support structures within the armed forces often leave veterans fending for themselves. The mission-first culture of the military results in service members focusing on their active duty roles in the year leading up to their separation, leaving them little time to adequately prepare to join the civilian world.
President of Purepost, a next-generation staffing solution and public benefits corporation, and author Matthew J. Louis guides military personnel through the entire process of making a successful move into civilian professional life.
In Mission Transition, this book will:
* Guide you through the process of discovering what path you want to take going forward
* Teach you the strategies that will make your résumé stand out
* Provide suggestions to help you prepare for and ace the interview
* Discuss ways to acclimate to your new organization’s culture and pay it forward to other veterans
Each chapter includes advice from other veterans, illustrations of key concepts, summaries, and suggested resources. Let this well-written and easy to follow guidebook help you transition out from the military and commit to being successful in the next chapter of your life.
Format(s) for review: Paper & Kindle
Review Genre: Nonfiction—How to/Business
Number of Pages: 304
Word Count: 70000