An old sarge

Notes from the old sarge
A recent news cast and a post revealed how the POTUS believes the GI Bill is the equivalent of welfare.   Of course the BS flag began waving in the wind.   The GI Bill was created for GIs returning from war to provide some workplace training and not a welfare case.   But I digress.
I have been pondering this issue for a few days since I read a post in a page I follow where the poster asked about what to do when his time of service was up.   Now the career field the individual is in is one that should the person want to spend a lot of time as a government contractor in the desert might be able to find.   There might also be some GS or WG positions but not that many.   The response from others varied and I want to add some additional 2 cents.
Tuition assistance and the GI Bill provided me a chance to take some college and change an outcome or two.   With that I have a couple of incidents that might explain why I am passionate about education or career training.   Although I believe there are a number of jobs you do not need a degree for, there are plenty of others that do expect a degree, even some of the government contractors.

The Chief was wondering why I would waste time going to college when I should be focusing on making E-9.   I explained that there was competition on the field and I felt there would be an advantage to getting a degree in the event I either decided to go to OTS or depart the service.   In the event of retiring or leaving I was for certain there was not a significant market for munitions troops that could move multiple cans of 20mm in a single heave.   I mentioned that he should consider getting as a minimum his CCAF - Community College of the Air Force associates degree.   He told me he didn't need no stinking degree, he was a chief.
Fast forward to NCO Academy @ Barksdale when I am talking to a couple I met at the church and was having a Sunday dinner with them.   He was an aircraft mechanic and was looking at retiring in 6 months.   I asked what his plans were and that was to move back to Fort Worth and work on airplanes.   Asked if he had his CCAF Associates and the reply was no.   He showed me his stack of blue certificates and felt that was good enough.   I asked if he at least had his A&P and he replied that he had 20 years experience, he didn't need an A&P cert.
Fast forward a couple of years at Dyess when the Chief, now retired, was passing through.   The first thing he said to me was that I was right and he should have listened to me about getting at least the AAS.   Just because he was a retired E-9, that did not mean squat because he needed to show some college even for a number of GS positions that otherwise would mean he would have to start at GS 4-5. "I am a chief for god's sakes." He was selling insurance for the NCO Association to which he really hated, but the only job he could get based on his rank at retirement.
During that time I also met up with the friends from Barksdale.   First thing he says to me, "I wish I had gone to the ed center and had at least a transcript of my college accomplishments.   I wish I would have taken the time to take the A&P exam (which was free at the time)".   He could not get a job as an aircraft mechanic because he had not college or an A&P. He showed them the certificates but without a transcript they were not interested. He was able to land a job as a jailer for the county correctional facility.   But not at the pay he had hoped for.
Now with all that, I think the key issue is knowing what you want to do and work towards that goal regardless.   Besides using the GI Bill to get the necessary training you also have opportunities for small business loans for veteran owned companies and startups.
I had an older SSgt working for me in Okinawa while we were working Line D.   It came time to test for rank and he turned it down.   Had a long talk with him about what he wanted to do. He had 18 months left before 20. He had no desire to get the next stripe.   He told me what his goals were and how he was going to make it happen. Part of his career he worked in civil engineering as a heavy equipment operator and had set his mind on doing that but Randolph would screw him over and assign him back to a munitions squadron as a 461.   His goal was to get a dump truck and a D-cat and do dirt work.   By the time he retired everything was in motion for that next stage of life.

I will leave you with this.   Because my last assignment was overseas I did not have the contacts to secure a job on the outside. I had no plans of retiring and and had another year on base. The base drawdown at RheinMain was really messing with my plans.   Assignments were being ginned up and I was hoping for an assignment over to Spang or at least at the safety center in Albq.   A death in the family changed our plans significantly and even though our retirement plans included going back to Abilene, TX, and wait my 6 months before applying for a GS position.   We ended up retiring and moving to Colorado Springs and the jobs that were choice closed out October 1 and I was not leaving Germany until November.   I started having some serious health issues and while on terminal leave they thought I was having a heart attack and ran me through the mill.   Finally the doc sent me to Fort Carson to see another specialist.   That appointment was 3 days after I retired.

I showed up and feeling quite well.   Never better.   The doctor asked me when I started feeling better and it was the day I retired.   After a number of questions and a history of the last 6 months the conclusion was this: There had been a number of soldiers that would die within a week of their retirement date.   One reason was the unknowing of what was out there. (Even though I had my education taken care of I had no idea what I would do going back to.) The doc said that going from a gravel shuffler to the workforce was daunting enough and caused stress.   It has been the same for a BB stacker.   Epplerly died about 6 months after retiring.   He didn't have a job and when his wife came home the day he died he was in front of the TV with the remote on his lap, a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other.
You have a lot of benefits, use them.   Work toward that day you separate or retire to ensure you have a life after military.   Lloyd, a good friend that died of cancer about 3 years after retiring could never get over not being in uniform and it wore on him daily until he died.
For others, the day you look in the closet and you do not find the uniform appealing, it is time to make your move. Be wise, be smart.


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Now with all of that stated let me add some other notes. Half way in my career I was asked to go to the safety office to be the wing explosive NCO as I had the experience of QA and explosive safety from the previous base. During that time I decided to retrain at the request of the wing commander and the chief of safety. Now I know there would be some promotion limitations but I also found a networking group through the various off base organizations such as the federal safety group, American Society of Safety Engineers, and more.

• Key 1 - networking is important. My lessons learned was that I did not stay in contact with these folks when I was overseas thinking that I would have one more state side assignment before retiring. Plus I always assumed I would return to Abilene TX once I did get out.
• Note: Majority of the jobs I have had were because of who I knew.

My father-in-law was a chief when he retired and not a whole lot of civilian experience except being a club manager during his off duty time. However the AF had a transition program at the time and a friend from the Elks helped set him up with an internship at the county in a new department they were setting up. He worked that (no pay) until he retired and then was the shew in for the position.

• Key 2 - build a network through various organizations. And show that you know more than rolling steel and keg standing. Volunteering with various organizations is a great help as well.
• Key 3 - that one internship might be the key to a better paying job. I blew it when I was offered a 6 month internship at the University of Oklahoma that would have eventually put me into a significant position within the U. Now that means planning out how you will live, especially if it means family is in one state and you have to be in another.

Have an exit strategy - work and rework your resume. I finally had mine down to when I went for an interview one of the last questions one of the interviewers asked was if I had any military experience because I spoke like I did but my resume was demil'd. The interview team thought that was a positive thing. Unlike the one job I was turned down because it reflected some military and the company felt I would not be diverse enough for their environment. (that is a story in itself)
Carry a resume with you, even while you are active duty. I was on a flight and talking to the guy next to me when out of the blue he asked if I had a resume. Pulled one out and handed to him. Wanted to hire me on the spot and then later we talked about how I could improve my resume.
Don't hesitate to go into a business that you would want to work for and have a resume to show them to see what they would want to see. I went into a business with my resume and first off told them that I was not looking for a job but looking to see if they would look at my resume. Talked about it, they suggested what I needed to add based on my experience and was offered a job.
Last tip - read the business journals and news papers looking for what is happening in the community. See if you can network through the Chamber. Do you have a speech about a topic of interest? Veterans topic? Vacation pictures of the desert?
This will sound strange but, hit up the chamber, the lions, rotory, and other organizations and tell them that you want to be their standby guy in the event their scheduled speaker bails. Be ready to present on a moments notice. People will recognize you as reliable and knowledgeble. It is crazy but for some it has worked.
Network and know people.