Are You Prepared to Meet the Next Best Person for Your Future Career?

Photo By Angela Wallace | Hundreds of service members, veterans and military spouses attended a job fair hosted by Hiring Our Heroes in Tampa, Florida at the C.W. “Bill” Young Armed Forces Reserve Center on Friday, Sept. 16. To date Hiring Our Heroes, a program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, has assisted in veterans and military spouses obtaining more than 28,000 jobs through their events.  

FORT KNOX, KY, UNITED STATES

09.11.2017

Story by Jenny Hale 

U.S. Army Human Resources Command

When a person is in an elevator at a hotel, it’s not uncommon to strike up a conversation about their trip or where they’re from. While it may be easier to talk about their trip or vacation, what if the individual was a supervisor at a company instead of a vacationer?

Anyone an individual comes in contact with could be the person that changes their career. Networking is everywhere and it can be developed during something as simple as a 30-second elevator ride. It’s important to be prepared with a brief introduction that includes a person’s skills, experience, and career goals.

Just like planning a vacation to that hotel, a job seeker wouldn’t go to an interview without researching the company, verifying the location, developing a resume, and dressing appropriately. The preparation should be the same for networking. Meeting any individual is an opportunity to expand contacts and future careers. Being prepared to do so could make or break a job seeker’s next career move.

An “elevator pitch” is a 30-second speech that highlights a person’s career experience and is meant to be said in the time it takes to ride on an elevator from the bottom floor of a building to the top floor. Elevator speeches are a great way to condense military experience in order to answer the question “tell me about yourself.” While this question is most commonly asked in an interview setting, it’s an overall great networking starter for an event…or those surprise elevator rides.

To become better prepared for transition from active duty, all transitioning Soldiers are required to attend the Soldier for Life – Transition Assistance Program, or SFL-TAP. This program is mandatory for all eligible transitioning Soldiers with at least 180 days of continuous active duty service.

As part of preparing for a civilian career, SFL-TAP covers civilian transition topics such as setting goals, researching civilian companies, creating resumes, the interview process, evaluating job offers, and even how to create a 30-second elevator speech. It’s important to take the skills learned at SFL-TAP and practice them. By rehearsing the 30-second speech, Soldiers will be far more prepared for networking opportunities and the introductory questions asked along with it.

Transitioning Soldiers are encouraged to start SFL-TAP 18 months prior to transition or 24 months prior to retirement. This gives Soldiers time to network, understand their skill-sets, apply to jobs, and create resumes. To get started, visit www.sfl-tap.army.mil or contact a local SFL-TAP Center. SFL-TAP can also be found on Facebook (@ArmySFLTAP), Twitter (@SFLTAP), and LinkedIn Groups (Soldier for Life - Transition Assistance Program Connection Group).

• Date Taken: 09.11.2017
• Date Posted: 09.11.2017 11:40
• Story ID: 247759
• Location: FORT KNOX, KY, US