Are you owed anything?
Plain and simple NO. Let me repeat it, YOU ARE NOT OWED ANYTHING! It doesn’t matter that you’re a veteran, especially a Special Forces veteran. Nothing will be given to you, just like in uniform everything will be earned through hard work and dedication. If you have any entitled expectations, then you are failing yourself, that’s not the attitude to have. You know damn well that mentality wouldn’t work in our regiment and there is no reason to adopt it now.
Let’s do a thought experiment. If this hot shot businessman walked into the team room looking for a job, what would happen? But wait, he has this stellar business resume with an excellent education. Seems like a good guy, but he doesn’t have a lick of military training. Appears to be physically fit and says he’s a good shot. Would he be placed in charge of the team? Made the company commander or sergeant major? We know the answer to this scenario. Not a chance! His rucksack would be in the hallway before he got started. He would have to earn it and start somewhere at the bottom after a vast amount of training.
But a lot of your skills do translate unlike theirs. You just have to show that and make an effort to assimilate into the business world. You have desired skills and experiences, they just need to be translated through the correct prism. More on transferring your skills in a later post.
We can accept a handshake and a thank you, but expecting much more than that is insanity. I will say one thing our Special Forces/ Green Beret brand will give us besides that is about 30 seconds of credibility. What we turn that time into, depends on us and how well prepared we are to seize the objective. Think about what you can give and earn, versus what you may think you’re owed as you transition and approach your next mission.
The only thing owed is what you owe yourself. Work your tail off and enable yourself to succeed in your transition. You owe that to yourself!