BY Maddie Reese

What Chuck Wishes More Officers Knew: Getting Out Is Not an Objective

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Getting Out Is Not an Objective

A trigger and an objective are not the same thing. Confusing them can cost you the transition you actually want.

Most military career decisions start with a trigger. You are tired of the deployments. You have a family now and the time away is wearing on everyone. You want to choose where you live instead of having it chosen for you. Something pops your head up and gets you thinking, for the first time in a while, about a path other than the one you are on.

That trigger is real, and it matters. But here is what we see officers get wrong, and it is one of the most important distinctions in the entire transition.

A trigger is not an objective

A trigger is what makes you look up. An objective is where you decide to go. “I want out of the military” is a trigger. It is the start of a decision, not the decision itself. When getting out becomes the goal, the real question goes unanswered: what am I going to do next, and why?

Our CEO, Chuck Alvarez, puts it plainly. It makes him sad to hear an officer treat getting out as the objective. You are young. You are talented. If you decide to leave, there are many things you can do. The mistake is stopping at the trigger instead of moving past it to the decision that actually shapes your future.

The real question to answer

So what is the objective? It is the answer to a bigger question. When you are 35, 40, or 45 years old, what do you want your professional life to look like? What is the most viable, the most exciting, the best opportunity for you professionally 10 or 15 years from now?

That is your objective. In military terms, it is your commander’s intent. Once you have it, you backward plan everything from it. Every step, every conversation, and every choice gets measured against where you are actually trying to go.

Start early, and think bigger

Deriving that objective takes time, and it takes thinking bigger than whether you are happy or unhappy right now. A few things help:

• Start early. The clarity you need does not appear overnight.
• Move past the trigger. Let it get you to the starting line, then keep going.
• Network beyond your own circle. Get outside your professional network and talk to people who know a lot about the career fields you are weighing.

Where Cameron-Brooks fits

At Cameron-Brooks, we know the business world. We are a recruiting firm for transitioning junior military officers, and 100 percent of our placements go into the private sector. The private sector is enormous, so it is one strong place to look. It is not the only one. The point is to weigh real options against a real objective, not to leap from a trigger to the nearest exit.

For over 50 years, we have helped officers make this exact shift, from military leader to business leader, by starting with the right question instead of the easy one.

If you are feeling the trigger, that is a good sign. It means you are ready to plan for what’s next. The next step is turning it into an objective, and that is where we can help. Schedule a call with a coach and start building the plan your future deserves.

Ready to Explore Your Options?

The first step is simple. Fill out a short form and we will follow up with a call to learn more about you and see if there is a fit. It takes about 2 minutes. No commitment. No cost. Just answers. One of our transition specialists will be in touch shortly.

Or call us at 210-874-1500 or email candidates@cameron-brooks.com.