You’ve heard the polished resettlement stories. This isn’t that, this is the truth. No sugar coating, no added sparkle. Just what it actually takes to go from service life to civvy street, without losing your mind (or your sense of self).

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Henry Dockerty, Ex-REME and Chief of Staff at Redeployable, and Chris Shaw, ex-Marine and now Business Development Manager and Founder of the Gen Dit Network, have lived it. And they sat down to break down the common traps, cultural shocks, and brutal truths that no one puts on the PowerPoint.

Panic Mode = Shotgun CVs (Don’t Do It)

Firing out 85 job applications and hoping one sticks isn’t a strategy. It’s a panic reflex. And it’s one we see all the time. You hit the two-months-left mark and suddenly every job board looks like a lifeline. But here’s the truth: the civilian hiring process doesn’t reward volume. It rewards relevance.

Chris nailed it in one line:  “I was never the best on paper. But I knew if I could speak to someone directly, I’d have a shot.”

That’s the difference between blind panic and targeted recon. Veterans who land roles aren’t necessarily the most qualified on paper, they’re the ones who get seen. The ones who ask smart questions. The ones who take the time to understand the lay of the land before charging in.
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Chris applied for five roles in his entire civilian career. He got offers from four. Why? Because he wasn’t spraying and praying. He was doing intel-gathering. He reached out to people already in the roles he was eyeing up. Asked how his background would stack up. Asked what would actually get him noticed. And in doing so, he made himself visible to the people who could open doors.
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Do this instead:

• Stop applying cold. Start having conversations. People hire people, not CVs.
• Ask people already in the role whether your experience fits. If not, ask what would make it stronger.
• Tailor your CV to the job description. Every time. Copy-paste won’t cut it.
• Build a tight, useful network. That’s where opportunities start appearing.
  
  

As Doc put it:  “I had a job interview on a driveway over a brew. That’s what networking does.”

Job offers don’t always come from a job ad. Sometimes they come from being in the right conversation, with the right person, at the right time. That’s not luck, that’s preparation. 

Yes, Civvy Culture Shock Is Real

You leave the military expecting differences. What you don’t expect is just how weird “normal” can feel. Your first civvy job might be in a nice office with good people, but the way they work? It’s hard to predict and might leave you surprised at just how much of a jump it is. 

Doc: “People just kept talking back. I couldn’t believe it was allowed.”

He wasn’t being flippant. In uniform, clarity of command keeps people alive. Orders aren’t optional. But in civilian workplaces, hierarchy takes a back seat to collaboration. Feedback is softer, consensus is king, and urgency is… relative.

Chris: “One of the hardest things was adjusting to the pace. I was used to a fast tempo, tight timelines, constant movement. Suddenly I’m in meetings about next month’s meeting.”

And it’s not just tempo, it’s tone. In the military, feedback is blunt and fast. You fix it and crack on. In the civilian world? Everything’s a bit more “suggested.” Chris admitted it took time to realise that being right isn’t always the same as being effective.

“I had to learn that being direct doesn’t always land well. You’ve got to finesse it a bit. Read the room.” Chris

Here’s your new SOP:

• Observe before acting. Watch how others operate.
• Translate urgency into clarity, not confrontation.
• Ask questions before solving problems.
• Don’t expect to nail it immediately; six months of adaptation is normal.
  
  

This isn’t incompetence, it’s culture. Different rules, different pace, different signals. Learn them, and you’ll become the bridge others rely on.

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[RESOURCE]

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Your First Job Isn’t the Final Mission

Let’s get one thing clear: just because you can do a job doesn’t mean it’s the right job.

Chris landed his first civvy role and went into overdrive. “I was doing 9-hour desk days to prove I was ‘delivering’. But it wasn’t aligned. I was drained, not challenged.”

Doc echoed the same sentiment. “I could do the work. But I didn’t care about it. I’d gone from meaningful to meaningless, and that shift hit harder than I expected.”

When you leave service, your first instinct is to grab the first safe option. The job that looks stable. The one that gives you a steady paycheck and a bit of structure. But if it doesn’t match what drives you, it won’t last. That’s why the first stage of the Redeployable platform is Career Direction. Before we start pushing job matches, we help you figure out what actually matters.

Chris: “I needed to find out what mattered to me, not just what job I could get.”

Ask yourself:

• What gives me energy?
• What does a good day feel like?
• What do I want more of in my next chapter?
  
  

You don’t need a 5-year plan. But you do need a compass.

Rank Doesn’t Follow You, and That’s a Good Thing

One of the hardest mental resets in resettlement? Realising that your rank doesn’t come with you. In the military, rank is everything. It dictates structure, responsibilities, even how people speak to you. It's visible, immediate, and universally understood across the services. Then you step out, and it’s gone. No stripes. No salutes. No automatic authority.

Chris put it bluntly: “I love that rank disappears when you leave. I was a senior officer. Ben was a sergeant. Doesn’t matter.”

And it really doesn’t. Because outside the forces, most hiring managers won’t know (or care, to be honest) what a Warrant Officer is. They’ve never seen a drill square. They won’t understand the difference between a Lt Col and a Corporal. To them, it's all just jargon. That’s not disrespect, it’s unfamiliarity.
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Many of the people reviewing your CVs or sitting across from you in interviews have never worked with anyone from the armed forces. They don’t know what it means to lead a troop, to manage kit worth millions, or to keep operations running in hostile environments. They can’t map those experiences to civilian roles unless you help them do it. This is where many veterans unintentionally trip up. They expect the title to carry weight. It won’t.

New operating model:

• Leadership is influence, not authority. No one’s saluting. Respect is earned through how you work, not your title.
• Curiosity is your greatest asset. Ask questions. Get to know the way things work. It shows humility and builds trust.
• Reliability is your new rank badge. Deliver consistently, be dependable, and show you're a team player.
  
  

Want to show you’re a leader? Don’t mention it, demonstrate it. Turn up prepared. Solve problems before they escalate. Lead by example, not command. Civvy teams don’t respond to force; they respond to clarity, collaboration, and confidence.
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And yes, you may be managed by someone younger than you, less experienced than you, or with zero operational background. That’s fine, it's the job. Your role isn’t to dominate, it’s to integrate. Learn the systems, watch how meetings run, and notice how decisions get made. Translate your skills into what your team needs, not just what you’re used to. That shift, from rank-based authority to earned influence, is one of the most powerful you’ll make. And once you master it, you’ll be miles ahead, because while everyone else is still figuring out how to lead under pressure, you’ve been doing it for years. Now you just need to show it, in a way they can see.

How to Stay Sane While Job Hunting

Military life came with structure. You knew your role, your next posting, your reporting chain. Even the worst days had a plan. Civvy job hunting? It’s chaos in a portal login. You go from a system that knew where to deploy you, to one where you’re just another name in a digital pile. No comms. No feedback. Just a “your application has been received” auto-reply and the sound of your own doubts kicking in.

Doc summed it up: “It got to the point where I was applying for jobs I didn’t even want. Just for the sake of doing something.”

And that’s what happens when purpose goes missing. You start clicking Apply just to feel like you’re doing something. But it’s not progress, it’s noise.

Chris took a different approach. “I gave myself a job: two hours of networking a day. That structure saved me. I stayed in control.”

He turned the job hunt into a mission: clear objectives, consistent action, measurable outcomes. He didn’t let the silence derail him, he built momentum. Because here’s the thing: the civilian job market doesn’t run on logic. It runs on visibility, timing, and networks. The sooner you adapt to that, the less demoralising it becomes. Their advice? Make the mission manageable.

• Anchor to why you left. This isn’t just about getting a job. It’s about building a life. What do you want from this chapter? More time with family? A sense of purpose? Location stability? Keep that front and centre. It’s your North Star when the rejections pile up.
• Set a routine. Job hunting without structure is a fast track to burnout. Allocate blocks of time each day, whether it’s writing tailored CVs, reaching out to connections, or prepping for interviews. Set weekly goals, and hold yourself to them like you would any other task.
• Keep a wins list. A reply from a recruiter, a new LinkedIn connection, a conversation with someone in your target industry. Write them down. On paper. Because when the doubts kick in, that list is proof that something is happening. Even if you don’t have an offer yet.
• Treat job hunting like recon. This isn’t about scoring 100% hit rate. It’s about gathering intel. What are employers asking for? Where are the skill gaps? Who’s hiring people like you? What language are they using? The more intel you have, the smarter your next move.
• Focus on progress, not perfection. You don’t need the perfect CV. You need a tailored one. You don’t need to land the first job you go for. You need to learn from every attempt. Don’t waste time polishing for perfection, just keep moving forward.

In this game, movement is progress. And progress, however small, is the difference between spiralling and staying steady. If it helps, make job hunting your new job. Give it structure, goals, and a mission brief. And remember, the work you’re putting in now? It will pay off.
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You’re not just hunting jobs. You’re building the next version of your career. Stay focused, stay consistent, and don’t go it alone.

Final Word: This Is Still a Mission, Just a New One

This isn’t about reinventing yourself. It’s about translating who you are into a new environment. You’ve already done the hard stuff, now it’s about being smart, targeted, and supported. That’s why Redeployable exists.

We help you:

• Discover what you actually want next
• Translate your military experience into clear, civvy-ready language
• Get seen by the right employers and supported by the right people
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[CALLOUT]

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