THE ENDING TO A NEW BEGINNING
If someone would have told my 18 year old self that in 22 years I would be retired from the military, I’m quite sure my response would have been,
“You must be thinking of someone else.”
Last year I retired from the U.S. Army after 22 years of service. I can recall the heart-wrenching Friday morning in July when I realized it would be the last time I would wear the Army uniform. That morning, I had this heavy emotion come over me like I was about to attend a funeral, and in the six months that followed I mourned for Lieutenant Colonel Kurdi. I entered the military at 18 years of age; now I was 40 years old and the concept of moving on seemed impossible. I retired from an organization built on protecting the freedom of its citizens, and those fortunate to serve, did it selflessly and wholeheartedly.
The Soldiers and Officers I served, trained, and fought with were my tribe and furthermore, my family. As I apprehensively prepared for life after the military, I quickly understood what older Veterans intended when they said “no one could quite prepare you for the dreaded transition.”
After a painful six months, I recognized it was time to “Soldier on;” a verb that is embedded in the soul of every Veteran. Thus, I committed to viewing my retirement as an opportunity; an opportunity to reinvent myself and set the stage for my next 20 year career. “Soldiering on” was much simpler in the military then in the civilian sector. I thought what now? What industry should I dive into? How will I translate my experience? This frankly became extremely overwhelming, until a fellow veteran and FocalPoint Business Coach reached out to me and offered to professionally “Coach” me through my transition. He helped me identify my career goals and the industry I would thrive in. My favorite line of his was, “You owe it to yourself to be in a career you love.”
At some point, many of us will find ourselves in a period of transition. From one corporate position to another or from corporate executive to business owner. Others may come to the realization that they're in an unfulfilling career and want to completely transition to a different industry. You don’t have to dread your transition, and you don’t have to make the leap on your own. At FocalPoint we offer an incredible coaching program to assist you in this journey. If you find yourself at a loss of “What’s Next?” reach out to me and let’s chat about your exciting future, building it the way you’ve always imagined it would be.
-Coach Rhana Kurdi
P.S. Thank you for everything Jerry Pilewski, you Rock! Go Army, Beat Navy!