Transition From A Military Career to Civilian Career is Not Easy

My advice is to leave your rank in the SAF!

Excerpts from Winston Choo’s memoirs have highlighted the challenges of career transition for military officers.

Those who succeed in their second careers are those who successfully adapted their leadership styles. I run Major Dad, an online platform that helps military officers transit, and my main advice is always to “leave your rank in the SAF.” This is not because your experience does not count. Nor is it because it is not valuable. It is because leadership in the civilian world depends less on positional power.

In the military, a Colonel is a Colonel and high up in the hierarchy. When he enters a meeting, regardless of whether he is an expert on the issue at hand, he is granted deference and his words carry weight. And, regardless of whether the meeting agrees with his decision, they will carry it out or face the consequences of military law.

In the civilian world, while there is a hierarchy, there is no “force of law” to enforce compliance. I have been in organizations where the power center does not lie with the Director, but those who exercise control of information, connections, and resources like funding and manpower. In the civilian world, one leads through referent power –…