Veteran Transition Advocate Magazine (VTAM) Interviews Tommy Lyon

1. What are you doing now? Your Position

I am a mechanical engineer for an Architecture and Engineering firm. I design HVAC and piping systems for commercial buildings.

2. What did you do before your current position?

From 2016 – 2022 I served as a Surface Warfare Officer. I was the Strike Officer from 2016-2018 aboard USS Bainbridge (DDG 96). From 2018-2020 I was the Navigator for USS Bainbridge (DDG 96). My final post was the Training Officer aboard Destroyer Squadron 26 from 2020-2022.

3. Have you served the Military or Government?

Yes, military

4. What branch?

United States Navy

5. What was your path to civilian employment, and how did you get into your prior career?

During my time at Destroyer Squadron 26 I began to talk to a retired US Navy Captain who was working as a civilian training Naval Officers in Ship-handling. He took an interest in me due to my work ethic during his training. Through him I was introduced to multiple people in his network. After about 3-4 conversations with different people, I was introduced to the Mechanical Department Head from my current firm. I continued to talk with the department head, and ultimately it led to a job offer, which I accepted.

6. Do you believe in Mentorship?

Absolutely, everyone you talk to can teach you something. If someone is willing to give you their time to educate you from their experiences, then you should listen and take advantage of learning from them. I signed up for a military transition mentorship program, American Corporate Partnership (ACP), and through my mentor there I was able to learn first hand knowledge of what a non-military citizen knew and did not know about the military. Through this program I learned how to explain what skills I had in a non-military setting. I was quite surprised to learn a lot of the skills, hard and soft, were translatable to civilian careers. It just took practice and effort.

7. Do you believe in building a network, and from where?

Yes, as mentioned above without talking to the retired Navy Captain I would have never been introduced to the individuals that led me to my current employment. Everyone can help you. Work on talking to individuals in a position/field you are interested in. I found multiple people through LinkedIn search that I had a commonality with such as being a veteran, from hometown, alma-mater, or in a field. Initially it was difficult, but the more people I reached out the better I became at discussing my goals and how they could help me.

8. What obstacles did you face? Personally and professionally I had to get out of comfort zone and talk to people I had never met before, and quickly learn how to discuss my background in a language that anyone can understand. I had difficultly or fear knowing if the work I was doing was leading towards my goal, but constantly reassessing my goals and path using my network and resources gave me reassurance.

9. Education, Should you seek higher education?

Only if the field you are interested in requires it. I was 6 years removed from received my college degree in mechanical engineering, and my current firm did not care. In their mind I learned the information once, and they can teach me on the job anything I forgot.

Study the LinkedIn accounts of the people in the job you want. If you don’t have the same education then look for