Tactical Transition

Episode 35: Lt. Cmdr (Ret) Adam Pettus; Associate Director, Growth Initiatives, Collins Aerospace

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Welcome to a special episode of Tactical Transition, where your hosts Cyndi Po and Michele Lewis sit down with a remarkable guest, Adam Pettus. Adam, a recently retired Navy Lieutenant Commander, offers incredibly fresh and candid insights into the military transition process, having just completed his second week in a new civilian role.

Adam's journey is a testament to perseverance and adaptability, drawing on 23 years of distinguished service in the Navy as a career intelligence, information warfare, and cryptological warfare professional. He retired in May after serving as the targeting and command and control programs lead for the CNO digital warfare office and has since joined Collins Aerospace RTX as an Associate Director for Growth Initiatives.

Here are some key takeaways from our insightful conversation with Adam:

  • Gratitude for Guidance: Adam expresses profound gratitude for the "whole bushel full of oysters full of pearls" he gained from Cyndi and Michele's seminar, noting he applied them diligently to his transition journey and found immense value in their continued support.
  • Transition is an Ongoing Process: Adam emphasized that his transition is "still right in the very middle of it," asserting that it's unrealistic to expect it to be over just because employment is secured. He views it as a continuous adjustment, especially after 23 years in a specific mindset.
  • New Realities & Flexibility: He shared that his new role, while stable, offers less personal schedule flexibility than his military career, posing "significant challenges" for family life. However, his prior military experience taught him to adapt by expending initial energy to learn, then becoming more productive with less effort.
  • Combating Impostor Syndrome: Michele highlighted that the feelings of inadequacy Adam described are typical for anyone starting a new job, though it's an "additional component to the military transition" due to the multiple layers of loss service members experience simultaneously, including identity and corporate culture changes.
  • Embracing Optimism Amidst Setbacks: Adam stressed the importance of maintaining "a degree of faith and optimism" despite setbacks, like a particularly challenging interview. He advised reflecting, absorbing what's necessary, and "let go of the rest" of the negativity.
  • Surprises of Transition:
    • Inherent Loneliness: Adam found that "loneliness is inherent within this process," even with support structures, as the responsibility for employment and family provision rests squarely on the individual.
    • Self-Care is Key: He countered this by prioritizing self-care, frequenting the gym six days a week to "complete the stress cycle" and maintain physical and emotional well-being.
    • Unexpected Supporters: A surprising discovery was that his biggest advocates and coaches were people he met within four months of his transition, rather than his existing long-term network, demonstrating that "networks aren't always friends" and can come from unexpected places.
    • "Safety" Positions May Not Pan Out: His planned "safety" job contingencies, where he was exceptionally qualified, "not a single one of those panned out". This highlighted the "recency bias" of hiring managers, who primarily focus on your most recent experience.
    • Exploiting Recent Experience: Adam learned to mitigate this bias by presenting his skills competency-focused, and to "exploit" his most recent experience, which ultimately led him to an "opportunity [that] was so good that I would be a damn fool not to take it". His current role came about partly through the positive influence of colleagues who had also been offered the position.
    • Gratitude and Serendipity: Adam concluded by expressing deep gratitude for how things unfolded, acknowledging the struggles many others face in today's challenging environment, and offering his support to fellow transitioning service members.

      • Don't miss out on Adam's unique and personal perspective on navigating the complexities of post-military life!

      We were also thrilled to learn some fun facts about Adam, including his passion for archiving and digitizing movies in his 40-unit server rack and his love for cooking, especially baked goods from scratch like classic New York cheesecake!

      Connect with Adam on LinkedIn

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      Tactical TransitionBy Cyndi Po & Michele Lewis