Best Job Interviewee Ever

So, you need to fill a position. You collect resumes, sort thru them and then come up on one that belongs to a veteran. Ok, what do you do? You read about the person attached to it possessing everything you are looking for before you got to that part. Do you give him/her a chance or not? If you answered "yes" then you are good at your job. If you said "no" then you really don't seem too interested in what is best for your company.

The problem is, while you may judge veterans because of what you heard about PTSD, you probably know more about Quantum mechanics than PTSD.

PTSD has hit veterans since the Revolutionary War. People hired them. This country was built on veterans pushing beyond what anyone ever expected out of them. After all, they looked like everyone else. They had the same hopes, dreams, needs, issues, as the rest of the population. They also happened to have proven beyond a doubt that what they are willing to do on a job for their team was worth dying for.

I've been married to a Vietnam Vet with PTSD for 30 years. I've worked with other veterans helping them heal. I can tell you firsthand that if you want a job done, done right, try hiring them considering they are the best interviewee you'll ever sit across from.

The truth is anyone on the other side of the desk could have PTSD since it is caused by trauma and there is a list of causes. You have no idea what that candidate has faced in their lives. The thought of a PTSD veteran may be in your mind when you see the word "veteran" but how about rape victim, car accident survivor, fire survivor, abuse victim, crime victim or any of the other folks walking around the earth you know nothing about.

Oh sure when you finally hear their story, you know enough about them to feel sorry for them instead of fear them and your compassion comes out but before they tell you anything, PTSD was still in them when you knew nothing. Stop judging while knowing nothing about PTSD because while most veterans do not have it but even the ones with PTSD have proven beyond a doubt that they can push through anything.

PTSD started while they were deployed. They still managed to do their job everyday while facing death. They didn't call in sick. They didn't walk away. They pushed passed all of it because their coworkers' lives depended on them.

They went from high school into combat but you don't want to think about how much they had to learn for that job.

Fear of PTSD hurting vets find job: Poll
APP.com
Ken Serrano
June 18, 2014

Employers see possible post-traumatic stress disorder from combat as a reason not to hire a war veteran, an overwhelming percentage of New Jerseyans said in Monmouth University/Asbury Park Press poll.

Forty-two percent of those in the poll said PTSD is a major factor for employers seeking to hire a vet.

And while most people polled believe the military provides marketable skills to soldiers, veterans face a tough time translating them into a job offer, according to the poll.

"New Jerseyans see the value in skills obtained through military services but also say that employers feel this experience comes with other issues that could negatively affect workplace performance," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch.

About seven in 10 polled said that at least a quarter of veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from PTSD. That belief falls in line with estimates from veterans organizations and PTSD experts.
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