What’s the Worst that Can Happen?

March 1, 2025 | Diane Hudson | Blog, Career Coaching, CPCC

When my clients are engaged in a career transition, they often tell me they are scared, nervous, and uncertain. Some express excitement and anticipation. I ask my clients, “What is the worst thing that can happen?”

The employment market has become unhinged in the past couple of weeks. Scores of federal employees are resigning, being furloughed, or even fired in some cases. It feels like uncertain times.

As a career coach, I frame every situation as a positive opportunity. Those making the transition from federal to industry need to explore many options, including job titles, companies of interest, industries, disciplines, salaries, and more.

Some federal employees only hold federal experience and are not familiar with the corporate culture and how it operates. There are cultural differences that need to be explored:

Federal	Corporate
Requires a detailed and lengthy résumé/application	Typically requires about a 2-page résumé
Most federal positions are posted on usajobs.gov – a one-stop portal for federal job applications. Some excepted agencies post jobs on their websites only (and some tied to usajobs.gov)	Résumés and applications may be posted on job boards, specific company websites, and via recruiters or referrals. Or they may not be posted – and the positions are filled via word-of-mouth
Résumés are scored based on a scoring system against qualifications, competencies, and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs)	Résumés may be selected via an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) focused on keywords and key messages. There may or may not be scoring based on the type and size of the company. Keywords and key messages are not revealed to job seekers
The hiring process is very procedural and created for fairness based on minimum qualifications, and those who score as ‘highly qualified’	Most companies can hire and fire hire at will. Department of Defense contractors often follow federal hiring scoring requirements to ensure they meet the requirements of the federal contract

Job seekers may also need to explore and develop new career management skills, including résumé development, interviewing, salary negotiations, onboarding, and preparation for upward progression.

Federal	Corporate
Uses a lengthy, detailed résumé. LinkedIn or social media profiles are not required in most cases. Many federal employees do not have LI profiles	Many recruiters, Human Resource specialists, and hiring managers look to candidates’ LI profiles for validation of skill sets and to review the candidates’ activity level
Federal interviews are typically structured (using the same set of questions for each candidate) and behavior-based. There may be a requirement to complete a skill test	Corporate interviews may take the form of behavioral, hypothetical/situation-based, stressed-based, skills-based, meal-based, or meeting with leaders and subordinates, preparing and delivering a presentation, taking a skills test or assessment, and more
Most federal employees do not negotiate a salary – the salary levels are set, and raises are in the form of career-ladder positions and quality step increases	In corporate, negotiating a salary is expected in many cases (outside of entry-level and hourly positions)

The examples above will help you construct a career coaching program to guide your clients in exploring career opportunities. As you build your coaching sessions to coach your clients to explore options for career transition, consider the following areas:

Venting: Your clients may need to vent and share their fears and concerns. During extreme upheaval and career transitions, I often schedule time for my clients to vent and share. Grief, disappointment, and depression in a job search are real and impactful. Connect with your clients, validate their feelings, demonstrate empathy, and build rapport.
Needs Assessment: Ask your clients what they need most from you when exploring new opportunities, e.g., a new résumé, a family budget, job search guidance, interview preparation, a career management action plan, initiating informational interviews, etc. Identify their pain points and use this as a roadmap for the exploration process.
Assessment Tools: Your clients may benefit from an assessment tool like D.I.S.C or CliftonStrengths. Assessment tools are not “tests.” Rather, they may provide golden nuggets concerning your client’s behaviors, preferences, likes, and dislikes, which may help prepare the job search and develop the résumé. I coach my clients through several exercises included in the CPCC program, including creating a purpose statement and identifying values, motivational factors, strengths, and goals.
Explore via Due Diligence & Research: Ask your clients to conduct research. Start with O*Net. Ask your clients what interests them. Do they have a passion? Do they have an unfinished goal? Have they always dreamed of working for a specific company or in a particular discipline?
Explore and analyze job position descriptions of interest to identify patterns and trends to understand minimum qualifications and required experience, competencies, and credentials.
Career Redirect: Use the “Think Outside the Box” activity (an exercise in the CPCC program). Ask your clients if they are willing to make a 180-degree career transition—from being a policy analyst to returning to school to obtain a nursing degree. Encourage your clients to consider many options. I ask my clients, if nothing impeded their decision to seek a new career, what would they pursue (what do they want to be when they grow up)?
Are they near retirement? If your clients are looking at encore careers, they can really think outside the box. For example, many retirees work at cruise line hotels in Denali, Alaska, as shuttle bus drivers, food service workers, and other roles. These are seasonal positions. These seasonal employees can then build points and use the points to travel the world on the cruise line.
Other options for retirees seeking part-time work and income include online teaching, handy-person, home health, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, teaching English in a foreign country, high-end house sitter (globally), and more.
Explore websites that post interesting, seasonal, and out-of-the-box jobs: coolworks.com | cooljobs.com | clearancejobs.com | clearedjobs.com | jobmonkey.com/uniquejobs/ | thetutorresource.com/fun-remote-jobs/ |
Explore websites that may help jumpstart the research: iHire.com, LinkedIn.com, alumni career centers, and associations focused on your client’s area of expertise.

Guiding clients to explore new options for shifting from federal to corporate includes asking them to apply the knowledge they gained and offer that value to a new employer. This is a unique opportunity to coach many federal employees in making decisions about exploring new employment options and exploring how to build a career management plan.

So, when my clients tell me they are scared about exploring new career options, I ask them, “What is the worst that can happen?” Often, responses include: I will lose my steady income, I can’t afford to go back to school, I am scared to make a change, or I’m too old. I say, “Let’s explore that and see if we can turn that into a positive opportunity.”