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Leaving the Military: What the Royal Navy Run Down Period Teaches About Transition
- Sam Kinsey-Briggs
- Jul 7
- 6 min read
Lost in Translation #1: RDP
Run Down Period. I am in it right now.
There is a term in the Royal Navy that many outside the service has never heard of.
RDP. Run Down Period.
According to various Naval sources, RDP is defined as the period just before going on draft when interest wanes... oh sorry, I meant the period before a ship is going to be decommissioned and... well... interest wanes!
That last bit. Interest wanes.
Nobody ever said it better.
And as I’m going through this right now….it feels I’m in No Man’s Land…..
What RDP Actually Feels Like
I am in RDP right now.
Late July handover. August rest. September reset, and then a whole new mission begins.
The best way I can describe it to someone who has never served is this.
It is like being in your last few days in a house you are about to leave. You know you still have boxes to pack. You are not starting any new DIY, doing anything. You are just marking time and getting ready to move.
The furniture is still there. The pictures are still on the walls. But something has already shifted. You are living in a version of the place that is already becoming the past.
That is RDP.
You are still there. But you are already gone.
The Meeting That Made It Real
A few weeks ago I was sitting in a team meeting.
Around the table, colleagues were raising concerns. Lack of clarity from above. Delayed decisions. Government announcements that had not come (yes, the dreaded DIP! [Defence Investment Plan]). The usual machinery of a large organisation grinding slowly while people wait.
I listened. I asked for thoughts. I took notes.
And then somewhere in the middle of it, something shifted quietly inside me.
We were spending serious time and energy discussing things that none of us, not one person in that room, had any power to change.
I am not judging anyone for it.I was doing it too. I have done it myself for years. Most people in large organisations do. It is almost compulsory.
But sitting there, in my final weeks of a nearly thirty-year career, it became suddenly and completely clear.
The circle of control.
I was looking at it from the outside for the first time in a long time.
The Circle of Control: Why It Matters More Than Ever In Transition
You may have come across this idea before. Stephen Covey wrote about it as the Circle of Influence in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The psychology behind it traces back even further, to Julian Rotter's locus of control research in the 1950s and more recently to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.
The principle is simple.
There are things you control. How you show up. How you sleep, hydrate, and recover. How you treat the people around you. The quality of your work right now, today. Your standards. Your integrity.
There are things you can influence. The culture of your team. The quality of advice you give upward. The relationships you invest in.
And there are things entirely outside your control. Government decisions. Organisational restructures. Delayed announcements. The timeline someone else is running. The weather (but as a nation, don’t we just love talking about as if we can control it!).
When you focus energy on the outer circle, the one you cannot touch, anxiety rises and effectiveness drops. When you focus on the inner circle, the one that is entirely yours, you become more capable, not less.
Research in psychological flexibility consistently shows that people who anchor their attention to what they can affect experience lower stress, better decision-making, and stronger resilience under uncertainty.
In transition, that inner circle becomes everything.
Pack the boxes you can pack. Leave the place better than you found it. Show up fully for the people who need you to.
Let the rest be someone else's meeting agenda.
What They Call It Everywhere Else
RDP is a Royal Navy term. But the experience is universal.
In the other services and civil service RDP might mean something else, like being in the Redeployment Pool in the civil service, which means being prepared for the next thing so in some ways aligns. In the corporate world they call it gardening leave. In everyday life it is the weeks between handing in your notice and walking out the door for the last time.
The name changes. The feeling does not.
That strange suspended time. Not quite here. Not quite there. Still doing the job. Already somewhere else in your head.
And here is what I have learned from sitting inside it.
The Run Down Period is not wasted time. It is preparation time. Time to reflect and learn from that chapter and then look forward. The question is what you choose to prepare for.
The Beer by the River
Not everything about RDP is hard.
On a hot afternoon, after a day of meetings and effort and trying to stay engaged, a colleague and I walked to the river and sat with a cold beer in the sun on the “Tatty Cat” (MOD residents will know) [Tattershall Castle pub on the Thames in Westminster].
We talked about nothing in particular. We caught up on the things that matter that never make it onto an agenda. Family, Life, the future…sport, stuff.
It was, genuinely, one of the better moments of the last few months.
Because that is what connection does.
On the days when the outer circle is very loud, and the things outside your control feel very heavy, a conversation by a river with someone you trust resets something important.
You are reminded that the inner circle is not just about productivity and standards and showing up professionally.
It is also about this. The cold drink. The good conversation. The small ordinary joy that nobody puts in a report.
Clarity, Courage, Connection
If you are in your own version of RDP right now, whatever you call it, here is what I would offer.
Clarity
Name where you are. Not where you were. Not where you are going. Just here, now, honestly. That is the beginning of everything.
Courage
Stay professional even when the meter is dropping. Not because anyone is watching. Because your standards are yours and they do not belong to any organisation.
Connection
Find your person. Sit by a river if you can. Talk about something real. That is not a reward for getting the hard stuff done. That is part of the work.
Looking for More Clarity, Courage and Connection?
If this blog struck a chord, ACSIS Life Coaching offers a calm, supportive space to help you reconnect with what keeps you steady, resilient and more like yourself.
Sam and Lloyd work with people who are carrying stress, pressure or emotional weight and want practical support to move forward with greater clarity, confidence and connection. Sometimes the shift starts with something big. Sometimes it starts with something smaller, a pause, a breath, a different perspective, a little more lightness.
👉 Book a FREE Clarity Session with ACSIS Life Coaching
👉 Visit acsis.co.uk or email contact@acsis.co.uk
FAQs RDP, Leaving the Military and Transition
What does RDP mean in the Royal Navy?
RDP stands for Run Down Period. In Royal Navy slang, it often refers to the period before a draft, departure or ending when interest begins to wane. For many service leavers, it also describes the emotional experience of being present in a role while already preparing to move on.
Why does leaving the military feel difficult even when you are ready?
Leaving the military can feel difficult because it involves more than a job change. It can affect identity, routine, purpose, belonging and confidence. Even when someone is ready for civilian life, it is normal to feel uncertainty, sadness, relief and anticipation at the same time.
What is the circle of control in military transition?
The circle of control is a simple way to separate what you can control, what you can influence and what sits outside your control. During military transition, this can help reduce stress by focusing your energy on your standards, health, relationships, preparation and next steps.
How can service leavers prepare for civilian life?
Service leavers can prepare for civilian life by building clarity around their next mission, maintaining healthy routines, investing in relationships, translating military skills into civilian language, and seeking support where needed. Coaching can help with confidence, identity and decision-making during transition.
Can life coaching help with military-to-civilian transition?
Yes. Life coaching can help veterans and service leavers make sense of transition, build confidence, identify goals and create practical next steps. ACSIS Life Coaching offers UK-wide support for people navigating military-to-civilian transition, professional change and personal growth.
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