TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Each generation plays a valuable role shaping our Air Force.

If a generation includes a decade of Airmen, then it's feasible for three generations to work together at any one time. The oldest generation provides strategic direction, the middle leads service functions and the youngest executes the mission.

Each joins for particular reasons, learns different lessons from their experiences and perceives the world through dissimilar lenses. These differences can cause conflict and confusion or can be leveraged for a diversity of thought. The Air Force evolved over time because different generations worked together to recognize change and adapt to it. We must do so again.

I arrived in the late 1990s to join an Air Force operating a steady-state of no-fly-zones and airpower displays over Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq. The previous generation had won Desert Storm, applying lessons learned from Vietnam. Together, we did "more with less" to evolve a Cold War organization built to deter the Soviets into a leaner service able to deliver Global Vigilance, Reach and Power.

9/11 marked a significant shift in generations. Many of us who entered service before 2001 valued the opportunity to be part of something larger than ourselves, to serve our country, and to get an education. 9/11 called a new generation of Airmen to arms with a defined enemy in their sights. They endured constant deployments and continued to serve because of the significance of the mission.

Fighting terrorism and insurgents required new thinking and investment, and this new generation helped to focus training and resources on the mission at hand and away from a potential big future fight.

The Airmen entering the service today have only known the Global War on Terror. Meeting them, they remind me of those who entered in the '90s. They recognize the Air Force is a good job with great benefits and education opportunities and they want to be engaged in its important mission. They're smart and patriotic. They joined knowing deployments are part of the job, combat is to be expected and resources are tight. While we may have trouble understanding millennial's iPhone habits, we must remember that we were young once and misunderstood, too. We proved ourselves with the caliber of our questions, ideas and work. The millennials will, too. 

Looking forward, our nation requires its Air Force to rebalance from global counterinsurgency and rethink how we will engage and destroy ISIS while deterring state aggressors. As my generation assumes responsibility to determine strategic direction, we will predictably fall into the old cognitive trap of "fighting the last war."

To curb this, we must have the courage to listen to and accept new ideas based on a rapidly changing reality. Our newest generation must have the courage to take appropriate risks, challenge the status quo and develop a vision to fit that reality. Our strength is our diversity of experience, and evolving our service requires all of us to think, question, and contribute as a team of generations.

This is how change occurs. It's time again to get to work.