TRAVIS
AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Actions speak louder than words, a statement
many of us have heard throughout our lifetime.
Have you ever thought about what it means? Your words as well as your actions as a
leader and follower illustrate to others the type of person you are.
As a leader and follower over the years I have learned to
use three questions as my guiding principles.
They are: Can I trust you? Are
you committed? And do you care about
me? I try to ensure not only my words
but my actions answer one or more of these questions to those I lead and
follow.
Trust is an essential human attribute and virtue, being
both trusting and trustworthy. Building
trust requires constant and authentic communication and every action
communicates something to your subordinates about who you are. There is the age old argument about trust, is
it earned or given. I offer, it must be
given. In order for others to trust you,
you have to give them your trust from the beginning.
There are three C’s you can focus on to help build a
trusting relationship. The first C is,
compassion. Simply showing concern for
others by taking time to slow down and listen to not only their words but their
emotions, fears and concerns. The second
C is, competence. Always work to be a
technical expert in both your primary duty as well as in leadership and
followership. The third and final C is,
consistency. Have a consistent reaction
to situations, the same tomorrow as you did today and yesterday.
Commitment means different things to people at different stages
throughout their life. As a child you
are committed to doing what your parents tell you, they are your parents and
you want to obey them. As you get older,
maybe a bit more rebellious, say as a teenager, you may not be as committed to
listening to your parents as you once were.
As an adult, commitment takes on a new meaning for each of us.
In the Profession of Arms commitment is not a phase, it is
an obligation and responsibility and one that should not be taken lightly. Are you committed to serving others, those
both superior and subordinate to you? Each
and every one of us is a valued member of this team and we owe it to each other
to provide a level of commitment which communicates that we want what is best
for the organization and those who serve it.
We must display commitment by setting and maintaining standards, we must
ensure the resources and training needed to accomplish the mission are
provided and we must be committed to
their overall well-being.
There will be times when our subordinates fail, allow them
to fail. We must allow them to fail
forward, learn from their mistake and remain committed to providing them with what
they need to learn and move past it. We
shouldn’t allow a lack of commitment on our part to be the reason someone fails,
when this happens, we all fail.
Everyone has a desire to be cared for. Regardless of the position you hold within
the organization you can care for others simply by being engaged. Being engaged is an emotional commitment to
the organization, the members within this organization and the goals of both—both
personal and professional. Do not
underestimate the value of a personal connection with those you work with,
whether superior or subordinate. Caring
for individuals shows them you are concerned with their welfare, you are
invested in them and want to see them succeed.
Every individual within the unit has unique talents and interests and
good leaders know how to uncover them with engagement. Everyone has a story about who they are,
where they come from, as well as who and what in their past helped shape them into
the individual they are today. Take time to learn the stories of those around
you, share your story as well, they need to know you as a person, not just a
leader or follower, and strive to learn as much about someone you can. Doing so helps foster a relationship built on
trust. Each of us must work to create a culture within our organization built
on trust, commitment, and care. If each
of us focus on answering these three questions with our words and our actions,
there are no bounds to what we can achieve together.