Upholding standards a charge that belongs to all

  • Published
  • By Chief Master Sgt. Brandi M. Thomas
  • 60th Medical Operations Squadron superintendent
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  My husband will not eat with me at the Mongolian barbeque restaurant outside the gate during the winter months anymore. Every time we eat there, I'm faced with correcting an
Air Force member who is wearing their green "snuggie" as it is affectionately known, or the green winter fleece as it is officially known, indoors. At first he found it amusing. We would walk in, find our seats and then he would look around and wait to see how long it would take me to notice and correct the Airman, NCO, SNCO or officer who was wearing the outer garment inside despite the instruction that states it is to be worn outside only. It's a small place, so I have never gone over two minutes without correcting someone.

Now, I assure you, I am not the uniform police. I do not enjoy interrupting my lunch to correct someone to include all the people around that person. I am also smart enough to know that I am far from perfect and I do not do everything right all the time. However, I do try to live the core values, and strive to do the right thing. I strive to meet the obligations I have been charged with and I agreed to as I proudly sewed on my chevrons all those years ago.

Sometimes I have to ask myself, "Am I the only one?"

When I was deployed to Afghanistan with the Army as a new master sergeant I got to be a part of their SNCO organization/leadership team. I learned many things from our Army brothers and sisters, but one significant take away was a ritual this unit put their new NCOs through. The sergeant major and a few of the unit's NCOs would take a new NCO and have them walk down a main street on post or through the unit and tell them that part of their new responsibilities was to correct all infractions they saw and they were going to practice together. The leadership team would follow that new NCO and give pointers and tips on effective ways to correct individuals and stop anyone who slipped past and direct the NCO to address whatever concern they had.

Some of you may cringe at the thought of having people watch you correct someone and give you pointers on what you are doing right and wrong. Whether you think it's brutal or not, worthwhile or not, it's part of your job. We do not get the luxury of picking and choosing which orders we follow or which standards we enforce. The military cannot operate that way.

So my challenge to you is to practice. Find ways that you are most comfortable
addressing infractions and address them. You don't need to embarrass someone or act in a manner not consistent with who you are, we are not all military training instructions, but you do need to set and enforce the standards and expect the same from those around you. If you are waiting for that next rank to give you the authority to correct someone, you are behind the power curve. The best advice I ever got was "If you want to be treated like a certain rank, act like one." Take control of your environment, the Air force has given you that authority and charged you with enforcing the standards. Your people want that from you and the Air force needs and demands it from you.

As the Superintendent of one of the largest Squadrons on base, the largest of seven in the Medical Group, I have a saying in my unit. I tell my SNCO leaders "If it gets to me, you have failed." I explain that it is not the Chief's sole responsibility or role to walk around in their sections and correct infractions. When I am in their sections and I see a violation of the standards I will correct the infraction, but then I will come find them and discuss why I am seeing the infraction in the first place. I ask why they have not corrected it or had the expectation of their people to correct it. There are over 450 people in my unit, I am only one person.

Thankfully I am not the only one charged with upholding standards. That responsibility belongs to all of us.