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  • Take stock before seperation happens

    Last week I sat in the base theater and listened to our Force Support Squadron do an admirable job briefing the various Force Management Programs being implemented this fiscal year. As I viewed the Airmen in the audience paying rapt attention, I noticed the varied expressions on their faces at

  • How's your bench looking? Look at who follows

    I'm a new chief master sergeant in the United States Air Force, serving the men and women of the 349th Air Mobility Wing, 349th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at Travis Air Force Base. Maybe if I say that enough times, it won't sound so odd. Maybe if I say that enough times, I'll stop turning

  • Newspaper visit puts AF in bigger picture

    My shop recently took an educational trip to a local newspaper, the Sacramento Bee. Our hosts were gracious enough to give us a tour of the areas where they write stories, print the paper and package it before delivery. As we were leaving, being journalists ourselves, they gave us a rather large

  • Positive airmanship powerful tool for teamwork

    When I was a young airman first class, I had a master sergeant NCO in charge who told me once, "You've probably got a good career ahead of you. If you've got one problem, it's that you're too positive all the time." That really threw me. I've had 24 years to think about that statement and I think,

  • King had quintessential leadership traits

    Monday marks the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. I'd like to reflect on some of the quintessential leadership traits King possessed that we should look for and develop in our own leadership journeys.Patience: It wasn't one speech that put an end to segregation in the United

  • New year time for right turn to success

    During an assignment to Scott Air Force Base, Ill., in the mid-90s, a friend and I were on our way to dinner and walking to a restaurant in downtown St. Louis. About half way to our intended destination, we came upon a stop light and paused to wait for the light to turn green so we could continue on

  • Choosing optimism in face of force management

    Happy 2014. Unless you've been away from your computer for the past several weeks, you know this year will be very challenging for the Air Force as we work through several very necessary Force Management Programs. If you've spent any time around me, you know that I firmly believe in a positive

  • Click2Go can save time, money

    With today's hustle and bustle atmosphere, it may be hard to get anything done after work. Between picking up the kids from school or trying to get dinner on the table, sometimes just having to go to the store to get groceries may seem like a daunting task. For me, after picking up my daughter after

  • Courage underscores all parts of leadership

    I'd like to ask you a question I get often: "What motivated you to make rank?" When I look back at my career and reflect on why I invested so much time studying, working long hours and working on my personal development, the answer is quite simple. Initially, I saw it as a means to a better

  • Do you have the right people on your bus?

    I am not a huge fan of "how to" leadership books. The few I have read throughout the years left me with the feeling that the author has resided in the ivory towers of academia and never been bloodied in the trenches of everyday leadership. However, a number of years ago our operations officer at the