What kind of person are you?

  • Published
  • By Col. Michael Ross
  • 60th Medical Operations Squadron
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  What kind of person are you? I hope that grabs your attention. 

What a question like that really means is are you the kind of person I can appreciate, understand, care about? Someone I can value?

For those of us in the Air Force, it's simple to add "Airman" in place of "person." For the Air Force, we value people who set an example with the core values: Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do. 

See someone in an Air Force uniform and most can espouse them, carry them, recite them and, yes, value them. There are whole books written on the subject - what those virtues are we value in ourselves and others. 

The book I think of is "The Little Blue Book."  "The core values exist for all members of the Air Force family - officer, enlisted and civilian; active, reserve, and retired; senior, junior, and middle management; civil servants; uniformed personnel and contractors." My book is a little worn on the edges, dated Jan. 1, 1997, and it still matters.

When I was asked to share thoughts with the community, that question was on my mind. What kind of person are you?  Why do the core values matter when it comes to the kind of person I am?  How do I know what kind of person you are? 

Most of us define ourselves by the example we live.  For those of us who serve, we serve for a variety of reasons. Some for employment or escape, others for education and still others as an obligation to a higher calling. Does that fit within the core values? I submit that, at some level, you chose to serve because you saw superb examples of the core values. I want to share them with you.  Now, some of you reading this article will get it wrong. You believe that because you wear the uniform, you have the core values. That's not necessarily true. Wearing the uniform doesn't "give" you the core values - again, it's the example you live that makes you the person you are.

Are you that person?  Can you look at yourself in the mirror and say, "I serve with the core values?" I hope that's hard to do, but you find you can do it.  My following three examples faced that and, in each case, it was what they did that defined them as a person, not a uniform nor a book. They epitomize excellence in all we do, service before self and integrity first.

You'll notice I put the core values in reverse of the traditional way. That's how I'm going to talk to them. I don't believe any core value stands out above another. Living by the example they are makes you the person you are. They are all together. 

The three people I'm offering as examples are not well-known or on a list of who's who, just three extraordinary people who through events in their lives demonstrate what core values really are.

Retired Air Force Maj. (Dr.) Wayne Applewhite, is teaching current and learning chief executive officers and leaders of companies about leadership. When it comes to excellence in all we do, he drives home an important idea to his clients. He incorporates the concept of a commitment to learn, assessing risk and continual improvement in both his teaching and his company. 

The idea is that any person can step into his learning model and immediately apply it to their organization.  He started that journey in the Air Force, where he learned and practiced the core values every day. To this day, he continues to discuss values that matter such as excellence in your business, staying true to yourself and putting the company in front makes it a success. In discussing leadership with him, it's about excellence in what you do that makes a difference at every level.  The most successful companies he works with continue to use his modeling to grow.  He never gave up the idea that excellence in all we do makes a difference in everyday life.

Retired Sgt. Maj. Henry Ross, lived the example of service before self his entire adult life with more than 39 years of service to the Army as a military policeman and a civilian in government service. His example stands out to me, not because he is my dad but because he never hesitated to serve the higher cause for what he believed in. 

In the Army, he served in many places, including Vietnam, on the ground or in combat.  To him, being an MP meant he served all those around him. As a father, he continually taught us that to give of yourself was the highest calling you could accept.

"Do your best at what you do, regardless of what you do," he said.

To this day, my family still stands a testament to serving. They are fathers, mothers, leaders, scientists, CEOs, mental health professionals, nurses, teachers and volunteers all putting "serving" ahead of themselves. He taught us that regardless of what you did, serving your family and others meant service before self. Service to others is how we grew up.  Service before self wasn't always about an organization, but serving others before self was. Sometimes that meant a sacrifice. For dad, it meant a way of life.

My last example is about integrity. This core value is so basic to most of us that when it's challenged, we become defensive. The real question to ask is if your integrity was challenged by authority and you knew you were right, would you be courageous enough to put integrity first? 

Retired Maj. Frank Laifer is a true example of integrity. I relish hearing his stories of his days in the Air Force. Many of us recall stories like his of the times when an inspector would find "things" in closets or find improper use of technical orders that caused damage to major equipment. 

He was a communications officer and he served in Vietnam.  One story I enjoy hearing is from his career. He was dutiful in ensuring that maintenance records were adhered to. In reality, there were a lot of people including combat personnel relying on his maintenance to keep communications open. One of his bosses asked him to falsify a record that meant the Air Force would "look good with no problems" if he did. "I could do it," Laifer said. "It would have guaranteed me a promotion and I would have looked great to the entire chain." 

When it came down to it, he couldn't convince himself that it was right. He chose to tell the truth, knowing it was going to prevent him from being promoted.  His performance report suffered and he knew he wouldn't make it much further. To this day, when he talks about that story, there's a gleam in his eye and you can tell he would still do it again.  Do you have what it takes to do that?

So, my questions again: What kind of person are you?  What do you value in yourself? In others? One who took lessons learned from people who stand out as paragons of the core values? Or are you one who puts on the uniform, business suit, Hawaiian shirt and coasts along because you have to "be the core values?" What kind of Airman are you?  When was the last time you read the Little Blue Book?  When was the last time you lived it?  I hope you find yourself doing that every day. I always strive to.