Stop poisoning well with how things were Published April 2, 2015 By Senior Master Sgt. Hope Skibitsky 60th Force Support Squadron TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At a recent professional enhancement seminar, enlisted leaders were asked to relay concerns to both our new installation commander and our command chief. Each of these Airmen had valid questions, most of which revolved around financial and staffing constraints and some were concerned about Travis Air Force Base, California's sustained high ops tempo. One of the NCOs asked if there was a "best" way to go about encouraging Airmen to keep positive, despite all of the money and manpower limitations. This resonated with me. Having dealt daily with first-term Airmen, it is becoming increasingly apparent that many of our Airmen's woes and angsts come from mythical comparisons they make - perceived losses based on changes they have personally never experienced. These Airmen seek advice and sometimes contemplate separation based on their state of upset. Many of their statements begin with, "My boss says we used to" and "I hear everyone saying." The truth of the matter is an Airman's reality is the one he/she is living, not the one previous generations grew up in. Airmen are resilient and will adapt to the Air Force in which they serve and they will do so happily, unless we "old hats" tell them how unhappy they should be. Our insistence on telling an Airman how much he/she is missing, how good things used to be and how constrained they "must" feel is the actual issue because before then, the Airmen didn't know any different. Imagine how empowering could we be if we stopped poisoning the well, if we encouraged faith in the system and if we simply let them be the powerful, positive Airmen of today's Air Force.