Must strive for excellence in all we do

  • Published
  • By Maj. Duane Richardson
  • 60th Maintenance Squadron
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  "Excellence in all we do." It's one of our core values, it describes a lifestyle, a culture, a modus operandi if you will.

Yet, arguably, it's the one core value we are more willing to compromise than any other. We allow ourselves to be less than excellent, sometimes to the point of rationalizing our reasons for giving less than our best.

As my favorite American running icon, Steve Prefontaine, said, "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." Whether we like to admit it or not, we all do it. We all "sacrifice the gift" at one time or another.

As I come to the end of my tenure as a squadron commander, I have begun to reflect on my time here and what I could have done better, where I failed to be "excellent." I'm not implying that any of us are perfect or will always be excellent, however, I think part of "being excellent" is the ability and willingness to accept when you weren't and strive to do better next time.

Most people don't wake up in the morning and think, "I'm going to be less than excellent today." We go to work with every intention of doing the best we can. Then something happens. Maybe a customer becomes disgruntled and we get frustrated or the aircraft we're working on develops an issue during the launch sequence.

The bottom line is we come to a fork in the road where we can choose to be excellent or less than excellent. We can choose to provide less than our best customer service or we can choose to cut corners to get the aircraft off the ground.

In either case, we have not practiced "excellence in all we do." But why? Most times, it's because we sell ourselves short. We talk ourselves into believing we can't perform excellence and get the job done. If we're honest with ourselves, we will realize, in fact, we can, we just choose not to.

In this time of "right-sizing the force" and all the force management programs, difficult decisions are being made and "excellence in all we do" becomes even more important. Our "excellence" is being judged.

An example I use with the members of my squadron is this: I will ask them if they know what they need to score a 100 on their fitness assessment. Most of them don't know.

But, if I ask them what they need to pass their fitness assessment, most can provide the minimums without thinking about it. How does that set you up for excellence? You don't set out to get a three on your EPR, right? You perform to achieve that five. Yet, in order to achieve a five you know you have to perform with the mindset of "excellence in all we do."

If not, you leave your fate "up to the judges." I say, take the judges out of it. Wake up every morning and say, "I'm going to be excellent today." With every task you do, do it to the best of your ability and don't sell yourself short.

If you have read this article and are still trying to figure out why you should strive for excellence, here's one final thought. A few years ago, I had the incredible privilege of hearing retired Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Robert Gaylor give his "mailbox" speech. It has stuck with me ever since and goes something like this; when he retired, he was often seen in his front yard doing yard work. A neighbor stopped and asked why he was so passionate about maintaining his yard. The chief replied, "Because my name is on the mailbox."

If for no other reason, choose "excellence in we do" because your name is on the mailbox.