How's your bench looking? Look at who follows

  • Published
  • By Chief Master Sgt. Laura Nepute
  • 349th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  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 around to see who you're talking to when I hear, "Good morning, chief".

How did that happen?

I have been unbelievably fortunate in the opportunities afforded me. Somewhere, somebody saw something in what I did or didn't do and thought I might make a good NCO. Every time I said, "No I can't do that," there was someone there to say, "Yeah, you can, and I'll help you."

Regardless of the path that got you to where you are, you're there. Once you accept the job, the challenge or the stripe, you owe a little something in return. You have the free will to accept or decline.

No one forced me to take any of the promotions, certifications or deployments. In fact, left to my own devices, I would have probably been retired at 20 years at whatever rank I had tacked on by then. But I didn't. I said yes to most of the opportunities and, in doing so, made a choice and a promise.

Anyone who's ever played in a pickup basketball game knows that all the cool kids and shining stars get picked first. It's really not that hard to pick out the 6-foot-4-inch individual to be your center. What about the rest of the spots? Still not a brain buster? You can probably nab a good point guard as well.

So, we're set, right? That's enough. We can play on forever, right? Slow your roll, Basketball Jones. What happens when someone gets hurt, or moves, or retires. You need a bench, right?

Not everybody can be 6-foot 4 inches, not everybody is a superstar, nor do we need them to be for success. That's not really what makes or breaks an organization, is it? There are plenty of people in every shop who are doing their job well every day, yet they walk among us unnoticed. Those are the people that keep the game going and keep the mission flying, the bench.

Our unit is currently without a sitting commander and, yet, we press on. Why is that? Before she left, our boss frontloaded a staff destined for success. Some of them already know they're kind of a big deal. Some do not yet.

Our Air Force mission, not unlike any other company's mission, is to succeed. None of us have ever or will ever do that on our own. We need a bench. So, the challenge is twofold. If you don't know that you're a superstar, consider that you may be and don't know it yet. If you're already in a leadership position, I'd encourage you to look past the obvious frontrunners and see your bench. Find those Airmen who quietly show up and do their jobs, probably without a lot of fanfare. That's your bench. That's your foundation. That's your legacy. That's our mission.

Not all of us can be heroes. Most of us go through the day just trying to be the very best at what we do in our jobs, family and life in general. Our success or failure at that is marked not by what a great job we did, but rather by what a great job those that follow do long after we're gone.

So, how do you know if you got it right? Look behind you. If you're proud of the people that are following you, you got it right.