Commentary Search

Commentaries

  • Leadership: There's an A.R.T. to it

    The common theme I’ve noticed in the leaders who’ve guided me is their understanding that leadership is an A.R.T. Most of us have heard at least once that leadership is a skill that most of us are not born with. My take is that leadership is a mindset; focused on attitude, relationships and

  • My Journey: South Korea to the United States

    I was born in Seoul, Republic of Korea, and I lived there until I graduated from college. I also served in the South Korean army as an assistant operations officer for two years to fulfill my duty to my people. I was responsible for disseminating command level information to subordinate units.

  • Hold the line

    I grew up in China as an only child. Six years ago, I moved to the United States because my mother wanted me to get the best education. I promised myself that while I pursued my education, I would make a difference worthy of crossing the Pacific Ocean.

  • Time management does not exist

    Time management is a concept that many people have become preoccupied with over the years.There are dozens of books available on the topic and many bases offer professional development courses on how to effectively manage time. However, when creating the professional development curriculum here at

  • From the darkness to the light

    September 9, 2017, was a day my close friends and family remember as a day of sorrow for me. My beloved wife of 12 years was taken from me by cancer.

  • Embassy life: Challenge accepted

    Opportunities come at all stages in your life; it’s what you do with them that often shapes your future.While stationed at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, and at 22 years of service, I received an e-mail from my assignment team that was just that—an opportunity.

  • Are you resilient?

    There are a couple of definitions of resiliency: The ability to return to the original form or position after being bent or the ability to recover from illness, depression or adversity.

  • Growing strong

    This past June, I reported in to Travis Air Force Base, California. As I drove through the main gate, I thought back to my experience 14 years earlier when I drove through the same gate as a second lieutenant.

  • Generations of time: The oath of enlistment

    It doesn’t seem like that long ago, but rewinding the clock 18 years–in the hot, summer sun of 2000–I had joined hundreds of other Airmen on a parade field at what was then called Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.

  • Rock star’s lesson one to absorb for career, life

    Michael Stipe seems like an unlikely source for life and career advice.Stipe was the lead singer of the great, defunct American rock band R.E.M. You’ve probably heard their music in hit songs such as “Losing My Religion,” “Everybody Hurts,” “Man on the Moon,” “It’s the End of the World As We Know It