Leaders can make a lasting impression

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Zach Zeiner
  • 22nd Airlift Squadron commander
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  As I see it, mentoring is one of the most invaluable actions we undertake as Airmen and should be applied in every aspect of our daily lives.

Sure, our primary, day-to-day Air Force mission "to fly, fight and win in air, space and cyberspace" has not changed, but I believe we also have another fundamental mission responsibility. As leaders and supervisors, we need to pause, step away from the daily grind of moving the mission and invest time into how we cultivate the next generation of amazing Airmen through mentoring.

When newly assigned Airmen arrive to the 22nd Airlift Squadron, I focus on stressing the significance of mentorship and the role it plays in helping to develop the next generation of Airmen. In order to make a distinction about what I feel is truly important, I usually ask the same questions. I begin with, "If I asked you to name the last five Wimbledon champions, could you?" Typically, the response is no. Then I ask, "If I asked you to name the five people who have influenced you most in your Air Force career, could you?" Almost everyone can recall without hesitation the answer to the second question. Why? Is it because being a sports champion is not important? No. The answer lies in the fact that those who have served as our mentors and guided us in our Air Force careers have made a profound, lasting impact on a personal level.

Mentors teach, inspire, motivate and lead by example. They do this in such a way that who we are and how we conduct ourselves may be changed forever simply because he or she stopped and took the time to mentor. Culturally speaking, the Air Force does not hire for positions like corporate America. When we need leaders and supervisors, we do not simply put out a job advertisement. We select organically from within our ranks the individuals who have been grown, advised and mentored by those who have come before us.

During the past 16 years of service, I have had the opportunity to officiate a few retirement ceremonies. As I prepare my comments the night before, I repeatedly find myself looking over the individual's record of performance. A career spent serving our great nation is captured through performance evaluations, awards and decorations. But what a ROP does not capture is what kind of person the individual was or why they will be remembered.

I'd like to think we will all be remembered for being good husbands or wives, good parents to our children, good friends to our family and co-workers and, finally, good mentors to those we have supervised along the way.

There is no doubt in my mind that many of us in the Air Force would not be where we are today had a supervisor or commander not taken the time to be a good mentor. As we continue to push the mission, I find it imperative to pause and invest a few minutes of our time into those who will lead the next generation of great Airmen. Just a few moments of mentorship can leave a lasting impact on almost anyone. As I see it, being remembered as a mentor is a true measure of success.