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  • The 5 AM Club

    It is 4:50 a.m. and the alarm clock sounds. Briefly you think about turning it off and just getting another hour of sleep ... because who is crazy enough to workout at 5 a.m. anyways? Well, maybe tomorrow you'll hit snooze, but today you'll make the effort and drag yourself out of bed and go to the

  • A commitment to serve

    "What are you doing here? Tell me why you are here. If you are not here to win a national championship, you're in the wrong place. You boys are special... There are going to be days when you think you've got no more to give and then you're going to give plenty more. You are going to have pride and

  • Personal Responsibility

    Do you know someone that makes it sound like everyone is out to get them? That everything that happens to them is the fault of someone else? Usually, this is the result of that person not taking personal responsibility for the choices they have made. We all make choices every day. These choices not

  • My observations on leadership

    If you Google "Leadership Styles," you will get about 1.4 million responses. If you search Amazon.com for books on the subject of leadership, you get over 67,000 possibilities. It seems that everyone has an opinion on the subject of leadership. With so many options available, why would anyone be

  • It’s Called Work for a Reason

    During a recent Wingman Day at Grand Forks Air Force Base, the Force Support Squadron spent one segment of the day watching a video that featured a professional speaker named Larry Winget. Larry is an in-your-face; tell it like it is speaker. I've been a fan of Larry for over a decade and respect

  • Looking at the glass half-full

    As an Airman leader, it helps to look at everything with the mindset of the glass being half full. As president of the Airman's Council, I strive to reflect that approach in my actions and decisions. Being in a leadership position teaches you to better yourself. My intention for running for

  • Are You an Eagle?

    ".... I am now going to my grave with that lapse in moral courage."5Harold K. Johnson, Army Chief of Staff 1964-1968Recently, I attended an American Legion Post 95 and 97 combined dinner and had the opportunity to listen to David Shelton, the winner of the North Dakota American Legion Oratory

  • Are you setting the right standard?

    In February of 1998, I was a young maintainer stationed at Warner Robins Air Force Base, Ga., and I had just become a noncommissioned officer. I had two Airmen working in my section and we all got along well together. I remember feeling like I had arrived and nothing was going to bring me down. The

  • Feedback: key to Airman success

    A key part of being a leader and supervisor is providing appropriate and timely feedback to the Airmen who work for you. Feedback on our job performance allows each of us to improve and is essential to building future leaders for our Air Force. As I look back on my own career, I have had a few

  • What makes a leader a leader?

    Leadership is a journey of discovery. It is the expression of a person at his or her best, whose purpose is to transform something for the better and to develop this potential in others. Being an effective leader is not a one person pursuit, but requires you to harness the energy and talents of