Commentary Search

  • Fundamentals - The Building Block of Success

    While innovation and “thinking outside the box” get much of the headlines these days through a focus on process improvements and an array of innovation programs, we must ensure that we remain diligently focused on the basics and fundamentals if we are to have lasting and meaningful success both

  • The Value of the Uniform

    I love wearing the Air Force uniform.  In fact, I think I was born to wear it.  But it is funny, I was not one of those kids who became enchanted by the sight of a Hollywood actor wearing the uniform in a blockbuster movie, vowing to someday join the Air Force so I too could look cool.  I did grow

  • FAILURE: A Foundation to Resiliency

    Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest steppingstones to success.-Dale CarnegieResiliency. That’s a tough word for me. It sounds so clinical, but I get it. As a 25-year career Airman, I’ve seen my friends, leaders and Air Force families around me “dig in” and

  • Pathfinders in Norway

    The presence of permanently-assigned Air Force personnel in Norway comes as a surprise to most Airmen. “I had no idea we had a base in Norway” is a typical reaction, followed by the question “What aircraft do you support?” Strictly speaking, we do not have a base in Norway nor do we have an active

  • Honoring Courage and Commitment of Airmen Past and Present

    The Air Force brought unit patches back to the Air Force operational camouflage pattern (OCP) to further elevate our focus on honoring the heritage of squadrons as the war-fighting units of the world’s greatest Air Force.   Our senior leaders nailed it with this decision!  Over the past few months

  • Reflections After Two Months of Command

    Pathfinders— It’s hard for me to believe, but I took the flag and became part of this great 501st Combat Support Wing team just over two months ago.  And what a two months it has been! My wife, Kristina, and I want to say “Thank You” for the warm welcome our family received. We knew we were joining

  • Know your co-workers, family, friends and those you lead

    “I just can’t stand it! He is ALWAYS asking me why we are doing something, why we need it, and always asking if I have thought of all the options!”My SNCO sat in front of me in frustration, ready to lay the book down on our airman. As I listened, I realized the issue at hand was not necessarily

  • Correcting a Superior

    "There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long-range risks of comfortable inaction."- President John F. Kennedy. This message could not have been delivered any clearer, especially concerning military ethos. Even though the speech had political intentions, President

  • What Is Time Management?

    I’m going to turn back the clock a few years to when I was just a Staff Sergeant in the Air Force.  The year was 1996, the place was Fairchild AFB and the building the Wing Safety Office. I had just cross trained from being a Security Policeman to a Safety Technician. A lot of my job was to teach