New Mexico Minuteman - Spring 2012 - Keep Trees

By Chief Master Sgt. Richard Mandeville
New Mexico Air National Guard
What’s so important about Air Force Values?
For want of a nail…the battle was lost!
I have often asked folks in various settings
to consider the saying “Practice
makes perfect”, and watched with amusement
when I told them it was a lie! It is, at
best, not accurate…If you practice a mistake,
what do you learn? So then, “Perfect
practice makes perfect”—everything else
just makes a mess.
The importance of the Air National
Guard and Air Force missions to our state
and nation requires us to adhere to a higher
standard than normally found in civilian life.
Every person must remain accountable for
his or her own actions, both in the performance
of duties and in personal conduct.
Our Air Force Core Values must always be
taken into account and refl ected in everything
we do:
• Integrity
• Service Before Self
• Excellence In All We Do
Consider the job site—do you want to fl y
on the aircraft of the maintainer whose attitude
is “…that’s good enough…”? Do you
want to eat food prepared by someone who
doesn’t consider their skill “professional”
in the kitchen? Do you want that uncaring,
disgruntled person keeping track of your
records or calculating your retirement?
Would you like to be in the fi eld operating
from intelligence developed by someone
who would rather be playing video games?
On occasion I have been privileged to
glimpse into troubled organizations, both
military and civilian. What I have observed
there, as they struggled for a modicum of
success in fulfi lling their mission, marks the
huge difference between an organization
that recognizes the importance of every
team member and those that don’t. Let me
be clear about what I am saying here: Air
Force Core Values are more than words to
be memorized in case a question is asked
about them during the next board. Rather,
they are thought out, universal maxims for
successful human interaction. So, then,
these core values that we identify as our
most closely held convictions, our moral
high ground, must become more than
words to be regurgitated by us at some
appropriate moment.
For instance, I ask the people who work
directly for me this question: “Tell me why
you can’t be a chief?” Assuming that a person’s
motive force will provide for essential
technical understanding that exceeds
mediocrity, there is only one answer that
truly will prevent a person from achieving
that high success, i.e. “becoming that
chief.” If a person’s
answer resembles
“it’s all about me,”
whatever the subject
matter being
considered, then
that person cannot
be, will not be successful. At the risk of
overstating the case, but in the interest
of clarity—you cannot know success
until your people have been assisted in
achieving it fi rst, so then, their success is
your own. That applies whether you are
at work, in or out of uniform, at home, at
school…pick the setting. Personal success
is predicated upon the personal
success of those who are performing the
process.
In the interest of provoking thought,
here are the Air Force Core Values and
some thoughts on each transcribed from
the Professional Development Guide (AFP
36-2241):
Integrity – Being faithful to one’s convictions
is part of integrity. Following principles,
acting with honor, maintaining independent
judgment, and performing duties with
impartiality help to maintain integrity and
avoid confl icts of interest and hypocrisy.
Service Before Self – Truthful straightforwardness
is required. Fidelity, allegiance
and devotion combine to form loyalty, the
bond that holds the nation and federal
government together and the balm against
dissension and confl ict. Accountability,
fairness, caring, respect, and promisekeeping
all have their place and role to
play when considering this core value.
Excellence in All We Do – In public service,
competence is only the starting point.
Every Airman is expected to be all they can
be and to strive beyond mediocrity.
Spring 2012 / NEW MEXICO National Guard 11