Commentary - Taking care of Airmen, leading by example

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Gabe Gonzalez
  • 8th Security Forces Squadron
KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  We are in an Air Force that is continuously changing.

From introducing fitness into our culture to new uniforms and issues such as the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy; it seems like it is hard to maintain any type of continuity.

The challenge our military faces with an evolving force, along with the dynamic nature of our military operations, requires us to be flexible. With flexibility, one thing must stay consistent - good leadership. Good leadership is the art of inspiring, motivating, leading by example and getting in the trenches with the troops. Leading is not always easy and sometimes you have to give a hard push in the right direction.

There have been a few people in my military career who have impacted my character today. One of those people was my first supervisor, then Staff Sgt. Walter Pogorelski.

When I arrived at my first duty station, it was well known that I was a runner. Although I was fit, I was lazy. My supervisor told me to try out for "Contending Warrior". This was a team graded on shooting, tactics and fitness. The day I was supposed to try out, he called me to see how I did. Being the lazy person I was, I told him, "I decided not to try out; I'll just concentrate on my CDCs."

His response was, "I didn't ask you to try out! Get your *** over there now!"

I went, tried out and made the cut for the team. That year I was not selected to compete in the overall competition; however, I have competed many years since that day.

Sergeant Pogorelski had goals for me and he made his expectations very clear. He continually challenged me and continued pushing me in the right direction. Though, challenging me to excel wasn't the only thing he did for me. He enforced standards every time I was in violation of something. What I mean is he would correct me on the spot for the smallest infractions. In fact, I was escorted to the barber shop one time to ensure I had a proper military style hair cut.

At the time, I despised him for making me do things I didn't want to do and always being on my case. But now that I look back and take a look at my career, I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for his leadership. To this day, he is one of the most influential people in my career.

Developing our Airman can be a tough task. Principles such as "grab by the collar" and "following up" are basic, but are absolutely necessary. Too many times, our Airmen are left to fend for themselves. In many cases, if a supervisor just took a little extra time out of the day to interact with their subordinates, many problems can be diverted. Taking care of Airmen requires attitude, persistency and guidance. You have a chance to leave your mark like my first supervisor left with me. Although he was very unpopular to me at times, I see how effective his leadership was.