The past Saturday, I had the honor of being invited to a U.S. Air Force dining out ceremony. The occasion was for the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Detachment 270 at Kansas State University. As prior military, I had attended several of these formals in the past, so it was very reminiscent of my past years in the service as I was surrounded by cadets and officers in military dress blue uniforms.
The honored guest speaker of the night was Chief Master Sergeant (Retired) Bob Vasquez. CMS Vasquez is currently a Course Director at the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, and is an accomplished author of three books, musician, speaker, life coach, mentor, and parent. Chief Vasquez is also a professor at the University of Colorado and is a certified Franklin Covey coach.
CMS Vasquez’s speech was catered to preparing the next generation of young lieutenants to accept the responsibilities of leading the greatest military force on earth. However, I found it to apply to leaders in any organization and even in one’s personal life. As a prior military leader, I’ve developed my personal leadership style around the principles emphasized in books such as “Colin Powell’s Principles of Leadership” and the “Challenge of Command”. Chief Vasquez’s speech served as a reminder of what I had learned in my late teens and early twenties as I studied for military board selections and leadership opportunities.
He emphasized four main characteristics of effective leaders. First, your leadership, success, and influence are controlled by how you view yourself. One must have confidence in their ability to perform tasks and attain certain levels of success before it can be done. If one views oneself as worthless and incapable of doing much good to society, then one will always fall short and continually disappoint themselves and others. CMS Vasquez pointed to the sharp rise in suicide rates in the military as an example of such people who have a negative opinion of themselves and don’t believe they are capable of anything worthy. In other words, one must have a strong ego. Notice he didn’t say a big ego, just a strong one. One who has to walk around touting his or her achievements or greatness is one who has a big ego. Those who have strong egos and sub-sequentially make good leaders are those who are quite and humble and show their worth by their actions, not their haughtiness.
Second principle was to be aware of how you view others. Your influence among your subordinates or peers in an organization is going to be seriously determined based on how you view them or how you show your appreciation for them. If you look at someone as a dirt bag, they are inevitably going to behave as such. To have low expectations of somebody and to let that perception of them be known by derisive comments or actions towards them or in public will yield negative results. The same can be said of raising children. A child raised by parents who continually ridicule and treat him or her like they will never amount to anything, will rarely have the confidence in themselves to achieve great things. On the flip side, to have faith in ones subordinates and continually emphasize that you expect the very best because they are the very best in your eyes, will result in maximum effort being applied by those subordinates who do not want to lose your faith and admiration.
The third principle was to be aware of how you are viewed by others. One of the best quotes from the WWII General Patton was that “We are always on parade”. In a business and professional setting, we are careful to watch our words, tempers, and behaviors in public. When a member of the public watches a member of an organization, social class, political party, or race make an impolite, unhelpful, or uncouth gesture, they stereotype the rest of that particular group to be the same way. Not only do such actions not help your good reputation as a person or a leader, but they affect the image of your organization, or in this case the military, as well. The two most powerful words in CMS Vasquez opinions are “thank you”. None of us are entitled to help an elderly lady lift her heavy carryon luggage to the overhead bins in an airplane or to hold open a restaurant door for a complete stranger. However, small selfless gestures such as these are taken note of by more people than we realize and are one of the most vivid representations of our true character.
The final principle that CMS Vasquez elucidated to the audience was to perpetuate a positive view of the world. To advance to accomplish great things in one’s life and in society, one must believe that it is a worthy and worthwhile cause and that such effort and sacrifice on your part is a noble one. A person/leader must believe in their heart that they are making a positive difference for mankind and in turn making the world a better place through their influence in leadership positions. After all, what makes a good leader good? A leader must use his position to better those under him and the organization that he represents. Almost anybody can be a manager. However, a true leader has a burning desire to make a positive influence in the lives of those under him or her, and in turn the world around them. A true leader strives for excellence; excellence most importantly from himself or herself, next from those under him or her, and then desires to help attain that excellence in the world around him or her.
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