From a Retired Air Force CMSgt

Today I sat in a meeting with the rest of my office. We had the privilege to meet with our Chief of Operations Mr. Gentz a retired Air Force  CMSgt. He is the Boss of all my Boss's. He is a big deal around here. I have met with him on several occasions for work related things. Let me tell you he is one of the greatest speakers I have ever listened too.  But today really did it for me. He shared with us some inspiring and motivating information.  Now I would like to share it with my reader's out there and pass on the inspiration and motivation.

Own your name and take care of your name, Have pride in what you do, your name is on it.

3 Pea's in a Pod

1) Persistant
2) Perseverance
3) Passion

These 3 things are key to achieving your goals which achieve your dreams.

1) Make success a choice when you wake up.

2) Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.

5 Keys to Have

1) Staffing- Win this thing together

2) Training- Take advantage of OJT, and other training available to you, never pass it away

3) Planning- Dreams are where we end up, goals are how we got there.

4) Atitude- Stress is your enemy. Pressure is your alliance.

5) Teamwork- A team always beats an individual. As Mr. Gentz put it, you can have the best basketball player in the world but with out teamwork you will never win the title's.

These are just the few key things I picked up today. I hope you find this as useful as I have already. Today after this my brain was really cranking thinking about how I could use these key things to help me become a better Human and Team Player.

"Seize the Moment"

Operation Open Wings

Today I received final approval for ACE's Fundraiser Event to raise money for the American Red Cross Relief Fund for Haiti!

I was home on the friday night after the earthquake had happened, and experienced a 5.3 Earthquake for the first time here on Okinawa. Then I thought to myself after being a little frightened that this could be us. I put myself in the Haitian people's shoes, and being on a small island realized that we would be asking and praying for help from surrounding countries just like they have been. And would rely on outside help to get through such a devastation. So I then realized that we could do something amazing and help and support the Island Nation of Haiti from the other side of the World. So over the weekend I came up with a plan and mission and named it Operation Open Wings. I knew that it would be impossible for me to do this myself and that I was going to need to put a team together to achieve the mission.

So first thing Monday morning last week I brought it to my ACE (Airman Committed to Excellence) Executives to see if we could sponsor this Operation. Well they gave it go. Since then I have been teaming up with Private Organizations around Team Kadena including Operation Warm heart who is our co-sponor, Top 3, Chiefs Club, CGOC, 5/6 Club, Red Cross and a few others. As a TEAM we are working together to put on some fundraising events. Our big one is going to be a 5k Run, 5 Feb 2010. Meet in front of Risner Gym. Registration will begin at 0615 and the run will start at 0700. To run there will be a $5 minimum donation.

 We have set a goal of raising 10k. To do this we are going to need a minimum of 2000 runners! Some people have said that's a little high. And some people reading this will think the same but it's not. We have 20,000+ people on Kadena Air Base and we are asking for 2000 runners. So this can be done and we are going to work hard to see that it gets done.

 We are asking for support from Commanders to encourage their people to come out for Friday morning P.T and participate in a good cause and help raise money for the American Red Cross to give to the unfortunate victims of Haiti.

Feeling the Effects of the Surge

So today I found out that I'm deploying to Afghanistan in 10 months. I'm lost for words really. Most People Civilians wouldn't understand what I'm about to say but I'm a little excited. Not excited b/c I'm going to fight a war but excited because this will be a big learning experience for me. I serve my country everyday doing my everyday job in the military but now I will be able to serve my country by helping with the war effort and being part of a team to help accomplish an overall mission. 

I feel our Country has once again fallen apart. In my opinion I wonder if the big decision makers in D.C remember why we went over there in the first place. It seems like this is going to be a never ending war because their really isn't any end game plan yet. But I hold faith in the system that they are working on a plan.

If your out there reading this, I would like you to do one simple task. If you see somebody in uniform go up to them and shake their hand. It might sound like nothing but it means a lot. Also take the time to really think about what the Military is doing over there. It's not all bad. A lot of good stuff is going on as well. When watching the news pay attention to the positive details or go online to your local Military website and read some of the stories of the war effort. I truly believe it will surprise you.