Mighty Ninety finds ways to improve every day Published Jan. 27, 2011 By Col. Greg Tims 90th Missile Wing commander F. E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, WYO -- I had some good mountain rest and relaxation again last week. It's amazing how relaxing and calming strapping a board to your feet and flying down a mountain can be! As long as there is powder, the steeper the better. My kids started taking me down the terrain park to do some "grinds." I wore a helmet and hockey elbow pads. This is mandatory safety gear at my age when doing these types of maneuvers! If you have never snow boarded, it might be time to start. Or, if you decide to ski, I won't think anything less of you. I believe boarders and skiers can exist in harmony! Nevertheless, the conditions are superb and Outdoor Recreation can fit you right up. Don't let this winter pass if you ever have had the inclination to start, do it now...and please, don't forget your helmet! Air Force Global Strike Command provided us with two stripes for exceptional performance stripes, so Chief Master Sgt. Marty Anderson, 90th Missile Wing command chief, and I attended two surprise events to hand them out. I know the pictures were in the paper last week, but I just needed to let you know how enjoyable these moments can be for those of us fortunate to hand them out. We sure did surprise them. First, we snuck up on the Logistic Readiness Squadron when they were having a "training session." We called out Staff Sgt. Ryan Bigelow, 90th LRS, and told him he was out of uniform and handed him his technical sergeant stripes. Then we drove over to the 90th Medical Group where Jill Emmons, 90th Medical Operations Squadron, was conducting training and called out Tech. Sgt. Edward Mayle, 90th MDOS, and told him he too was out of uniform. So, we handed him his master sergeant stripes. My hat is off to both Ryan and Edward. These stripes are very hard to earn. Well done to you both! As a leadership team, we went over the nuclear surety staff assisted visit inspection line by line last week. They sure did give us a good scrub. A winning nuclear combat unit understands that success is in the details. I need everyone to ensure the recommendations by the NSSAV are fully implemented. This wing gets better every day. Every day we find another process to improve, a checklist to refine, or a better way to apply a good idea. We are better today than we were as the sun went down yesterday. The momentum keeps building. However, this takes engaged leadership at all levels. Get on board and make a difference! With an invite from State Rep. Pete Illoway, I had an opportunity to take Col. Scott Fox, 90th MW vice commander, Col. Sean Boyle, 90th Mission Support Group commander, Col. Fran Vasta-Falldorf, 90th Medical Group commander, Col. Don Adams, 90th Maintenance Group commander, and Mr. Barry Kistler, 90th MW director of staff, to watch the Wyoming legislature in action. F. E. Warren is so grateful to be part of the great state of Wyoming. Our heritage and current mission statement fits right into the legacy of values that made the West what it is today. What I saw was a body of elected officials who had rolled up their sleeves and were tackling the tough issues. What an honor and privilege to have watched this close up and in person. We had another superb deployed spouses dinner last week. Special thanks to Tech. Sgt. Pam Coleman, 90th Force Support Squadron, for setting this up, as well as Irene Johnigan and her members of Air Force Association Cowboy Chapter #357 for their generous donation -- they sponsored the complete dinner! I had an opportunity to kick off the Warren Fitness Challenge last week. Well done to Staff Sgt. Michele Gaines, Bonnie Schwartzkopf, the HAWC and Fitness Center staff. We have about 25 teams that signed up. I also formed a team. One thing I hope to improve on is eating better. When I see a Twinkie and an apple sitting side by side, it sure is hard not to reach for the Twinkie. Best of luck to all teams, and thank you for taking on this challenge! In my last article, I wrote a few lines on my thoughts about "The Servant," written by James Hunter. I'd like to share a couple more nuggets. James writes, "Remember that whenever two or more people are gathered together for a purpose, there is an opportunity for leadership." We have many situations on base where two Airmen are together engaging on a task. Crew commander and deputy, security response team leader and SRT member, two-person camper teams, at the military personnel services, fitness center staff, in the pharmacy, or on-base HVAC teams, etc. For all of us here at the wing, there is an opportunity to lead multiple times during the day. There also also multiple times to fail at leadership throughout the day. If you walk by a situation that is wrong, do you correct it? If you don't then you just lowered the standards for the wing. Lowering standards is the kiss of death for a nuclear combat unit. The last point I'd like to share with you is Mr. Hunter's equation. The equation deals with two variables: intentions and actions. His first equation is this: INTENTION - ACTIONS = SQUAT He clarifies, all the "good" in the world doesn't mean a thing if they don't follow up with action. He states, "The older I get, the less attention I pay to what people say, and the more attention I pay to what people do." Now, here is the other formula he proposes: INTENTIONS + ACTIONS = WILL This is leadership. Will is the energy and persistence to take a vision and turn it into a reality, the ability to take on a project and complete it, or to take a group and meet or exceede the standards of the task at hand. It takes will to walk by an event and recognize something just isn't right and then having the guts to take action to fix it. You can substitute "guts" in this case and replace it with "will". Go Forth and Conquer!