My daughter decided to enlist in the Air Force and I’m very proud of her! I think it’ll be good for her growth as a person and help build character and resilience – although she’s a pretty spunky young lady as it is!
I learned a lot from my seven years in the Air Force, especially basic training! I remember pulling in to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas at 2am. Some big, loud guy jumped up through the door of the bus and yelled, “Alright, ladies!” (even though 90% of my companions were male) “Up and out! Line up!” Then he shouted, “Up against the wall!” (In that first phone call back home I told my Mom I was scared silly; I wasn’t sure what was coming next!)
But I have fond memories and realize now how much I learned about life and leadership during those eight grueling weeks. (I can hear my Marine and Army friends snickering at me right now…”Grueling, Laura? You can’t even GUESS what grueling feels like!”)
Ahem! Okay, so as I was saying…here’s what I learned:
You “earned your clothes”. New uniforms were added to our “wardrobe” as we progressed through each week of training. Wearing them hinged on achieving certain milestones and we didn’t get to wear our dress blues until the end. Wearing the next set of clothes was a privilege you earned. (And just in case you’re wondering, we did not start out naked!) Lesson learned: what’s worth having is worth working for. You have to prove you’re worthy, qualified and ready for the responsibility. It might be hard to wait for the “goodies”, but you need to know how to handle it so you don’t cause yourself (or others) harm if things come too fast and easy.
Peer pressure was a powerful tool. If one lady wanted to put her sweater on, she knew we’d ALL have to put our sweaters on. So we learned to make decisions and requests keeping the needs of the entire team in mind. Lesson learned: It’s never just about you; your actions end up impacting others. Even if you think this one decision is a small one and you make it behind closed doors in the dark of night, it’s possible the ripple effect will be felt elsewhere. Sometimes having a strong support structure (family, faith, community) helps us tow the line through our weaker moments.
The team had to move as one. Marching 101 required you pay attention to the person beside you, in front of and behind you. You took your cues from each other with one goal – to move as one. If you got out of step, you’d “skip” to match pace. If your stride started bouncing, you’d have to regain control and settle back down. Typically a whisper from the person behind you, “you’re bouncing” would snap you back into form. Lesson learned: Teams, boards, councils and parents should speak with “one voice” and act as one. We may not agree with the direction the group wants to take, but at some point you have to choose whether being part of the group and supporting them is more important. Sometimes it’s not. Sometimes you are the lone voice in the wilderness, fighting against groupthink. You’ll know when it’s worth it to push back based on what’s at risk if you don’t.
We were all in it together. At first, there were the few who were totally unprepared for the shock of basic training. Their recruiters hadn’t been straight with them and they whimpered at night under the covers. But gradually the group started to bond. We helped one another through tough times and watched for ways to ease the burden for some who struggled. Lesson learned: Helping others distracts folks from their own worries. In the book, The Survivors Club: The Secrets and Science that Could Save Your Life
No talking to men in the first 10 days. I’m still not sure what that one was all about! I’m certain it had something to do with instilling yet MORE discipline – squelching those animal instincts and all. So, I broke that rule the first week.
I tried to avoid the tall, handsome guy who kept chasing me around the aisle at the small BX (general store), but he was pretty determined! I kept dodging him until he slipped me a note that said, “Aren’t you Sandy’s friend from Rochester NY? I’m her old boyfriend!”
Sheesh! I didn’t recognize him with no hair! He turned out to be one of only two people I knew from home and it was hard to say good bye when he and Charlie shipped out a week before I did. Lesson learned: friends from home are worth their weight in gold!
I’m sure my daughter will get through basic training with her own set of “lessons learned”. I’m just hoping the lessons that squelch those “instincts” stick the best!
{ 2 comments }
