Commentary>>Professional mindset...professional Airman

By Chief Master Sgt. Richard Turcotte
314th Airlift Wing, command chief

As I travel throughout our Air Force, I am truly amazed by the professionalism and commitment our force displays. But how did we get to where we are as a service? What makes every nation’s military envious of the United States Air Force? More specifically; how do we retain this title as the premier Air, Space, and Cyberspace Force?

It’s simple – our professional Airmen and a professional mindset.

So what constitutes a professional? More specifically, what constitutes a professional Airman?

By definition, a professional is someone who displays expert and specialized knowledge in a field of practice, carries an academic qualification, produces a high quality of work and a high standard of professional ethics, behavior and work activities while carrying out one’s profession.

Sound familiar? I would suggest that a professional Airman lives this definition daily through technical skill upgrade and proficiency training. A professional Airman understands the importance of the Community College of the Air Force and undergraduate and graduate degree programs. They further understand their role in professional military education and its role in their development. A professional Airman understands the importance of mission, people and community. A professional Airman understands the term “Fit to Fight”. A professional Airman lives within our Core Values to ensure an ethical mindset and displays the behaviors required to produce the combat lethality our nation requires.

The Air Force has done a tremendous job in ensuring our competency and has committed tremendous resources and professional development opportunities in support of all Airmen. Yet at times, professional Airmen stray from that professional mindset.

In my opinion, it goes right back to our Chief of Staff of the Air Force statement of “getting back to the basics.”

We all from time to time need that reaffirmation – that vector check to ensure we are doing our part as professional Airmen. Surprisingly, it is the little things that we take for granted, or choose to ignore, that develop into instances of poor decision making, lapses in judgment or completely checking our integrity at the door and keep us from maintaining our professional mindset.

We owe it to our nation and our service to do our part in developing ourselves, our subordinates and our profession of arms to ensure we remain the premier Air, Space and Cyberspace force in the world. It means maintaining that professional mindset as Airmen through good times and bad. Are you doing your part as a professional Airman?