Commentary>>The role of the mentor

By Col. Mark Vlahos
314th Airlift Squadron vice commander

Mentorship is probably the most important role that supervisors and leaders at all levels engage in everyday, many times without even thinking about it. Why is this? Simply because regardless of who you are, what rank you are, or what position you hold – the Airman under you and around you are always watching how you interact and train them while executing your duties. Mentorship occurs every day with no prior planning involved. About 10 years ago, one of my mentors in the Air Force mentioned to me that the most important thing we all do every day is train our own replacement. I’ve thought about this phrase countless times and I can tell you it holds true. I’ve never started a new job without the knowledge and confidence that I could execute the duties required; this is because of all the prior training I received from my mentors.

Every Airman is worried about their next assignment and what they can or should be doing to help get them to where they want to be. My advice is to tell these Airmen not to worry about getting that next job, but to focus on their current job while trusting their leadership to work that next job for them. So how can you as a leader become better at this? Take a look each of your Airman and their records. Know their education level, previous job history, and performance and decoration track record. By knowing what your Airman have and have not yet accomplished, you can look for holes in their record and be able to tell them what they should or could be doing to strengthen their record and thus have a better chance at that next job they desire. Remember, your Airmen trust you as leaders to do this for them, so do it! The great thing about the Air Force is that there are many tracks a career can take and still be very successful. The way you got to where you are may not be the same road your Airman desire.

Don’t forget to take into account your Airman’s family. If you are going to recommend an Airman take a remote assignment to get some GWOT experience, don’t forget to discuss the follow-on assignment. A successful military career must be one of balance. Don’t push your Airman into that job that has a 2-1 deployment dwell or one that he or she will miss every meal with the family right after a remote assignment, thus causing undue stress at home. My take on a successful military career is having a family present to witness a retirement ceremony – that is a true measure of success, not necessarily what rank was obtained. Balance is important.

When all this is said and done, your Airman will remember you as a Mentor more than anything else. Knowing what it takes to get the mission done is easy; our Air Force is better organized, trained, and equipped than any other aero-space force on the planet. A leader, who is adept at executing the mission, while growing future leaders, is the one we all should aspire to be. Remember, in only a short matter of time you will be replaced. Make sure your replacement is ready to carry the torch where you left off.