Hard work still ahead of us Published April 3, 2008 By Maj. Glenn Basso 36th Contracting Squadron commander ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- Throughout my nine months here at Andersen, I've heard leaders speak about attitude, teamwork and how we must remain focused, vigilant, and continue working as a team. On that same path, I would like to talk about our way ahead and how it's fourth and inches here at Andersen. Enhancing the level of support provided to Andersen's mission and personnel should be relevant to nearly everyone reading this article since every function and every person at Andersen receives or at least indirectly benefits from the support provided. Additionally, meaningful improvement in the support provided requires input and feedback. In this relatively austere and remote environment at Andersen, delivering world class air power and effective mission support is challenging enough, and making substantial improvements will be even more of a challenge for all of us. We have the greatest undertakings in the history of Andersen AFB right at our footsteps. We are on the cusp of accomplishing great endeavors. The path ahead is clear and it is known there will be new challenges to overcome and new innovative ways to accomplish the mission. We must continue to work through each of the great endeavors to ensure mission success. Each of one us should take a long deep look inside ourselves and ascertain if we're using and deploying Jack Welch's four Es of leadership: Energy - Being leaders with tremendous personal energy Energize - Being those who energize teams, and don't intimidate them Edge - Being someone with a competitive edge and a will to win Execution - Establishing a track record of getting results Do you have passion about your job and can you see the big picture of what we're trying to accomplish? Search within yourselves and answer the question. I'd rather have one person who was passionate about their job rather than forty people who were just merely interested because their boss told them to be. As a squadron commander, I've seen and learned a lot about the mission and mission support. One of the most important lessons I've learned concerns the value of "partnership" - that is teaming between the supporting and supported activities. Each of you can be proud to know that "One Team, One Fight" isn't just another motto...it's a reality here at Andersen. But we can make the teaming concept even stronger and now is not the time to become complacent and allow requirements to slip through the cracks. It is not the time to say "no" or "we cannot help you." It is the time that we become passionate about our jobs, our fellow Airmen, and how we can help one another out. There's still a ton of work that has to be accomplished. We must do everything we can to go above and beyond the norm, to fight for that extra inch. Start with action, not words; people want results, not promises. Start by delivering change that is in this Wing's best interest, and back up your action with words, not the other way around. In watching professional football, a team may decide to go for it on fourth and inches. Does the team become complacent because they think that "we only need a couple of inches...it's not that far...getting a couple of inches will be easy?" I would venture to say that the answer is no. On the fourth down, the team bares down even harder, they concentrate even more on their given responsibility and give everything they have to execute. Vince Lombardi once said, "The Dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must pay for success. I think you can accomplish anything if you're willing to pay the price." I think that there's no limit to what we can accomplish if we put our minds to it. We are the team that is going for it on fourth and inches. We will bust through the defense and gain that extra inch to continue down our path to score the winning touchdown because we are, "Prepared to Prevail!"