Boldly do what you should be doing all along Published July 10, 2012 By Col. Lavanson Coffey 30th Launch Group commander VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Do you always do the right thing? Do you always know what the right thing to do is? While there may be lots of room for debate, it is generally held that the "right thing to do" is largely defined by public law or treaty, organizational regulations, instructions and policy, and the societal mores and values your parents, teachers and friends relayed throughout your formative years. I suspect most of us try to do the right thing as often as possible, but I know there are times, after assessing the possible risks, that we purposely give ourselves permission to misbehave. We know the right thing to do and we choose not to do it. An example of this is when I give myself permission to drive approximately five miles over the posted speed limit, even though I know the right thing to do is to drive at or under the posted speed limit. I assess the risk of being caught and the potential repercussion as low, which justifies my behavior. Just yesterday I observed a Vandenberg Airman, in uniform, walk out of the base gym towards the parking lot, never once using a sidewalk or crosswalk. When I hunted him down and asked him if that was the right thing to do, he quickly answered "No!" Like me, and many others of us, he had assessed the behavioral risk and potential repercussions as low, and gave himself permission to misbehave. As I thought through several examples, it occurred to me that in almost every case, the choice to misbehave is complemented by a measure of selfishness, a dose of entitlement, or a heaping spoon of carelessness. We subconsciously rationalize our decisions to not do the right thing because we selfishly believe the consequences will only impact us as individuals. Not using the sidewalk and crosswalk to the parking lot selfishly saves an individual about 50 to 60 steps, right? And, the possible consequence of being confronted is low. However, we often overlook the impact to others who might observe our actions. We would be wise to consider how our individual actions reflect upon, and project our entire unit. As leaders, we are called to always remember that our actions drive perceptions. Always doing the right thing is a team sport. It takes every member of the team to set the example, and confront any misbehaving corner-cutters who might otherwise impact our reputation. This is a tough sport, because it's played 100 percent of the time. There are no time-outs. You're in the game both on and off duty, within and outside of the local area. And, as we ramp-up for the next round of compliance and readiness inspections, we must examine the perceptions we strive to present. The risk assessment questions we have to ask are: Is this a behavior I'd want all my team-mates to emulate? Does this behavior project the image I'd like to present? The answers are ours to define -- both by action and by tolerance. The good news is: We have great teammates, and our successes reflect broadly and positively on the entire Air Force. So go forth...and boldly do the right thing!