Mentorship: Process and Integrity Published Feb. 27, 2009 By Lt. Col. Brian Gaude 30th Space Wing Range Management Squadron VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Take the time to mentor folks on process and integrity. These are two critical ingredients that make up our Air Force lives. Air Force Instructions guide every fiber of our being and require us to follow steps of a prescribed procedure. It requires us all to have steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code to follow those instructions or they mean nothing. Process is defined as "To put through the steps of a prescribed procedure" or "a method of doing or producing something." Integrity is defined simply as, "honesty or steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code." I love the quote by Mark Twain that reads "If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything." I love this quote because I also interpret it as: if you follow processes with integrity you don't have to worry about anything. In other words, follow the AFI's and keep integrity in our process, and you never have to worry about being wrong. We all know our Air Force Core Values and that the first core value is Integrity First. Barrowing from www.airforce.com, the Airman is a person of integrity, courage and conviction. Integrity is a character trait. It is the willingness to do what is right even when no one is looking. It is the moral compass, the inner voice, the voice of self-control and the basis for the trust imperative in today's military. Integrity is the ability to hold together and properly regulate all of the elements of a personality. A person of integrity, for example, is capable of acting on conviction. A person of integrity can control impulses and appetites. But integrity also covers several other moral traits indispensable to national service. Honesty is the hallmark of the military professional because in the military, our word must be our bond. We don't pencil-whip training reports, we don't cover up tech data violations, we don't falsify documents and we don't write misleading operational readiness messages. The bottom line is: We don't lie, and we can't justify any deviation. Courage: a person of integrity possesses moral courage and does what is right even if the personal cost is high. Responsibility: no person of integrity is irresponsible; a person of true integrity acknowledges his/her duties and acts accordingly. Accountability: no person of integrity tries to shift the blame to others or take credit for the work of others. "The buck stops here" says it best. Justice: a person of integrity practices justice. Those who do similar things must get similar rewards or similar punishments. Openness: professionals of integrity encourage a free flow of information within the organization. They seek feedback from all directions to ensure they are fulfilling key responsibilities, and they are never afraid to allow anyone at any time to examine how they do business. Self-respect: to have integrity is also to respect oneself as a professional and a human being. A person of integrity does not behave in ways that would bring discredit upon himself or herself or the organization to which he or she belongs. Humility: a person of integrity grasps and is sobered by the awesome task of defending the Constitution of the United States of America. The Air Force Core Values are awesome standards to live by and easily followed. Taking the time to mentor our folks in process and integrity will keep our Air Force strong and running smoothly.