Year of Leadership: Discipline is a year-round standard

  • Published
  • By Maj. Tracy Watkins
  • 30th Comptroller Squadron commander
Happy New Year ... as I write this we are closing the books on Fiscal Year 2008 and eagerly looking forward to the start of Fiscal Year 2009! Typical New Year's celebrations are filled with reflection on the past year with resounding hope and celebration in anticipation of what's to come in the new year! 

From a budgetary standpoint, 2008 has been an incredibly successful year; we finished the year with one of the smoothest closeouts I have ever been a part of due in large part to the great teamwork of Team Vandenberg. In the last month of the year the team purchased more than $50 million worth of requirements in the areas of facilities, service contracts and, more importantly, quality of life. Every organization on this base has a play in the efficiency and effectiveness of closeout and while resource advisors, contracting, comptroller and civil engineering are the common faces, it couldn't be done without all of your tremendous support. 

Fiscal Year 2009 could be an extremely challenging year; as Col. David Buck mentioned in his Aug. 11 article in The Lompoc Record, "What's more challenging is our reduced budgets ..." It will take each of us to execute our FY09 funding like it was our very own money. This disciplined approach to execution will ensure the wing can balance taking care of the mission and taking care of people. How fitting that as we begin our new fiscal year, "discipline" is this month's focus in Gen. C. Robert Kehler's Year of Leadership. 

When we talk about discipline more than not it is perceived as negative ... and certainly there are negative sides to discipline. Discipline is defined in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary the following ways: "punishment or to punish or penalize for the sake of discipline; instruction, to train or develop by instruction and exercise especially in self control; training that corrects, molds, or perfects mental faculties or moral courage." These definitions are wide in scope and are often interpreted different ways. As members of the military, we are disciplined from the very second we begin our training either in Basic Military Training or when we start a commissioning program. Disciplined to act a certain way and conduct ourselves in a manner appropriate for the military. So why is discipline most often perceived negatively? 

My guess is when commanders have to punish to try and correct behavior it is painful for all involved ... and that is what makes headlines. Instead, we should focus our efforts on the positive side of discipline -- perfecting moral courage sounds a whole lot better than punishment! Each of us is disciplined every day; we come to work on time, we salute when appropriate, pay the proper respects to our flag and we treat each other with the respect deserved. This approach to everyday life comes from the positive side of discipline, the self-discipline we have within ourselves to do the right thing. 

Vince Lombardi, the great Green Bay Packer football coach said, "What we do on some great occasion will probably depend on what we are; and what we are will depend on previous years of self-discipline." So while those that are properly disciplined on a day-to-day basis do not make headlines, I will tell you your moral courage and continuous character in action will be tested during that moment in time or "great occasion." Will you be ready? 

A special thanks to the 30th CPTS Financial Management Analysis team for a great Fiscal Year 2008 and my best wishes to everyone for a self-disciplined Fiscal Year 2009!