Some People Need to Get Shot at
In 2011, I found myselfin the farmlands of Afghanistan on my third deployment. As an Air Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal(EOD) guy, I was attached to the 1st Infantry Division in the Ghazniprovince. While out on an Air Assaultmission, one of our infantry platoons missed our gorgeous EOD faces so muchthat they found a stockpile ofexplosives and called for our help. Being the only EOD team for the Company, the three of us Air Force dudeswere swiftly dispatched with an Army Quick Response Force for the two-hourdrive across Afghanistan farmlands to rid this polite Taliban family of theirsupplies.
Once on scene, we parkedour luxurious (not really) armored truck, walked to the house, analyzed thesite for booby-traps, cleared the explosives, and then carried the loot back toan empty field for a controlled detonation. After placing the items, we began walking back to our truck to initiatethe detonation from a safe distance. We found ourselves interrupted by thesound of faint machine gunfire in the distance. Assuming the Army dudes were blasting away at rabid dogs, I turned myhead toward the disturbance just in time to see the ground exploding into tinylittle puffs…which were rapidly moving in our direction! The little puffs blistered past in front ofme, missing me by no less than a few feet. The little puffs then turned into“whips and snaps” sounds deep in my ear. I sprinted forward just in time to miss another burst that correcteditself to within a few feet behind me. The three of us Air Force dudes dropped tothe ground and began scanning for the source of fire.
What happened next isremarkable; our training kicked in! In that moment, rank didn’t matter. Feelings didn’t matter. Political correctness was out the window. The only thing we cared about wassurviving. We were pinned down andneeded out. We began returning fire inthe direction of our shooters to hopefully eliminate the threat, and to providecover fire for each team member to individually bound back to safety. Once we were settled in a nearby ditch about100 yards away, we let our angels in Army clothing chase down the shooters andrestore a bit of temporary peace to our situation. We eventually continued our mission, blew upthe glorious weaponry, and returned to our 5-star tent located on the tiniestof dusty Forward Operating Bases.
Now that I’m a littleolder (but probably not much wiser), I’m beginning to realize that I actuallyneeded to get shot at. Here’s what Imean: getting myself into thesesituations taught me the value of “in the moment leadership.” When we were taking fire, we didn’t have toconsult Air Force Instructions or regulations before we acted. It was pretty easy to just go with ourgut. One of the most poisonous decisionsa leader can make is indecision or risk-adverse problem solving. Unfortunately, today’s culture has produced ageneration that trends toward avoiding risk at all costs. True leadership, however, is laden withrisk. When those we lead ask for ourinvolvement, they’re not asking for us to regurgitate written guidance tothem. They want our LEADERSHIP! They’re trusting our judgement and often wantour GUT feeling about the situation. Leadership is not blind recitation of rules and safe policies. Leadership is leaning on one’s gut and making the call--oftentimes onthe spot. That’s “in the momentleadership.”
The second lesson Ilearned was the value of conditioning. In the same breath that I advocate leaders lead with their gut, Iequally exhort that they condition their gut with solid training and knowledgeof rules and regulations. In fact, forin the moment leadership to be effective, a leader must possess an ethicalcompass that is calibrated to their own leader’s true intent. On the training ranges, we carefully learnedand rehearsed the concepts of moving under fire so that in combat, our trainingwas so ingrained that our gut reaction was to do the right thing. Ifyour ethical compass is in tune, your gut decision will lead you in the rightdirection. My team had trained andpracticed that bounding maneuver time and time again on the firing range, but Ican’t remember a single time it was more textbook than when we actually neededit.
But what about thosetimes when rules conflict with your gut? Let’s face it, not every written instruction and rule book is aone-size-fits-all answer to problems. Infact, written guidance sometimes seems downright counterproductive to the rightthing. In my opinion, this is whereleaders make their money. My advice: analyze the situation and don’tbe afraid to accept risk and go with your gut. When you’re in a tough spot, picture yourselfin the future telling your grandchildren about this particular situation. Which decision is not going to embarrass youor cause you to lie to those grandbabies? Go with that one! It’s a funnyanalogy, but I hope you get the point.
The third lesson Ilearned from getting shot at is probably the one that is most needed in ourcurrent culture…I am in the United States Military. We are members of the best fighting force theworld has ever known. Our job is savinglives that need saved, taking lives that need taken, saving infrastructure thatneeds saved, and destroying infrastructure that needs destroyed. Our previous Secretary of Defense Mattis saidthat we are a Department of War. Ourminds must constantly be geared toward that calling. When bullets were flying, I wasn’t thinkingabout volunteering, burger burns, or overdue computer-based training. I was simply grateful that my team wasproficient at their primary wartime skills. In today’s leadership culture, weMUST continually revector ourselves toward our primary mission. For my military folks, take a hard look atyour team meetings. How much of yourfocus is on peripheral programs compared to time spent on relevant threatbriefings, national security strategy, and improving your team’s skills to meetthat strategy? Even in non-combat jobs,we have a mission that we’re trying to accomplish, and we have demands that arepulling us away from accomplishing that mission. Refocus yourself and get your team back onthe mission! Are you a leader of people,or are you simply a manager of programs and processes? You decide!
Here’s the good news: you don’t have to get shot at to learn commonsenseleadership (actually, I highly recommend you avoid getting shot at if at allpossible). Some people are born withamazing talent and are natural leaders. I’m not. I needed to get shot at a few times before I realized what’s reallyimportant. What I learned wereprinciples that apply across all environments for a commonsense approach to “inthe moment leadership.” What kind ofleader are you right now? If you’re onethat needs to get shot at, make a change. Condition your gut. Trust your gut. Lead your people to the mission! Charge!
Editor’s Note: M. Cole Pasley is a native of Georgia and entered the Air Force in 2005. He is an Air Force Senior Master Sergeant and is currently stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany as the EOD Flight’s Superintendent.