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The power to choose

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Jerome Osurman
  • 19th Equipment Maintenance Squadron, commander
LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. --  We're faced with decisions from the very first moment we wake each morning. Each day we must make decisions to get out of bed, get dressed in our uniform and come to work. We make decisions before going to sleep to set our alarm clocks so we can wake up with enough time to do all the necessary things to arrive at work on time. 

We rarely think about the power and authority we have to make these somewhat insignificant decisions, but each of us has this power to choose. Our Air Force Core Values of Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence in All We Do influence our decision-making process. It's our values that influence our decisions, and our decisions drive our course of action and our course of action leads to consequences, good or bad. 

As I was driving home from work one day, I saw a church marquee that read "God gives us free will; it's our decisions that cost." How true this is that we have the free will to choose and make decisions, but our decisions can be costly. For example, take the technical sergeant who decided to drink alcohol, then got into his sport utility vehicle to drive to his friend's house. He never arrived because he crashed, was ejected out of the vehicle and killed. He had the power to make the decision not to drink and drive, and he even had the power to choose to put on his seatbelt, but his bad decisions drove a course of action that led to his consequence of death. 

In contrast, how about that Airman who decided to put on his seatbelt when he drove home for lunch? During a stormy summer day, he rolled his SUV four times and walked away from his totaled vehicle with only a scratch. His good decision to put on his seatbelt drove his course of action to buckle up, and his good consequence from that decision is he is alive and well today, continuing to be a very productive member of Team Little Rock.
One thing is certain, bad decisions lead to bad courses of action, and bad courses of action always lead to bad consequences. You have the authority and power to choose, so choose wisely!