Discover a new you - without the 'you' Published March 6, 2010 By Col Richard Scobee 301 FW Commander NAS JRB FT WORTH -- I bet nearly every one of us begins the new year with resolutions. Most of us seem to lose track of them by the end of February. This is not always a bad thing because a lot of you put those resolutions aside to focus on someone besides yourself. Everywhere we look we see the consistent message of "put yourself first." Although this may initially seem like a good idea, it can end up being unrealistic. If you have a family, they most certainly come before you as a parent or spouse. Even if you're single and have no children, your job, friends, pets, and personal commitments can eat up all of your time. Although it's easy to wear ourselves out trying to help others, there's nothing as satisfying as seeing a smile or hearing a sincere "thank you" when we've been able to help someone out, even if that meant putting in some extra time or effort for someone who needed it. When it comes to our military life, it's part of the nature of the business. "Service Before Self" is one of our Core Values, and it can sometimes literally mean putting yourself last. We put our family and country's needs before our own. And we do it because we know someone's benefitting from our dedication to others. It might sound like you end up in last place, but that's far from the truth. That smile our spouse, child, friend, or even a stranger gives us when we've made their lives just a little better is the reward. Selflessness comes full circle in the military too. Whether our work merited a "thank you," a letter of appreciation, a Commander's coin, a medal or quarterly award nomination, your work should be recognized all the way up the chain of command. I'm honored and proud to see the results of the selfless dedication our Airmen give at all levels. I know we're going into another busy year where each of you will give your all just as you did last year. This year I'd like to see our supervisors and leadership push for recognition of our deserving Airmen like never before. To help jump start the effort, I've re-invigorated our incentive ride program and instituted a "civilian" category in our awards program in order to recognize the valuable contributions our traditional civilians make to this wing. I encourage every leader, from colonels and chiefs to lieutenants and airmen along with our civilian force, to encourage your people and reward their efforts. In the end, you will be rewarded for your leadership. Who knows, the Wing Commander might show up with a coin and a "thank you".