turninglifespaiges

Have you ever thought to yourself, “Am I making a difference? A real difference in life?” I have; I always have.

That’s my life dream, to actually make a positive difference in the world. I just wasn’t sure how I was going to do it.

I was packing up my laptop after I sent my Soldiers home from drill on Saturday; one of my last Saturday’s with my Unit since my change of command is coming up in October where I hand off my position to another peer. My first sergeant (right-hand man) comes up to me and says “Ma’am, we’re really going to miss you.”

”I miss y’all too, but don’t worry, the incoming commander is just like me and y’all will be fine, I said.

“Ma’am, you’ve created such a good morale with the Soldiers here. We’re like a family, much more than any unit I’ve ever been in, and I’ve been in for a while.”

I shrugged my shoulders, “Nah, the Soldiers and NCOs do that. Y’all have been an amazing team. You work hard, and they’re good people.”

He said, “It all started with you Ma’am.”

Then we had our annual family day, and had fun at the beach. We all played a wicked tournament of volleyball, had a blast. At the end I asked some of the NCOs how they thought it went. They said this was probably the best one they had at the beach.

“What was different?” I asked.

”Well Ma’am, none of us really spoke to each other before. Now we were all talking, playing sports, and laughing together. Kinda seems like we’re one big family.”

I took it in for a second. I thought back on the way home about what impact I was leaving on the Soldiers by every little thing I did. Showing up on time, being positive, being transparent, honest, caring; it planted a seed of a healthy and loving environment where all of us could work together and be a team.

I didn’t see it at first, but now that I’m leaving, I definitely can visualize it. It’s the goal I’ve always had; to leave a positive impact. We’re one of the most desired units to call for action, and we get so many accolades from counterparts when we perform missions. I never credit myself, always my Soldiers; they’re the ones doing the work.

Its crazy just what being yourself and bringing 100% to your job every day can have on your team. I’ll miss them, and they can know they taught me how to lead, and what delegation and trust is all about.

I suppose it’s time to go find another group to impact.

The ripple effect is in full action here. Time to go make another splash somewhere else.