Diamond Notes: Political correctness, the great crutch of the lazy leader Published Nov. 2, 2015 By Master Sgt. Brent Johnson 27th Special Operations Security Forces Squadron First Sergeant CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a series of commentaries by Cannon’s first sergeants and additional-duty first sergeants providing mentorship and leadership experience to Air Commandos, while highlighting Air Force standards. I am personally very excited to write an article for Diamond Notes; I think it is a great opportunity for us as first sergeants to reach out to a broad audience and present some new perspectives to all Airmen. In this series of articles, I have read many good ideas from some of my colleagues embracing the virtues of our Air Force core values - whether it be speaking about them directly or tackling any of the many facets they contain. They are extremely well written, contain very clear ideas, and all in all are worthy reads for anyone who takes the time to soak in this shared knowledge. It is, after all, what first sergeants do. But I am not writing this simply to praise my fellow shirts; I want to light a fire- put out a call to arms, and end a thought that is entangling our force in old ideas and holding development of our future leaders back. I want to diminish the myth that political correctness has a stronghold on our force. We have all heard it; the laments of those who say the Air Force has “gone soft” and “you cannot correct Airmen anymore.” Typically, these accompany some of my personal favorites: “You have to be careful not to offend anyone,” or “SAPR [Sexual Assault Response and Prevention] is just another way to shove political correctness down our throats.” Simply put, all of this is untrue. These are lies we tell ourselves when we run out of justification or excuses for why we behave the way we do. First, I will address the absurd notion that the emphasis to eliminate sexual assault within the military is somehow attached to an ever-widening political correctness cloud. This is an invalid belief, seeing as the SAPR program is about crime prevention, not about worrying over the sensibilities of any given demographic within the Air Force. A question that I am often asked that has a very simple answer is: “Why is there such a huge push for SAPR then?” Sexual assault is a crime, and crimes exist in cultures that tolerate them. Given this fact, the push to change military culture is the first step in sexual assault prevention. So, as with any large Air Force initiative, that requires sending a message and reinforcing it many times over. SAPR is about setting clear expectations and enforcing a standard, not advancing a political correctness agenda. Which brings me to my next point of standards enforcement: Where did the wayward belief that you cannot administer a firm “corrective session” to anyone come from? Since when has direct and sometimes brutally honest feedback NOT been a part of military culture? It always has and remains to be a great tool to this day. I believe people who are not correcting bad behavior or lackluster performance, and who are hiding behind political correctness as an excuse are committing any combination of three errors: 1.They do not have moral courage to address an issue that could possibly lead to conflict; 2. They are severely underestimating their subordinate’s strength of character; and/or 3. They lack the imagination to give direct feedback without resorting to name calling, derogatory words or personal insults. I believe we have all had “leaders” like this before, and I am willing to bet that most of you do not remember their names. There is a reason for that – they were completely inconsequential. As part of Air Force Special Operations Command, we are capable of far better. I am sure that some people reading this by now are in complete opposition to my thoughts, or might even be *gasp* offended. Those who use political correctness as a crutch will be quick to tell you that being assertive and standing by your convictions is sure to offend someone, and see an Inspector General complaint being filed against you as inevitable. This however, is an empty argument. While I am sure there are people who are willing to abuse the system to their advantage, they are so few in number that we should not start letting fear be our guiding leadership tenant. Dignity gets that job. The principal of treating people how you would like to be treated lessens the idea of walking on eggshells; it is just that simple. You CAN give direct feedback and say what is on your mind, even in a stern manner, as long as you do so with dignity for yourself and subordinates. Basically all I have ever done is two things: Try to treat everyone I come into contact with respect and dignity, then look people in the face and be as happy for them when they meet my expectations as I am stern when they do not. That is it, and the great political correctness monster has yet to bite me. Or maybe that is just because there is no monster.