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# Nevada Guard assistant adjutant general kicks off Diversity Speaker Series at Air National Guard Readiness Center

By Sgt. 1st Class Jon SoucyNational Guard Bureau

JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. - Good leaders are adaptable and have diversity of thought in theiractions and decisions, said Air Force Brig. Gen. Ondra Berry, the assistantadjutant general for Air with the Nevada National Guard, during a mentorshipsession at the Air National Guard Readiness Center earlier this week.

"It's not a one-size-fits-all approach,"said Berry, during the session, which marked the first of several mentorshipsessions that are part of the Air National Guard's Diversity Council SpeakerSeries. "If you don't have diversity ofthought, if you're not able to take in different information, if you don't havecritical, analytical thinking skills you're not going to be at your best."

Those are just one part of what Berrydescribed during his talk as the traits that make up good, strong leaders.Inspiring growth is another key element, Berry said.

"The number one correlation to happinessand success in any organization is when the leaders have an intentional planfor growth," he said. "What are you reading? How are you developing yourself?Have you gone back to school? What are you doing to grow yourself? That is thenumber one way we get to happiness."

And for military members, said Berry,that sense of personal growth and building the ability to lead goes beyondsimply attending schools that are part of the Air Force's professional militaryeducation (PME). 

PME is just minimum standards, accordingto Berry.  His advice to leaders was thatif they want to promote, they have to take the elite. "You have to pour intoyourself constantly if you want to get better."

Tying into that sense of growth alsoinvolves working to get past your own constraints and building on new ideas.

"No organization rises above theconstraints of its leaders," said Berry. "If you have constraints, you can'trise to the next level. If I'm not working on my constraints, I'm not going toget any better."

And those that are unwilling to work pastthose constraints and grow as individuals and leaders, aren't fit forleadership positions, said Berry.

"If I don't deal with my constraints tobe a better leader, somebody else will have to," he said. "There's an impact onthe mission when I don't' improve or get better. If I don't deal with it,somebody else will have to."

Remembering that as a leader, your choiceshave far reaching effects is important, said Berry.

"The bottom line is people. Your decisionmaking impacts people," he said.

Berry said that elements of good andeffective leaders come down to their heart set, mindset, skill set and toolset.

"If your heart is not in the right place,nothing else matters," he said, adding that leaders need to constantly add newand better behaviors and approaches to their skill set as well. The mindsetaspect involves a continual re-evaluation of your belief systems while askingwhat tools and resources do you have and can bring to bear. "

As a leader, I've got to be able toadjust and adapt," he said, adding that an important element that needs to beincorporated is strong and focused coaching of junior leaders.

"We have to build a culture of coaching,"he said.   "They have all this talent.Who's coaching them?"

Even the most talented individuals andleaders need coaching because coaches can see certain blind spots, said Berry.

"They can see your gaps and what you'restruggling with," he said. "When people get coached, they get better."

Coaching also involves having a passionfor what it is you're doing, said Berry.

"You have to have passion," he said. "Toomany are in roles and responsibilities and jobs and have no passion. When yourfire is out, you can tell. When you lose passion, when you stop growing, youstart aging and dying."

In the end, it's about remaining agileand continually growing and encouraging others.

"Thriving means being agile, growing andimproving and capitalizing on new things," he said.

Change is always going to happen.

"Change is inevitable, growth isoptional," Berry said. "Change is going to happen. It's going to be thrown atyou. How well will you adjust and adapt?"

Berry also spoke at the National GuardDiversity Conference held this week in Savannah, Georgia.

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