GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- 17th Training Wing Spotlight
Who: Tech. Sgt. Megan Mueller
Unit: 314th Training Squadron, Presidio of Monterey, California
Duty Title: Assistant Flight Chief, Training Support Flight
This spotlight features Tech. Sgt. Megan Mueller, 314th Training Squadron assistant flight chief, Presidio of Monterey, Calif.
How does your job support the 17th Training Wing's mission?
314th Training Squadron, Training Support Flight is responsible for students in the Cryptologic Language Analyst training pipeline at Defense Language Institute. Our language programs are intense immersion programs lasting 47 to 64 weeks. My flight is responsible for ensuring the students have the academic and life support they need to focus in the classroom and be successful.
What do you find most rewarding about your work?
It’s like being a big brother or sister. We call them out when they are not doing what is best for them or make bad decisions, we celebrate their successes and cheer them on when they face new challenges, and we support them when they fall off track or are not getting the results they want. I enjoy trying to help them feel like, wherever they are assigned, the Air Force is their home.
What has been your biggest challenge in the military, and how did you overcome that challenge?
My biggest challenge is learning how to communicate effectively. I have learned that it is great to have ideas or opinions, but how you give feedback, make suggestions, even the tone of an e-mail, affects your relationship with that person or entity far beyond that single communication exchange. My Military Training Instructor told me I have no military bearing and I’m too direct. I’m still working on it 11 years later. I ask advice from my subordinates, peers, and leaders. I have a friend read emails before I send them, and I try to think about who I’m talking to, and their agenda, before I relay my thoughts in a way that fits in with their values and goals. Not why does it matter to me, why should it matter to them?
What has been your most memorable experience in the military?
My most memorable experience was helping one of my Airmen who was affected by domestic violence. I grew a lot in that process—I had never known the scope of what some people are facing behind closed doors, nor had I ever been so out of my element. I learned a lot about what resources exist, how to balance being an instructor and a wingman, and I still have a drawing from her kid hanging in my office. I think that day I moved from doing what I should be doing to taking care of folks because it’s right, to realizing how invested I am in each Airman who is mine.
What is one piece of information or advice you would like to pass on?
My most memorable experience was helping one of my Airmen who was affected by domestic violence. I grew a lot in that process—I had never known the scope of what some people are facing behind closed doors, nor had I ever been so out of my element. I learned a lot about what resources exist, how to balance being an instructor and a wingman, and I still have a drawing from her kid hanging in my office. I think that day I moved from doing what I should be doing to taking care of folks because it’s right, to realizing how invested I am in each Airman who is mine.