"Stand in The Door:" Are you prepared to face your next challenge?

By Ed Ehlers

“Get Ready” As a young paratrooper (military parachutist), who was and is not particularly fond of heights, I was afforded an incredible opportunity – to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.

I attended the United States Army Airborne School, affectionately known as Jump School. For three solid weeks, I and my peers were trained on all aspects of becoming paratroopers and on all aspects of facing any of life's challenges.

“Outboard personnel, stand-up” During the first week, or Ground Week, of the Basic Airborne Course, we were instructed on the proper way to land to minimize the potential for injury. Being nearly six foot and 210 pounds, I always landed like sack of potatoes but by spending so much time perfecting the Parachute Landing Fall (PLF), I was never injured in a jump.

Proper exit technique from the aircraft, intimate knowledge of all aspects of the equipment (parachute, harness, reserve parachute, ruck sack, weapons carrying case, etc.) and rigorous mental and physical conditioning all rounded out the first week.

“Inboard personnel, stand-up” The second week, or Tower Week, was devoted to honing the skills necessary to exit from an aircraft while in flight and to control a parachute while under canopy. All possible malfunctions, including towed jumper, streamers, and cigarette rolls, and how to handle them was drilled into every one us. Throughout all of it, troopers continued the rigorous mental and physical conditioning. If there were no high winds, training was conducted on the “Mighty Ungawa” – the 250-foot free tower – a little like Freefall at Six Flags amusement park. Not entirely sure, but the nickname may have come from the early Tarzan movies.

“Hook up” Here it is, Jump Week, the third and final week. After all the training, instruction, practicing, testing, and conditioning, troopers don their chutes and board the plane. You must complete five jumps either Hollywood (no additional equipment beyond the parachute) or fully Combat Loaded in order to receive the coveted wings.

“Check static lines” As you stand in the C-130 Hercules aircraft with 63 three of your fellow potential paratroopers, you’re thinking, “Did I really sign up for this?” “Will I be able to actually exit the aircraft?” or more likely, "Oh, crap!" Each and every jump, I was nervous and each time, it was intense focus on my training that allowed me to disregard every natural instinct.

“Check equipment” On our second jump, a trooper three spots ahead of me, got to the door and froze. The Jumpmaster yelled three times, “Are you a jump refusal?” With no answer given, the trooper was pulled from the door and sat on the bench. In years past, the JM might have given the trooper a "gentle" nudge (read: kick in the rear end) to urge him out the door but that was no longer the practice. With time running out, the rest of the stick (a group of paratroopers), including me, had to exit. As I passed him, he stared at the floor - defeated.

“Sound off for equipment check” As I exited the aircraft, my training kicked in. Check body position and count. Well, not consciously. On that first jump, it happened so fast, my chute was deployed before I knew it and I laughed. I laughed all the way to the ground. It was euphoric.

Could something have gone wrong? Hell, yes. Accidents happen all the time and when you are 1,250 feet above the ground and traveling at an airspeed of about 130 knots, the results can be disastrous. But, all the training, practice, and conditioning empowered me with confidence – confidence in myself, in my gear, and in the results.

“Stand in the door” We are faced with challenges, opportunities, chances, nearly every day - both professionally and personally. We have difficult, scary, choices but those choices are made easier by the preparation we put into it.

“GO!”

P.S. By the time the rest of us landed and got back to the barracks, the jump refusal was gone. All his gear, even the sheets off his bunk – gone.

I invite you to share what choices you are facing and what preparation you have done in order to achieve the results you want. Share with me on LinkedIn @edwardehlers and in LinkedIn’s largest facilities related group, Facilities Management Group.

Ed Ehlers was the honor graduate of the Jumpmaster Course of the United States Army Advanced Airborne School. Ed is an author, speaker, artisan, Certified Facilities Manager, and executive leader with over 20 years of progressively responsible experience. He founded and manages the largest facilities related LinkedIn group, Facilities Management Group – over 135,000 members and in the top 0.01% LinkedIn Groups

Thank you @thehustle and @my-first-million-podcast for the little nudge out of my most recent door.

Photo credits:

• Leonardo da Vinci / Public domain on Wikimedia
• Jumpmaster Alexander Munoz-Lamos, DSL over Fort Bragg. Used with permission.
• US Army paratroopers with the 173rd Airborne Brigade execute emergency procedures in response to a T-11 parachute system malfunction. Photo by Vincenzo Vitiello Public Domain
• Military Men Sky Diving by Pixabay on Pexels
• Jumpmaster Tailgate by Ed Ehlers is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.