From the Chief: Why We Drill

It's a new year, but the most popular resolutions remain the same: Exercise more, learn a new skill, earn more money and spend time with people you care about.

While New Year’s resolutions often lend themselves to punchlines, the principles and the reasons behind them endure. We all want to be stronger and more capable and make the most of the opportunities we have. We want a better, brighter future.

The reason we make New Year’s resolutions are the same reasons we drill — to be stronger and more capable, to be ready for whatever situation we may be called to confront, to position ourselves for success. We drill because it’s how we build readiness for an uncertain future. We drill to keep our promise to America — a promise no well-intentioned resolution could ever hope to match.

That’s why it’s essential we make the most out of every drill weekend, every annual training and every exercise. Our efforts to be ready, as individuals and as units, are shaped by this time together. It’s where we prepare to fight and win America’s wars and sharpen the skills we need to respond to our communities in times of crisis. It’s where we make the transformation from civilians to soldiers and airmen and become Guardsmen.

Our efforts to be ready, as individuals and as units, are shaped by this time together.

But making the most of drill weekend starts long before you arrive at your armory or base. It begins with readiness you build in your day-to-day life — the physical and mental readiness that makes us fit to fight. The past 20 years have shown the Guard is an operational force, and the past few years demonstrated once again how quickly we can be called to serve.

When the enemy is at our doorstep, when a crisis comes to our hometowns, we do not have time to start a workout routine or start taking better care of our mental health; we only have time to respond. That’s why it’s important to maintain a high level of physical and mental fitness.

Since March of last year, the National Guard Bureau’s holistic wellness challenge has offered suggestions to improve the overall well-being of our force, from eating right to managing finances to coping with workplace stress. When we all commit to our overall health, we can train and drill at higher levels and increase our readiness.

In addition to starting with a healthy foundation, it’s important to bring a good attitude to drill weekend. Given the complex and dynamic strategic environment, we strive to find the right training balance between building readiness and addressing mandatory training requirements.

NGB has worked closely with the 54 and the Army and the Air Force to reduce the annual training burden on our soldiers and airmen. Thanks to these efforts, both the Army and the Air Force reduced the number of mandatory requirements and administrative burdens to one weekend drill, giving our Guardsmen more time to focus on the skills we need to do our jobs. That means it’s up to leaders at every level to maximize training and readiness-building in the time we have during drill.

However, there will still be drill weekends (hopefully just one!) that may feel like a paperwork treadmill. It’s important to keep these weekends in perspective; after all, you’re still learning, still improving readiness and still getting paid to spend time with your friends in the profession of arms.

One last thing you can do to make the most of drill weekend is to make sure your family is prepared and knows what to expect from your absence. They may have questions or concerns, and answering their questions openly and honestly can help involve them in your Guard career.

After all, no one serves alone, and our families play an important role in our military service.

In 2024, don’t make a resolution to make the most of your drill weekend — make a promise. It’s how we remain Always Ready, Always There.

The author is the chief of the National Guard Bureau and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.