Almost 42 years ago, President John F. Kennedy said, "Any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile ... can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction, 'I served in the United States Navy."' I contend that his words embody the unspoken thoughts of nearly every naval officer on active duty today. Yet, judging by the way the naval profession is marketed, material benefits seem to be the primary motivators. The Navy should put far more emphasis on the less tangible, more intrinsic motivators.
At some point in our naval careers, most of us discover the true reasons we chose to serve. My realization came shortly after my obligated service requirement was fulfilled, when my date for the evening asked about my job. I explained what it meant to be a division officer in the Surface Navy. By waxing philosophical about the virtues of service and why I considered myself to be a professional officer, I discovered the real reason I did not return to civilian life. I believed unswervingly in the service I provided the nation and the Navy.
The U.S. armed forces are all-volunteer organizations. Whether at summer training or working our way through college to earn commissions, we fight hard for the right to serve. At the start of a journey that seems so long and arduous, however, few junior officers understand why they serve. Unfortunately, at that crucial time, the "corporate" Navy—department heads, executive officers, and commanding officers—largely fails to impress on its junior officers the true value and importance of service to the nation.
Despite the lack of direction and mentoring given to division officers, some of them stick it out and stay Navy. They often cite examples of "dissatisfiers." But as Admiral Vern Clark noted at a Surface Navy Association luncheon, "The removal of a dissatisfier does not equate to a satisfier." I think the majority of officers who stay in do so because of satisfiers. They seek to serve the nation in a selfless fashion, seeing their values as higher than those of mainstream society. While this view may appear arrogant, it is the prime motivation of midshipmen and junior officers who opt for long-term service. When they see the difference between satisfiers and dissatisfiers, material motivators fall away and expose the intrinsic satisfier: service, which is defined loosely as public employment performed for others.
When newly commissioned, I was employed by the Navy and did a lot of work for others. As I learned my job, I was able to assist my sailors. Later I began to make a contribution and see how my service provides assistance to the American people. My military comrades and I assist them by showing the U.S. flag around the world; we enable them to enjoy freedom while we defend them from aggressors. I became devoted to defending the nation in keeping with the officers' oath "to support and defend the Constitution of the United States," which is loyalty to a set of values, not any one person or party.
The Navy initially attracts young officers by advertising the material aspects of the profession. Once the Navy has these young people's attention, it must educate and mentor them in the values of selfless service. Mentoring is the responsibility of their leaders. Although the term "mentoring" is bandied about, few people know its key role in developing junior officers. A mentor is a wise and loyal advisor who acts in the best interests of both the protégé and the Navy. Mentoring goes deeper than training. It is another—perhaps the greatest—reward of service: the opportunity to, in the words of President Abraham Lincoln, recognize and develop "uncommon men and women who, when nations get in danger, as they invariably do, must come to the fore and lead."
Conviction and open-eyed devotion are powerful tools that breed strength, confidence, and cohesion. Leaders' shared values and common experiences in the ever-present face of potential danger forge a camaraderie that is difficult to break—and more difficult to explain. Sailors do not go to sea because they love cold, steel hulls, but because of their shipmates and teamwork.
Of the ten former shipmates with whom I still correspond, all are happy with their decisions to leave the Navy. At the same time, every one of them misses the camaraderie of the wardroom. Navy ships are teams of professionals. We proudly serve because service denotes our pursuit of intrinsic values rather than material gain.
Lieutenant Commander Zacharski, a surface warfare officer, is an enlisted community manager on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations.