Seven online courses every Air Force leader should take Published Nov. 29, 2022 By Miriam A. Thurber Air Education and Training Command JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO—RANDOLPH, Texas--If you’re looking to grow as a leader, consider enrolling in one of AETC’s free DigitalU Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Education and Training Courses. Any Airman—active duty, reserve, guard or civilian—can enroll in one of the 22 online courses specifically designed for people-focused leaders. We recommend looking through all the offered classes and choosing one that best fills in your personal or professional blind spots, but here are seven you can’t go wrong with: - Dread-Free Difficult Conversations. Overcome your discomfort and assertively lead productive, empathetic conversations with win-win outcomes. Time to complete: 1 hr. 47 min. - The Emotionally Intelligent Leader. Learn how to manage the emotional climate of your team to build trust, authentic relationships and effective teams. Emotional intelligence is considered one of the strongest attributes of a leader, which is why, in industry, leaders with high emotional intelligence earn an average of $29K more. Time to complete: 5 hr. 18 min. - Unconscious Bias: Fuel Diversity and Become a Better You. A powerful way to grow your self-awareness and reveal your hidden biases. You’ll learn how your biases may negatively impact your relationships and the career growth of yourself and those you supervise and, most importantly, you’ll discover strategies to mitigate your biases. Time to complete: 2 hr. - Navigate & Respect Age, Ethnic & Racial Differences. Understand and overcome the challenges of working in a multigenerational environment with these simple steps to leverage age diversity. Time to complete: 40 min. - LGBT+ 101. The complete course to help you understand the various people in the LGBTQ+ community. You’ll learn how to have good, respectful conversations because you’ll understand what terms mean, which ones to use and which to avoid. Yes, you’ll be learning from a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Time to complete: 1 hr. 11 min. - Be a Great Mentor: A Practical Guide to Mentorship. Grow your career through mentoring, whether you’re a supervisor, leader, subject matter expert or individual. This is a NASBA CPE accredited course. Time to complete: 1 hr. 5 min. - How to Lead & Coach Millennials & Gen Z. Increase your level of influence and promotability by tapping into the optimism and creativity of your team! Time to complete: 53 min. To register for classes, create an account through DigitalU. After finishing the course, don’t forget to upload your certificate of completion to your professional development records. “Diversity and inclusion are essential to mission readiness,” said Maggie Laws, Chief of Diversity and Inclusion at Air Education and Training Command. “We succeed when we fully embrace dignity and respect throughout the force—that starts with your personal and professional growth as an inclusive leader.” To learn more about diversity and inclusion in AETC, check out this page. ###