On April 22, 2015, Terry Virts, a NASA astronaut and alumnus of the General Management Program (GMP), spoke to Professors Sunil Gupta, Stefan Thomke and Linda Hill in a live chat from the International Space Station (ISS).
Along with detailing Terry's day-to-day life aboard the station, the conversation also touched on management, the importance of a skilled team, and how GMP prepared him to be a leader in his current mission.
Terry: Well, that's one of the best things about being here. Every day is different. Science is really our mission, so we have lots of different science experiments from all different disciplines, biology, material science, astronomy, a lot of human physiology.
Terry: Honestly that was one of the highlights of all the great opportunities I've had. I just loved it. And to be honest, that was the best commander training that I've had. The small group dynamics. It was very international experience. The way we did feedback and all those small group interpersonal skills are things that as a fighter pilot and as an engineer, we don't normally think about. But it really is important, especially if you're on a mission for six months with an international crew. And of course, if and when I ever stop flying in space and move on to different management jobs, it'll be very helpful for that as well.
Terry: At the ISS right now we have two Americans, one Italian, and three Russians on board. I spent several years in training in Russia, Japan, and Europe. And so the ability to work with other cultures is absolutely mandatory for a job like this--especially when you're here for six months.
Terry: There are so many things. Having this crew here, it's a unique leadership experience that I'm having because they're all colleagues. In fact, I'm almost the youngest person here. Gennady Padalka, the cosmonaut, during his stay is going to surpass the human record for the most number of days in space, almost three years. Scott Kelly has already been the commander of the space station. He's one of my crewmates.
So I have this group of astronauts that's very motivated. They're all very skilled, they know what they're doing. When you have a team like that, you have to adapt your leadership style to the team that you have. So with these guys, I asked them, "Hey, what do you guys think? Are we going to this? What are better ways to do things?" And we're continuously improving how we operate the station. If you have a team like this, let them produce the ideas and get out of their way. Just facilitate, make sure that they're able to get the job done.
Terry: I'd never done anything like a space walk. And I wasn't nervous or afraid, but it's just awesome. You're in outer space. And that's not where humans were designed to be.
In space, there's nothing out there. There's this thin little plastic helmet visor and that's it. And to see the sunrise really stuck out to me, to see this long blue, red and orange strip that is just so huge. That was one of the impressions that I'll never forget.
Terry: Yes, I do. If you want to be an astronaut, find out what your gifts are, what you've been blessed with, what your skills are, and pursue that with all your passion. If you're pursuing the things that you love, you're going to succeed. And that's what's going to help you to be an astronaut. If you're doing something that's not you, it won't work out. So my advice is always to find out what your gifts are and what your passion is and pursue it with all your heart.
Astronaut Terry Virts' video chat with professors and students included a live discussion on social media. To see highlights of the discussion watch the video.
