CAMP HANSEN, Okinawa, Japan — U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Ramon Cardoza, a native of California and a combat videographer with 5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, III Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group, strengthens his leadership and technical proficiency during a field training exercise at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, April 6, 2026.
Serving as both a squad leader and team leader, Cardoza is responsible for managing multiple teams while ensuring coordination across different military occupational specialties, including graphics, video and photography.
“My role in this exercise is as a squad leader, as well as a team leader,” said Cardoza, “As a squad leader, I’m tasked with controlling and accounting for three teams, including mine.”
Cardoza explained that the most challenging aspect of the training has been maintaining the proper mindset required for leadership.
“The biggest challenge was getting my head in the right mindset for being a leader and understanding that there are several layers to being a leader,” he said.
During physically demanding events, Cardoza emphasized the importance of teamwork and humility.
“I had to acknowledge that I wasn’t able to do the high log, so I had to ask for help,” he said. “It’s important that you have humility and be honest with your team.”
Cardoza emphasized that the training provides valuable experience in preparing communication strategy and operations Marines for operations in dynamic environments.
“This type of training gives us real-world experiences and scenarios to understand how to employ our gear and mindset,” he said. “It prepares us to be better equipped to get visual information out in the field.”
For Cardoza, the exercise reinforced that effective leadership requires both accountability and humility in every environment.
AloJapan.com