Initial Counseling is critical. How else can you expect someone to know what you expect of them if you don’t tell them what you are expecting (say that three times fast)? However, between deployments, JRTC rotations, and weekly Command and Staff meetings initial counseling often doesn’t happen or is extremely rushed. Job specific initial counseling has it place, but I firmly believe that basic Keep it Simple Stupid character counseling transcends all MOS’es. If you are a new NCO or Officer who has yet to receive your initial counseling; consider this your own.
1) Don’t be afraid to make decisions.
You are a leader. LEADERS ARE PAID TO MAKE DECISIONS based off the information you have at the time you can affect something, not based off the information you wish you had. You will never have perfect information, and if somehow you do; the time will have long past for that decision to affect anything. Don’t be the guy that always “Heisman’s off to higher.” If you are too scared to make decisions for fear of being wrong or getting yelled at then you are nothing more than a figure head. Be decisive!
2) Inspire and Motivate.
There is a massive difference between having rank and being a leader. Getting people to obey you is easy, motivating people do things they don’t naturally want to do is hard. Do subordinates listen to you because they have to or do they listen to you because they are inspired and motivated by you. Motivation plays a critical role in an individuals initiative, productivity, quality, and speed of work
That being said, you must know when to explain the “why” behind something, and when to basically say shut up and execute. There is a time and a place for both, and the most effective leaders know when that time and place is. No matter how motivating you are, no-one wants to pull staff-duty during a 4-day weekend.
3) Encourage risk taking and innovation.
Break unnecessary rules, take calculated risks, and be creative. Do not strive to run a zero-defect organization. If you never make mistakes, you aren’t trying anything new. You and your men/women will make mistakes and that is fine. Do not tolerate a lack of initiative in subordinate leaders who are too afraid to make decisions for fear of being wrong. Mistakes are opportunities to grow and develop. Learn from your mistakes and never make them again.
4) Be a humble servant.
No-one will blink an eye if you don’t sweep the floor, because they don’t expect it. But doing this simple act will send a powerful message. Doing seemingly menial tasks reveals you as a humble servant, while still being the leader. Laugh a lot, and be sure to pat a soldier on the back and encourage him every time you see them.
5) Be YOURSELF.
Young leaders naturally try and emulate successful leaders around them. Learning from others is not a bad thing. Falsely believing there is a narrow mold you need to fit into in order to succeed is. There are countless ways to be a successful leader in the army. The more you try to fit yourself in the mold of someone else, the less genuine you become. What works for someone else, might not work for you; so when observing leaders, take what works for you, discard what doesn’t, and add a little something of your own.
6) Pick your battles.
Know which battles are worth digging in your heels and fighting. If you fight every battle that you slightly disagree with; you will become tired, bitter, frustrated, and everyone around you will tune you out. This does NOT mean becoming a “Yes man”. It means being the guy who when he speaks truth-to-bullshit; people listen. You only have a few “red star clusters.” Preserve your credibility by using them wisely on the issues that really matter.
7) Manage the talent of others.
The best leaders may not be the smartest, the fastest, the strongest, or the most technologically savvy; but they excel at surrounding themselves with people who are experts in their field and tapping into their talents to make the organization successful. Highlight these other individuals’ efforts at every opportunity. No leader is successful alone.
8) Know when and how to delegate.
Anyone can stay at work till 1900 every night if they want to appear hard working. The more tasks you take on, the less you will be able to focus on each one; everything can not be a priority. HAVE YOUR PRIORITIES AND STICK TO THEM, delegate the rest to your very capable subordinates and supervise, and you’ll often be shocked at the results. It is very easy to work hard, but it is very hard to work smart.
9) Supervision is NOT micromanagement!
No-one likes being micro-managed. However, leaders do not simply give guidance and disappear without supervising or requiring reports. Leaders at all levels are still responsible for receiving back-briefs, observing training, going on missions with subordinates, etc.
Planning is collaboration with subordinates, peers, and superiors that results in sufficient detail to support subordinate decision making without providing so much detail that it directly prescribes how subordinates must execute the mission.
You have knowledge, experience, and perspective that your subordinates don’t. This collaboration is essential to building mutual trust and shared understanding.
10) Proofread your shit.
Every document that you create or sign is a representation of yourself and your organization; whether you like it or not. This fact is amplified the higher you go. I have seen Brigade staffs make sweeping negative judgements on an entire Battalion simply because they often had typos in their products. If this article was full of passive voice; missused hyphens and semi-colons; ripe with mispellings, and poor structure of sentence… you would judge me. Good thing I proofread.
Also, NEVER USE CALIBRI! It’s common knowledge that the Death Star blew up Alderaan because they kept sending up their CONOPs in Calibri. Just kidding… or I am….
11) Balance; have it in everything you do.
This is a long one, but it is probably the one I’m most passionate about. Many cringe when they find out their boss is a single guy or a geo-bachelor, because very often these people lack balance in their lives. Whether they mean to or not, their personal “super gung-ho work, work, work” attitude inevitably trickles down and affects culture of the organization.
If you are not married or have a family, remember that a significant portion of your organization does, and they have doctor appointments, soccer games, proms, plays, and talent shows that they want to be at. The status of your parking lot at 1730 says a lot about the culture you have bred into your organization.
If you are married and have a family, remember that while your time in the army may be fleeting, your time with your family and your childrens’ childhoods will be even more fleeting. Just being there will do more for family than any other activity. Always take advantage of those times when you can sit down at the family table for dinner, and to help with homework, baths, and bedtime stories. Those are critical times in raising a family. Kids have a simple but vital need: to be with their mothers and fathers. No special activities or accessories are required; just being and talking with your kids and your spouse.
There will be plenty of deployments or training missions that prevent you from doing these simple but valuable things. Being a soldier is a profession, but being a father or mother, husband or wife, is life and you better be damn good at both. We have to invest in career and family simultaneously, as neither will wait for the other to be completed. One day you will get out of the Army; you’re family will either be there…or they won’t. The Army has existed since 1775, it will survive you leaving early one day to watch your kid’s football game.
You’re Welcome
