What does being an effective leader mean to you?

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 18:12:07 -0500

I've just started BLC today, and I stated that I wanted to be an effective leader. however I'm not sure I fully understand the term. I'd like to gather many different viewpoints from many different perspectives.

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 15 at 2021 6:33 PM

Sgt Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 18:33:32 -0500

SPC Private RallyPoint Member I served four years active duty and had a 33 year civilian career with one program. A passionate leader accomplishes the mission with the resources that he or she has available. A good leader looks out for the people that they lead. Leaders are intense, driven, and continues to learn. A leader has values that they live by. A leader is an excellent planner and goal setter, and is willing to adjust the plan as needed. As a leader, I would never ask a subordinate to perform a task that I would not be willing to do myself.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 15 at 2021 7:01 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 19:01:17 -0500

One thing that always stuck out to me is "I know my Soldiers, and I will always place their needs above my own." There needs to be a compromise on mentoring and developing Soldiers to one day lead the future generation, but on the other hand, there is not a single person in the military that is going to look out for your career better than yourself. What this means is to take the initiative to self-develop and create a positive example for your soldiers to emulate.

Leadership is not just telling Soldiers where to be at what time and in what uniform, its understanding that they are likely having the same issues you once had and understanding that Soldiers take in information differently. You will need to adapt to each Soldier and understand how to get the best out of them and yourself. The last thing you want to do is destroy your integrity or be a toxic leader.

Response by SGM Bill Frazer made Nov 15 at 2021 8:18 PM

SGM Bill Frazer — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 20:18:27 -0500

Always be yourself, always put your troops, before yourself. Train them hard, but fairly. Never have them do something you haven't done.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 15 at 2021 8:24 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 20:24:35 -0500

Doing what's fair to everyone (civilians, subordinates, superiors, and adversaries) while being CORRECT and persistent in instruction.

Response by SSgt Christophe Murphy made Nov 16 at 2021 8:15 AM

SSgt Christophe Murphy — Tue, 16 Nov 2021 08:15:56 -0500

Being effective as a leader should be the standard and not the goal. As you probably already know there are plenty of folks out there who are exceptional leaders and with that there are also the ones who are exceptionally awful. The type whose troops only follow them out of a sense of genuine curiosity as to what may happen next.

The goal needs to be that you become an impactful leader. Effective leadership means that you accomplished the mission and didn't lose accountability of people/gear along the way. But helping your troops and having a positive impact in their lives while still checking the regular boxes is the key.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 18 at 2021 11:46 AM

MSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 11:46:39 -0500

Being the kind of leader that inspires your troops thru your actions as well as words. You don’t have to always have the right answer or immediate solution but your team successes should speak for your leadership skills

Response by SGT Robert Wager made Nov 18 at 2021 12:01 PM

SGT Robert Wager — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 12:01:43 -0500

Effective leaders are not always “good” leaders.

A good leader will be both an effective leader and liked by the people he leads.

Know your job and know the job of your soldiers. Look out for their welfare and truly give a damn about them. Don’t always try and catch them doing something wrong, try and catch them doing something right too. Praise them publicly and often. Let them know they are the best and eventually they will believe it and become the best. Never accept substandard effort.

Always set the example. Be what “right” looks like. Never ask a soldier to do something you are not willing to do yourself. Always be open to good ideas even when they come from the newest, youngest, soldier.

Train your soldiers to replace you or any other soldier in your squad. Never limit a soldier’s training opportunities because you can’t “afford” to lose them or they are too mission essential. Give them the opportunity to lead and let them impress you.

Response by SGT Charles Whited made Nov 18 at 2021 3:45 PM

SGT Charles Whited — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 15:45:14 -0500

Be,Know,Do.
Live by the NCO Creed.

Response by Lt Col Jim Coe made Nov 23 at 2021 11:36 AM

Lt Col Jim Coe — Tue, 23 Nov 2021 11:36:16 -0500

President Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it." I believe Ike had it right.

This philosophy requires several things of the leader.
-The leader must have a clear picture of what needs to be done
-The leader must have an understanding of their subordinates (knowledge, skills, abilities, motivations, communication styles)
-The leader must communicate the something that needs to be done to the subordinates in a way the subordinates understand
-The leader must know how to motivate the subordinates to take action to accomplish the something
-Although not directly stated in Ike's quote, the leader also must follow up with the subordinates to make sure the something was done.

I am more confident in a leader if I know they have done, or at least can do, the something they are asking or directing me to do. People who lead by example inspire this type of confidence. It also makes criticism easier to take if I know the person passing out the criticism can actually do the work as well or better than I can.

Good leaders use "positional leadership" only when necessary. Positional leadership comes from the job or rank the person holds. It's similar to your parent telling you to do something "because I said so." This type of leadership is best used on time-critical situations where hesitation can cause loss of life or extreme damage to property and resources. Good leaders know if their subordinates have the training and skills necessary to handle the situation. They give the direction to put those into action. Later they can explain why. Using this type of leadership in non-critical situations builds resentment from subordinates because the leader has neglected the "he wants to do it" part of Ike's statement.

Response by Sgt Leon Hoskins made Aug 31 at 2022 8:22 PM

Sgt Leon Hoskins — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 20:22:21 -0400

Lee by example