From AIT to First Duty Station, Why do we fail our soldiers?

CPT Weber

Sir, you are definitely one of the leaders who developed me! I am proud and glad you see the difference in me because you legitimately always held us all to a higher standard than what our company was allowing. There are MANY things I wouldn't even know was wrong if you hadn't of spoken up!

The degree only helped me with promotion points though. A PFC can come into the Army and get promoted in two years as well. Regardless I definitely see how valuable TIS and experience can be. It's kind of embarrassing telling people I've only been in five years lol.

SSG Woods, it isn't really about the time... it's about the experience. If you have the experience, the skills, and the mindset, it doesn't matter if you are a fast tracker. The Army promotes potential. Clearly you have that, given the discussions I have seen your responses in. I got promoted to SGT at 5 years, and SSG at 9, starting from E1. It took me a long time because I had very poor leadership and it took me a while to realize I had to start doing it on my own. Don't be embarassed, be proud of your achievements. Anyone who doubts your abilities, shut them up with a quiet display of professional excellence.

Pass on your experience, create and pass on your own legacy of excellence.

Thank you for the wise words SSG Jason Cherry. Very motivational and genuine, I really appreciate it!

SFC Woods if they do not want to listen to you they want, cause they no you can not do anything to them.

Exactly SFC Hufcut, I think you worded it perfectly with "People adapt to thier environment. If it is relaxed, fully expect the Soldier to act relaxed when dealing with NCOs."

Soldiers will not follow what we say, they will follow what we do. That goes for NCOs as well. I'm going to follow what senior NCOs do because it's natural for me to assume they are what "right" looks like.

BAM!!! What right looks like!!! Love that saying as it sums up one of the tenants of leadership. LEAD BY EXAMPLE!!

From my experience, talking to some AIT PSGs they don't see themselves as the same way DSs; even though they are part of TRADOC and work in a IET level. I enjoyed my tour as a DS and was very successful at it; but there were also DSs that didn't want to be one and/or have the drive to take civilians and mold them into Soldiers. BCT and AIT should be the foundation for Soldiers to report to their first unit with a clear sense of what being a Soldier in our profession is all about. NCOs in TRADOC should be that example and provide that motivation as Leaders!

Well said SFC Campoverde, I really enjoyed my time as an AIT PSG. Hours sucked, but hey that's life. The good ones finish what the DS started. In AIT we continue the transition from Civilian to Soldier and try to get them ready for the real army. I always tried to lead by example.

1SG, after reading some of the posts above, all have very good points with Complacency at the top. Having that new Soldier relax, be "At Ease" with his or her first line Leadership is not the right thing to start with. With in some units, you don’t want to become known as the “Hard A$$ NCO, or tyrant NCO”. As my son is finding out now, he does make the on the spot corrections and gets told to “Calm down Sergeant”, and he doesn’t. He explains NCO’s set the standards and must do their best to instill them in their Soldiers. If not, he feels he has failed them, me and his grandfather. The bottom line is enforcing the standards while you yourself keep them up.

SSG - That gets to be quite a juggling act in a line unit. I once thought telling a Soldier to "relax" was a way to set the right tone. MISTAKE. I cut out that nonsense and go straight for nothing but business.