How are leaders effectively leading your Soldiers and expressing care and concern for them these days?

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 06:10:19 -0500

I was thinking of something on the way to my room today, as I had just got done talking to one of my Soldiers. I like to think about what I could do to improve my environment to create more positive change. My thought was, "If my Soldiers feel like they're a burden on me, I'm not leading them effectively." I do have them communicate with their squad leaders, however there are times where I like to address the needs and concerns of my Soldiers individually (lead by example and lead from the front). I do however have them give their NCOs the courtesy of knowing that I've talked to them. I also talk to my squad leaders and mentor them on how to be effective as leaders. I feel like I allow my squad leaders to absorb some training value from that.

What are some effective methods that y'all use to lead your Soldiers?

Response by CW5 Jack Cardwell made Feb 11 at 2020 6:19 AM

CW5 Jack Cardwell — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 06:19:08 -0500

Share your knowledge, don't hoard it. Use mistakes as a teaching moment. If they ask you about a regulation or technical question do not answer it. Point them to the proper regulation or technical manual and have them look it up.

Just my two cents worth.

Response by Lt Col Charlie Brown made Feb 11 at 2020 6:36 AM

Lt Col Charlie Brown — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 06:36:59 -0500

Whille I had an open door policy, I always asked if my troops had been to see their immediate supervisor unless that person was with them. I learned a lot about who was a good supervisor and who wasn't that way...and I was able to sort a lot of things out before they got too far.

Response by CPT David Gowel made Feb 11 at 2020 6:51 AM

CPT David Gowel — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 06:51:29 -0500

I think it's valuable to give subordinates a candid picture of what leaders one and two levels above them are thinking about, working on, concerned about, etc. on a regular basis. One tool to do this is to ask their advice on how they would handle a situation that's well above their pay grade. I've found that they often respond with a great idea that I didn't think of or at the very least take a moment to put themselves in a higher level leadership mindset that can help them think about the bigger picture and take another step down the path of becoming a leader themselves.

Response by CPT Lawrence Cable made Feb 11 at 2020 7:45 AM

CPT Lawrence Cable — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 07:45:09 -0500

OK, I find nothing wrong with talking to the soldiers directly. It's not a bad idea to have a rotation of one on one with everyone under your command, although that's harder to find time the larger the unit. You need to be very careful on how you approach that since it's easy to overstep and do that squad leaders job, in which case you have just screwed up. Let you soldiers know you will go to bat for them. Look at the questions on here from junior enlisted and most of it are things that both their Squad Leader, Platoon Leader and Company Command should have been dealing with for them. So if you have a troop with pay, or promotion or what ever issue, you have to make sure that it gets to the people that can help him and you need to follow through that it happens. So if you take PVT Snuffy to the Finance Officer because his pay is screwed up, and it doesn't get fixed, you need to insure that it's taken to the level that will fix it. As CO, it never bothered me to call the BN CO if the staff was dragging their feet about correcting a problem. Don't be afraid to discipline a soldier. In the long run, it's easier to be in a unit that is ran by the book than one were things are decided case by case, since nothing you can do will make that look fair and it normally isn't. KNOW YOUR JOB. If you know your job and act like the subject matter expert, you will get the respect for being that expert.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 11 at 2020 8:05 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 08:05:44 -0500

Actually talking to them

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 11 at 2020 8:09 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 08:09:25 -0500

Actually talking to them and not making them feel like you are too superior to make time for them. Nobody is superior, only more senior. Just friggin socialize with them appropriately. If a leader thinks giving the silent treatment is a leadership strategy, they are wayyyy wrong.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 11 at 2020 8:29 AM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 08:29:28 -0500

I haven't been In a PSG position yet (obviously) but I can speak as a joe and as a team leader. As a joe, the biggest thing that my PSG did for me was portray himself as a human. He told me about what his first couple enlistments (Pvt-SGT) were like, and that helped me respect him more and understand that he knows where I'm at in life/my career. As a team leader, I've come to understand that if you expect respect due to rank or ballot, you're not going to have an effective team. You need to EARN YOUR SOLDIER'S RESPECT. That's a really hard pill to swallow for a lot of leaders. A good private will always respect the rank but they'll never respect the person wearing it if you don't fight for that.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Feb 11 at 2020 10:33 AM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 10:33:26 -0500

I will give u a commander’s perspective later as I think there is still some value to that.

Response by SFC Aubrey Campbell made Feb 11 at 2020 12:29 PM

SFC Aubrey Campbell — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 12:29:42 -0500

Old school way...look at them a certain way...gesture a certain way. Genuine concern for their welfare cannot be feigned or faked. They will follow you to hell and back! BE real! KNOW them and yourself. DO it right and with HEART. “Whooo Ahhh!

Response by CAPT Kevin B. made Feb 11 at 2020 1:20 PM

CAPT Kevin B. — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 13:20:31 -0500

Don't confuse a burden on you with the burden of leadership. They can feel the same, but you have to pay attention to the later to reduce the former. You got good advice already that I won't repeat. It all boils down to whether or not you're paving the way for your team and making their lives better getting through the day. That includes doing the dishes in getting problem people corrected or gone in short order. Morale is a fickle thing. It can turn on a dime. Not aggressively supporting it means it's going down. The advice already given are good things, but work on knowing what to do, when, and how much. Too much and you're slimy. And remember it's OK to be an Alpha Hotel when it comes to keeping your people alive. Sometimes you won't be loved for it. But then again they're alive to not love you vs. dead and silent.

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made Feb 11 at 2020 2:43 PM

SFC Casey O'Mally — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 14:43:39 -0500

Never expect more out of your Soldiers than you do out of yourself... More time, more commitment, more expertise, more anything. But expect just as much of them as you do of yourself (at their level). Let them know you expect high standards, you will enforce high standards.... And you will take the time necessary to help anyone who is willing to put in the effort to achieve those high standards.
Most of all, though, enforce those same standards on the junior leaders. If Joe sees TL and SL being held accountable, 9 times out of 10, they have no problem being held accountable themselves.

Plus, after a bit of time putting in the sweat equity, you will have tje best damned platoon around. And your Soldiers will know it.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 11 at 2020 5:46 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 17:46:57 -0500

A genuine concern for their issues. A new soldier doesn't know what they don't know, and will look to you for guidance. It's the leader's job to simultaneously both inform and teach the junior soldier. While it's easier to just address the issue to get it taken care of, explaining the process and the why's of things will go a long way in 1) giving the junior the ability to take care of himself and 2) being able to take care of others.
I've had the privilege of being in the same office for five years now, going from SPC/CPL to SSG. I've learned a lot, as being on a four man team often quickly forces you to really know and perform at two ranks above where you're at. Being in the same place for different skill levels has taught me what to expect from different soldiers, and the standards I place on them is not more than they can shoulder, especially when they know that you are their safety net and not a snake infested hole waiting for their fall.
As a leader, your job is to get them to believe in themselves, even if/when you do not. Empowering soldiers will give you as a leader more time, as you will see juniors leading their juniors, and allowing you more time to make sure they are taken care of.
As an example, same small office, with an influx of brand new soldiers out of AIT, the first was coached while they walked through the in-processing process. The next month, another new soldier arrived needing to in-process, is immediately adopted by the no longer brand new soldier, who is eager to guide the soldier through the process. The senior junior soldier is now getting experience leading, while knowing that things he can't handle will be resolved by his leaders who will teach him through the obstacles encountered. The next month, another new AIT soldier arrives, and this time the student movers to teacher, and the teacher moves to supervisor, with the same safety net in place. In the course of three months, you have given two brand new soldiers the opportunity to learn and develop both themselves and others. So I guess my method is twofold. One, don't be scared to let someone else lead, as they will often surprise you. Two, don't instill a fear of the consequences for failure, as no one is perfect and no one will have all the answers immediately. Use shortfalls to guide the soldier to the solution, not as an opportunity to reinforce that they weren't successful.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Feb 11 at 2020 6:53 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 18:53:51 -0500

As a commander the NCOs and I had a consensus with the NCOs that we would focus on:
- Technical proficiency.
- Tactical proficiency.
- Cross training.
- The NCOs had the mantle of leading the troops and taking care of them.
- NCOs will have vested interest in the professional and personal growth of the soldiers. The unit sent a soldier to OCS and wrote letters of recommendation to support the soldiers in their endeavors.
- We take care and love the soldiers by showing a general interest of the soldiers and families. We would fight for them. Other examples can be granting comp time for those who volunteered for weekend duty. We always had volunteers for this reason.
- We would abide by the army values.
- We will have fun. We played football on Fridays, I grilled food for them, we sent them on helicopter rides, we did a long run with how chow waiting at the end and TMP transportation back to the unit.
- NCOs will prepare other NCOs and soldiers for the next rank.
- We expected the lower ranking NCOs like section sergeants to be more familiar to the soldiers and their families because that is where the rubber meets the road. An example is the E-5s will ask the soldiers what the weekend plans are.
- Regardless of rank, we rolled up our sleeves and worked. An example is I volunteered to conduct guard duty at the gates, helped with the spring cleanup, volunteered myself for funeral OIC, or worked on the tanks. I helped dig fighting positions.
- Everyone was humble.
- We were a family that took care of its own.
- All these fed into the culture of the unit. We wanted a positive culture. I wanted the morale to be high. It showed as the soldiers reenlisted and morale was high during a field problem in zero degree weather and an abundance of snow.

I trust that you can gleam some applicable information from the shotgun blast. The bottom lines is, the soldiers know if you genuinely care for them, and leaders need to know how to show it.
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Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 11 at 2020 7:56 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 19:56:13 -0500

I think you hit it on the nail: knowing when to wear the hat and when to take it off.

A lot of times my senior leaders have small casual chats with lower enlisted during the duty day. Sometimes it’s just cuz (they just want to know that soldier better), other times they are aware of a particular issue and are trying the least obtrusive means of addressing it informally. Either ways shows soldiers they can at least be open with their chain of command and I feel it builds trust and approachability. This is something I have taken to as well and found as an effective mentoring and informal counseling practice.

I do think it’s important also that as leaders we are transparent with our soldiers and try to demonstrate we are working on their behalf as much as they do work for us. I think some leaders just tell people what needs to be done, but then don’t discuss what they are doing on their end (assuming that they do actual work).