Posted on Mar 5, 2015
Recent (and infamous) posts inspired me to draft some rules for Junior Enlisted. Am I way off or right on?
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Rules for Junior Enlisted from the perspective of a Junior NCO:
Junior Enlisted Service Members, you are an incredible asset to our Military profession. You have value unmeasurable, and are the future leadership of this great Military. These are some basic rules that might just help you make a positive impact on your young career, and improve the Military at large.
1. Know your role(s): Master your craft, as mundane as it may seem, your success is critical to the success of the Military. In addition to your MOS, you are the strong backs and legs of the Military; be prepared to use both... often.
2. Listen: You will be surrounded by those with more experience and knowledge than yourself; gorge yourself on this like it is thanksgiving everyday. Take as many pearls as possible from the wealth of insight you will encounter.
3. Share: As one of the most recent graduates of your technical school, you will have been trained on the most cutting edge info techniques in your field. This knowledge is not for you only, but for you to bring to your new unit.
4. Learn from your leadership: You will have good, bad, and if you are lucky great leaders. Learn from every single one of them. Learn what you want to be and don't want to be as a Service Member and future leader, and be prepared for the same scrutiny from your future subordinates.
5. Go to school(s): Be the one who raises a hand when school opportunities come up, and accept being voluntold for schools as a compliment, not a punishment. These can be painful, grueling, tedious experiences, but they can be incredible networking opportunities, expand your view of the Military, and you might even get a little “chest candy” out of the deal.
6. Go to school: No this is not deja-vu. Take at least one civilian college course every semester, its on Uncle Sam. Very few missions will prevent you from taking advantage of this opportunity, and it can lead to a degree, or more importantly, you may find a passion that you never knew you had.
7. Have fun!: You may not realize it now, but you may never have as much fun as you do as a Junior Enlisted. Enjoy your time on the bottom of the totem pole.
8. Respect everyone (even if you don’t admire them): This is the most important skill anyone can master, and the one that requires constant practice. This is the one you pay forward, and the one you may struggle with the most. Up, down, left, and right, every single person you encounter is just that, a person. People are due respect and human decency. This goes double in the Military. Your superiors are not there by accident, and whether or not you always agree with them or their style, they deserve respect. Your peers deserve your respect as well, as they are your brothers and sisters on the ground with you. And your subordinates deserve your respect, they volunteered for service as you did, they are going through what you already have, and they are looking to you for guidance.
Junior Enlisted Service Members, you are an incredible asset to our Military profession. You have value unmeasurable, and are the future leadership of this great Military. These are some basic rules that might just help you make a positive impact on your young career, and improve the Military at large.
1. Know your role(s): Master your craft, as mundane as it may seem, your success is critical to the success of the Military. In addition to your MOS, you are the strong backs and legs of the Military; be prepared to use both... often.
2. Listen: You will be surrounded by those with more experience and knowledge than yourself; gorge yourself on this like it is thanksgiving everyday. Take as many pearls as possible from the wealth of insight you will encounter.
3. Share: As one of the most recent graduates of your technical school, you will have been trained on the most cutting edge info techniques in your field. This knowledge is not for you only, but for you to bring to your new unit.
4. Learn from your leadership: You will have good, bad, and if you are lucky great leaders. Learn from every single one of them. Learn what you want to be and don't want to be as a Service Member and future leader, and be prepared for the same scrutiny from your future subordinates.
5. Go to school(s): Be the one who raises a hand when school opportunities come up, and accept being voluntold for schools as a compliment, not a punishment. These can be painful, grueling, tedious experiences, but they can be incredible networking opportunities, expand your view of the Military, and you might even get a little “chest candy” out of the deal.
6. Go to school: No this is not deja-vu. Take at least one civilian college course every semester, its on Uncle Sam. Very few missions will prevent you from taking advantage of this opportunity, and it can lead to a degree, or more importantly, you may find a passion that you never knew you had.
7. Have fun!: You may not realize it now, but you may never have as much fun as you do as a Junior Enlisted. Enjoy your time on the bottom of the totem pole.
8. Respect everyone (even if you don’t admire them): This is the most important skill anyone can master, and the one that requires constant practice. This is the one you pay forward, and the one you may struggle with the most. Up, down, left, and right, every single person you encounter is just that, a person. People are due respect and human decency. This goes double in the Military. Your superiors are not there by accident, and whether or not you always agree with them or their style, they deserve respect. Your peers deserve your respect as well, as they are your brothers and sisters on the ground with you. And your subordinates deserve your respect, they volunteered for service as you did, they are going through what you already have, and they are looking to you for guidance.
Professional Development
Mentorship
Leadership
Advice
Edited 10 y ago
Posted 10 y ago
Responses: 56
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Outstanding MSG (Join to see)!
If I could add one thing. Not every Soldier gets a good mentor when they're starting off in our Army. Anytime a conversation steered towards a Soldier's dissatisfaction with their Sergeant, I'd offer them this:
That NCO is an NCO for a reason (I did not add my personal opinion that this may not always be the case.) They did the same job that you are doing now. They served under Sergeants just the same. The only thing that you can do is be the best Soldier that you can be. Build up all your peers and subordinates. Make them as good as you are. Work hard, get promoted, then do it again. You can always effect change at your level.
Any Soldier can be leader, and anyone can be great team builder. That's not always clear to the young private that's not getting along with his Sergeant.
Thanks for contributing! I hope to see more from your perspective.
If I could add one thing. Not every Soldier gets a good mentor when they're starting off in our Army. Anytime a conversation steered towards a Soldier's dissatisfaction with their Sergeant, I'd offer them this:
That NCO is an NCO for a reason (I did not add my personal opinion that this may not always be the case.) They did the same job that you are doing now. They served under Sergeants just the same. The only thing that you can do is be the best Soldier that you can be. Build up all your peers and subordinates. Make them as good as you are. Work hard, get promoted, then do it again. You can always effect change at your level.
Any Soldier can be leader, and anyone can be great team builder. That's not always clear to the young private that's not getting along with his Sergeant.
Thanks for contributing! I hope to see more from your perspective.
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Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS
"Not every Soldier gets a good mentor when they're starting off in our Army"
Some Mentors are there for us to emulate... Some Mentors are there for us to learn what not to be.....
Some Mentors are there for us to emulate... Some Mentors are there for us to learn what not to be.....
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CPT Jack Durish
Somewhere in the Bible is an admonition: Go find a rabbi. (A rabbi is a teacher) We'll need a Biblical scholar to help me out on this one. Basically, everyone needs a mentor, always have needed one, always will need one. Someone to look up to. Someone to lean on as well as learn from.
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SGT (Join to see)
You are right, SGT Aaron Kennedy. With my old unit they didn't recognize my hard work. They were playing favorites. Most of them didn't give a rats a** about their soldiers. But I didn't let it affect me.
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I think I would add: Challenge. Challenge yourself in everything that you do. Do not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and volunteer to learn to lead. You may not know how good you are until you try.
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MSG (Join to see)
Great addition! One i include in most of my developmental counselings too, not sure how i missed that. Thanks!
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Nice set of well-thought ideals. And also our SM/Veterans understanding that many are very young and to keep that in mind. Sometimes a non-judgemental approach in a person genuinely wanting to do the right thing is extremely important.
I remember an Airman in the dorm who was quite immature but a nice kid. The problem is that his roommate was letting him take the rap for an accident that was not his fault. He was not driving. We got that fixed for him but KARMA had other ideas for the perpetrator who later was pronounced DOA after a DWI incident that he caused.
Another young Airman did not wash and he was being cruelly treated by other SMs. I listened to him even after he got doused by water and being an E-5 no one dared to piss me off, although I was not intimidating, save for rank. The kid turned it around and partly because he had a mentor of sorts.
In Germany an Airman got raped and she wanted me to listen to her. She told me I was the first one who let her vent and asked me what to do. Off all the events in the military that I am most proud of was listening. The girl and I became great friends but self-discipline to just be a good friend was enough for me.
So we leaders can make a difference and it is not necessarily impeccable dress and being gungho but being human and really caring for the emotional hurt and most of us have been wanting in one time in our lives and it is the least we can do to help others.
SGT (Join to see) 1LT Sandy Annala Col (Join to see) LTC Stephen C. MSgt (Join to see) CPT Richard Riley COL Vincent Stoneking SPC Charles Brown CPT Jack Durish PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Col (Join to see) SFC Mark Merino CPT Andrew Reed PO3 Michael James PO1 Henry Sherrill PO2 William Allen Crowder LTC Monte Anderson PV2 (Join to see) 1LT L S Cpl Brett Wagner MAJ (Join to see) SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP'
I am working on a project to help older veterans who are lonely and paying forward for all veterans and even myself as I get older.
I remember an Airman in the dorm who was quite immature but a nice kid. The problem is that his roommate was letting him take the rap for an accident that was not his fault. He was not driving. We got that fixed for him but KARMA had other ideas for the perpetrator who later was pronounced DOA after a DWI incident that he caused.
Another young Airman did not wash and he was being cruelly treated by other SMs. I listened to him even after he got doused by water and being an E-5 no one dared to piss me off, although I was not intimidating, save for rank. The kid turned it around and partly because he had a mentor of sorts.
In Germany an Airman got raped and she wanted me to listen to her. She told me I was the first one who let her vent and asked me what to do. Off all the events in the military that I am most proud of was listening. The girl and I became great friends but self-discipline to just be a good friend was enough for me.
So we leaders can make a difference and it is not necessarily impeccable dress and being gungho but being human and really caring for the emotional hurt and most of us have been wanting in one time in our lives and it is the least we can do to help others.
SGT (Join to see) 1LT Sandy Annala Col (Join to see) LTC Stephen C. MSgt (Join to see) CPT Richard Riley COL Vincent Stoneking SPC Charles Brown CPT Jack Durish PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Col (Join to see) SFC Mark Merino CPT Andrew Reed PO3 Michael James PO1 Henry Sherrill PO2 William Allen Crowder LTC Monte Anderson PV2 (Join to see) 1LT L S Cpl Brett Wagner MAJ (Join to see) SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP'
I am working on a project to help older veterans who are lonely and paying forward for all veterans and even myself as I get older.
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