SMA Dailey's Top 10 Leadership Tips For Sergeants Major. Is it Great Advice Or Not?

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 21:52:55 -0500

(Check the Checker)-Army Slang-
I am in agreement with Sergeant Major Of The Army Daily's advice to the Sergeants Majors within the Army. This is my favorite bullet,"No. 10. Never forget that you're just a Soldier. That’s all you are. No better than any other, but just one of them. You may get paid a little more, but when the time comes, your job is to treat them all fair, take care of them as if they were your own children, and expect no more from them of that of which you expect from yourself."

In a recent Armytimes article:
Sergeant Major of the Army Daniel A. Dailey doesn’t pull any punches when he’s talking to his fellow senior noncommissioned officers.
Dailey, who has been the Army’s top enlisted soldier since Jan. 30, has 10 leadership tips he often shares with them, particularly those preparing to become sergeants major.
“Despite what you’ve experienced in the past, a sergeant major’s job isn’t just to find uniform deficiencies," Dailey said earlier this year to the newest graduates of the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy. "It’s not just to ensure everyone has matching PT belts and make sure everybody stays off the grass.Your job is to lead soldiers, to ensure they’re trained and ready to fight our nation’s wars, and bring them home again, and get them ready for the next adventure. Everything you do … should be focused on that, and we’ll be OK.”
Dailey's top 10, in his own words:
No. 1. Yelling doesn’t make you skinny. PT does.
If you’re not out there saluting the flag every morning at 6:30, you can automatically assume your soldiers are not. Soldiers don’t care if you’re in first place. They just want to see you out there. This is a team sport.
PT might not be the most important thing you do that day, but it is the most important thing you do every day in the United States Army. The bottom line is, wars are won between 6:30 and 9.

No. 2. Think about what you’re going to say before you say it.
I’ve never regretted taking the distinct opportunity to keep my mouth shut.
You’re the sergeant major. People are going to listen to you.
By all means, if you have something important or something informative to add to the discussion, then say it. But don’t just talk so people can hear you. For goodness sake, you’re embarrassing the rest of us. Sit down and listen. Sometimes you might just learn something.
No. 3. If you find yourself having to remind everyone all of the time that you’re the sergeant major and you’re in charge, you’re probably not.
That one’s pretty self-explanatory.
No. 4.You have to work very hard at being more informed and less emotional.
Sergeants major, I’ll put it in simple terms: Nobody likes a dumb loudmouth. They don’t.
Take the time to do the research. Learn how to be brief. Listen to people, and give everyone the time of day. Everyone makes mistakes, even sergeants major, and you will make less of them if you have time to be more informed.

No. 5.If you can’t have fun every day, then you need to go home.
You are the morale officer. You don’t have to be everyone’s friend, but you do have to be positive all the time. The sergeant major is the one everyone looks to when it’s cold, when it’s hot, when it’s raining, or things are just going south. Your job is to keep the unit together. That’s why you’re there. The first place they will look when things go bad is you, and they will watch your reaction.
No. 6. Don’t be the feared leader. It doesn’t work.
If soldiers run the other way when you show up, that’s absolutely not cool.
Most leaders who yell all the time, they’re in fact hiding behind their inability to effectively lead. Soldiers and leaders should be seeking you, looking for your guidance, asking you to be their mentors on their Army career track, not posting jokes about you on the 'Dufflebag blog'. That’s not cool. Funny, but it’s not cool.
No. 7. Don’t do anything — and I mean anything — negative over email.
You have to call them. Go see them in person. Email’s just a tool. It’s not a substitute for leadership. It’s also permanent.
You’ve all heard it. Once you hit ‘send,’ it’s official, and you can never bring it back. Automatically assume that whatever you write on email will be on the cover of the Army Times and all over Facebook by the end of the week. Trust me, I know this personally.
No. 8. It’s OK to be nervous. All of us are.
This happens to be my favorite. It came from my mother. My mom always used to tell me that if you’re not nervous on the first day of school, then you’re either not telling the truth, you either don’t care, or you’re just plain stupid. [Being nervous] makes you try harder. That’s what makes you care more. Once that feeling is gone, once you feel like you have everything figured out, it’s time to go home, because the care stops. Don’t do this alone. You need a battle buddy. You need someone you can call, a mentor you can confide in. Don’t make the same mistakes someone else has made. Those are the dumb mistakes. Don’t do this alone.
No. 9. If your own justification for being an expert in everything you do is your 28 years of military experience, then it’s time to fill out your 4187 [form requesting personnel action] and end your military experience.
Not everything gets better with age, sergeants major. You have to work at it every day. Remember, you are the walking textbook. You are the information portal. Take the time to keep yourself relevant.
No. 10. Never forget that you're just a soldier. That’s all you are. No better than any other, but just one of them. You may get paid a little more, but when the time comes, your job is to treat them all fair, take care of them as if they were your own children, and expect no more from them of that of which you expect from yourself.
http://www.armytimes.com/story/military/careers/army/enlisted/2015/11/23/sma-daileys-top-10-leadership-tips-sergeants-major/76268752/

SMA Dailey's top 10 leadership tips for sergeants major

Sergeant Major of the Army Daniel A. Dailey doesn’t pull any punches when he’s talking to his fellow senior noncommissioned officers.

Response by MAJ David Vermillion made Nov 23 at 2015 9:54 PM

MAJ David Vermillion — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 21:54:04 -0500

Outstanding comment.

Response by CSM Charles Hayden made Nov 23 at 2015 9:54 PM

CSM Charles Hayden — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 21:54:28 -0500

Please note how personal contact is referred to several times!

Response by MSgt Curtis Ellis made Nov 23 at 2015 10:02 PM

MSgt Curtis Ellis — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 22:02:14 -0500

"No. 2. Think about what you’re going to say before you say it." & "No. 7. Don’t do anything — and I mean anything — negative over email."
SMA Dailey is dishing out some great leadership tips. I agree with all of it, and these two above for sure!!!

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 23 at 2015 10:02 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 22:02:54 -0500

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL These are OUTSTANDING! Great advice.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 23 at 2015 10:08 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 22:08:52 -0500

Outstanding article. Has anyone else noticed that when a article has been done with him and pics attached he is:
1. Not on a stage or behind a podium
2. He's out in the "crowd" mixing and mingling. That in itself says a lot about the man.

Response by Sgt Kelli Mays made Nov 23 at 2015 10:18 PM

Sgt Kelli Mays — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 22:18:44 -0500

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL Sounds like top notch....grade A...super awesome advice! I have to agree with his top 10 list....It's too bad there are a lot who don't understand this concept and do exactly the opposite.

Response by SP5 Michael Rathbun made Nov 23 at 2015 11:15 PM

SP5 Michael Rathbun — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 23:15:04 -0500

I hope we can keep this guy around for a while.

Response by SrA David Steyer made Nov 23 at 2015 11:27 PM

SrA David Steyer — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 23:27:05 -0500

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL this is some GREAT advice! Most of it can be applied to ALL ranks.

Response by CSM Michael J. Uhlig made Nov 24 at 2015 2:33 AM

CSM Michael J. Uhlig — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 02:33:35 -0500

Great words and best of all is that our SMA is actually genuine, and he does care about our Soldiers!

Response by Cpl Jeff N. made Nov 24 at 2015 9:04 AM

Cpl Jeff N. — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 09:04:25 -0500

I like this SMA...He comes across as pretty straight forward and a good leader/person to follow/emulate. I would take issue with some of number 10. Soldiers are not your children nor should you treat them as such. They are grown men and women. They need accountability and responsibility. That will help them far more in life (and the Army) than viewing them as children that need to be raised. If I thought my leadership viewed me as a child I would have been pretty unhappy about it.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 24 at 2015 9:15 AM

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 09:15:51 -0500

Great advice and a refreshing change from Chandler. If Chandler had written an article like this all it would have mentioned is tattoos, hairstyles, camouflage patterns, SSD, and whether or not you were wearing your dog tags around your neck rather than looped through your belt loop and placed in your pocket. GOOD JOB SMA, makes me wish I could have stayed in and served with you.

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Nov 24 at 2015 10:59 AM

LTC Stephen F. — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 10:59:19 -0500

I think his approach is a good start SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
Earlier I posted a disagreement with his comments that nondeployable soldiers were dead weight. I think he is a good man who is doing his best to properly exercise his responsibilities.
His 10 points seem to be well thought out and good advice.
No. 1. Yelling doesn’t make you skinny. PT does.
No. 2. Think about what you’re going to say before you say it.
No. 3. If you find yourself having to remind everyone all of the time that you’re the sergeant major and you’re in charge, you’re probably not.
No. 4.You have to work very hard at being more informed and less emotional. Take time to do the research.
No. 5.If you can’t have fun every day, then you need to go home.
No. 6. Don’t be the feared leader. It doesn’t work.
No. 7. Don’t do anything — and I mean anything — negative over email. You have to call them. Go see them in person. Email’s just a tool. It’s not a substitute for leadership. It’s also permanent.
No. 8. It’s OK to be nervous. All of us are.
No. 9. If your own justification for being an expert in everything you do is your 28 years of military experience, then it’s time to fill out your 4187 [form requesting personnel action] and end your military experience.
No. 10. Never forget that you're just a soldier. That’s all you are. No better than any other, but just one of them.

Response by SSG Warren Swan made Nov 24 at 2015 11:00 AM

SSG Warren Swan — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 11:00:34 -0500

No. 1. Yelling doesn’t make you skinny. PT does - I get it, but I've also heard the arguments for the way we do PT and the way it's used in "making a better Soldier". While I agree it needs to be done, having a 400 APFT will NOT make you a more effective leader. Having a 400 APFT score will not guarantee you're going to come home from deployment alive. We need a APFT that has everyone doing PT, yet is indicative of what the Army's actually doing.
No. 3. If you find yourself having to remind everyone all of the time that you’re the sergeant major and you’re in charge, you’re probably not...this is effective when you have 2LT's who think they're the XO of something and have more knowledge than you. You might have to remind that young Officer time and time again about the pecking order, and even with that, who's really in charge and makes things happen.
No. 10. Never forget that you're just a soldier. That’s all you are. No better than any other, but just one of them. You may get paid a little more, but when the time comes, your job is to treat them all fair, take care of them as if they were your own children, and expect no more from them of that of which you expect from yourself....THIS ONE SAYS IT ALL.
No. 11. Don't be caught at PT without your PT belt and black socks. SMA Daily IS watching!!!

Response by SSG Audwin Scott made Nov 24 at 2015 11:19 AM

SSG Audwin Scott — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 11:19:33 -0500

Hooah! Enough said!

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 24 at 2015 11:43 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 11:43:42 -0500

Awesome advice, I can take some of this and apply it towards myself lol. Well
Besides PT I love PT

Response by SFC William Swartz Jr made Nov 24 at 2015 12:12 PM

SFC William Swartz Jr — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 12:12:56 -0500

Oh that someone had posted a list like this years ago...I know of quite a few individuals that could have learned from it and done a better job......

Response by SSG John Caples made Nov 30 at 2015 6:27 PM

SSG John Caples — Mon, 30 Nov 2015 18:27:07 -0500

HOOOAAAHHHH SMA Dailey well said,

Response by SSG JimSchan Thomas made Oct 5 at 2018 5:45 PM

SSG JimSchan Thomas — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 17:45:17 -0400

I know a few SMG & CSM that could've use this advice a few years back, better late than never I guess.

Response by SGM Willard Burfict made Dec 2 at 2018 3:13 PM

SGM Willard Burfict — Sun, 02 Dec 2018 15:13:23 -0500

Awesome! I totally agree with all ten of his leadership tip...On point!

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 15 at 2018 7:35 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:35:13 -0500

I got to number 3 and was instantly a supporter. Hands down. In USAREC I had the displeasure of dealing with someone who had to always tell me they were a leader until I told them they lost credibility when they had to remind people who was in charge.