What does being an NCO mean to you?

An NCO immediately loses three words out of his/her vocabulary..."I" and "me" and "my"...and learns to get their arms around the "we" and "us" and "our" words. They take on their greatest responsibility...to train their replacements...and set the example for leadership, caring, and sacrifice. They learn the difference between a behavior problem and a character problem and act accordingly. They will stand for no character problems in their midst and will do everything legally possible to usher them out of our Nation's service. The NCO will always be squared away and five minutes early for anything. Their word is their bond. They will seek training, education, and diverse jobs to become an asset to their team, their organization, and to the US. They celebrate with robust moderation, they fight with fear, bravery, and resolve, and they sleep only when others are rested. The following day, they do it all again...a little longer, a little better, and a little more passion.

A Leader. A Professional. A Mentor. Someone who has been given the extreme honor of being entrusted with the lives of Soldiers.

The NCOcreed sums it up well.

While PCS ing to Germany, an incident occurred where I encountered two young Pvts in the main terminal in St. Louis airport making rude and lascivious statements to a young female. Since we were all in uniform, I asked to see their ID cards as they were in open violation of UCMJ and I was taught to take immediate corrective action when ever possible. As I looked at the ID's I realized they had the same last name and I asked if they were related. They were brothers. Just then, a middle aged woman 50-60 or so appeared and was very agitated, telling me she was the grandmother, and the female was their cousin. I noticed we had attracted a small but growing crowd and also noticed I was the only white person present. I said in a loud voice "Ma'am, I am an NCO in the United States Army, I am paid to jump to conclusions. I jumped wrong here but hope you understand under the circumstances" She said she did and that ended the matter. You get your rank from making mistakes and from doing your job and from learning to do the next one, but it is also from being forward thinking and from making decisions when no one else can or will make them and being sensitive to the rest of your team and the mission. The best decision is the right decision, the worst decision is making no decision.
Bayonet!

Not there yet. I'm still trying to gather what I would want to be as an NCO, who were my best influences, what would I take from them and what would I not do. I view NCO's as mentors. Every one is different in their own way, and when they impart knowledge to you, you might not always like the way in which they do it but the lesson is there.

Someday when I make Sergeant I would like to think I could impart my knowledge of things make sure they know I'm there for them and will look out for them. That doesn't mean I'm their buddy but that they are my Soldiers and that hopefully I would be there to push them forward, keep the flak off them, and show them a path to success.

At least that's what I think now.

being an NCO you lead by example, you lead from the front, you listen to your sm's but keep in mind the mission, sometimes you have to remember that you are an NCO and no longer part of junior ranks

SGT(P) (Join to see) As a Marine, I tried to emulate the best practices that I observed from fellow Marines. It was my duty to be a squared away Marine and know my MOS. As a NCO, my task was to accomplish the mission with the men and material at hand, while mentoring and taking care of my men. Having integrity was a big part of my makeup, along with mentoring.

SFC Aubrey Smith,a true professional someone I always tried to emulate when I made the NCO grade,but really compared to him I was just a guy who played Army for three years,he lived it as a career and taught us what it took to be a leader,a professional soldier.

Responsible for your soldiers.

I talk to God and he (CSM) answers.