Posted on Sep 22, 2014
SGT Ben Keen
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There is no doubt as many leadership styles as there are people in the world. And each person has his/her own reaction to that particular leadership style; either good or bad.

Today at work we were talking about this topic and the question came up; "Which is better? Showing someone how to fish or saving the time and fishing for them?" My answer was you actually save time by showing someone how to do something rather than doing it for them and hoping they catch on. While yes, doing it for them saves you time and effort on the front end, you lose time on the back end because you may have to do 2 or 3 times if not more for them to catch on.

Of course others in the group felt the other way which is fine; again, there are different leadership styles. So my question to the RallyPoint community is which do you think is better? Do you have any examples when one method worked better than the other? Does the military try and teach the leaders of the military one way over another on how to lead?
Posted in these groups: Leadership abstract 007 LeadershipTrain2 Training
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Responses: 11
SSG Jacob Wiley
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ALWAYS teach to fish. If it is given, that individual never develops a desire to do for themselves. If someone is unwilling to learn, still don't give it to them. Let them be hungry.

Self motivation and one's personal drive is paramount in anything. If a person chooses to be lazy, strive for nothing, and rely on everyone else, that person is a dredge on us all and a burden.
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MSgt Roger Lalik
MSgt Roger Lalik
10 y
"Self motivation and one's personal drive is paramount in anything. If a person chooses to be lazy, strive for nothing, and rely on everyone else, that person is a dredge on us all and a burden. "

Oh man you described my live in in-laws to the tee! Oh I see you must know them. You're less than 100 miles away. We're straight north of you on hwy 41 in Henderson. Wow, what an accurate description!!
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SFC Military Police
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As I tell every class of new students, " all of the knowledge and experience that I have acquired through my years in uniform does me no good when I die, therefore it is my duty to pass it on"
All too often I see NCOs that are either fearful of teaching soldiers because retaining the higher knowledge gives them some sense of power over the naive or they themselves just don't know enough.
I was recently informed that a prospective student is concerned about attending my course because there might be extensive map reading involved. Mind you I only teach NCOs and often just seniors so it pains me that they don't know the basics but are tasked to train the juniors.
I was blessed by hard ass NCOs that didn't let me stop until I was proficient at the task being trained. They didn't punch the clock at 1700 like I see done today, they went home when the job was done.
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SGT Team Leader
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Wtf %283%29
I can't understand why anybody would disagree with "teaching them to fish." as a complete philosophy.Now, I can appreciate that there are sometimes when somebody is screwing up so badly as to get someone else hurt. In this case, if time is of the essence, sometimes doing it yourself is the most effective way to get it done in order to minimize damage.
If folks aren't shown how to do something, they can't teach anyone else, and you end up with a Charlie Foxtrot of people running into each other, completely helpless and sometimes totally apathetic.
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SGT Team Leader
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10 y
PO1 Joseph Silvers says, "FU. Challenge accepted." LOL!
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PO1 Joseph Silvers
PO1 Joseph Silvers
10 y
SPC(C) Mulder: I was not offering a challenge in any way...I was just attempting to liken the Biblical parable to a current world situation that may affect our "watered-down" military since the present administration so stridently proclaimed "victory" over terrorism, which is chameleon-like in its appearance and changes with both its environment and over time...al-Qa'ida was never "wiped out" --- it just morphed into splinter groups such as ISIL and AQAP, just as the old "Black September" (the one-time terrorist wing of the PLO/al-Fatah) morphed into another entity {possibly al-Qa'ida???)..again, no disrespect intended or implied!
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PO1 Joseph Silvers
PO1 Joseph Silvers
10 y
To SPC (P) Erin Mulder: So what IS our option in that "foreign pond" --- to continue "teaching" or conduct a full-out intervention? ---you initial postulation was "to teach" but if people are being harmed and time is of the essence, you would "do it yourself". The "food chain commissar" has dallied over the problem of a pandemic "lethal pond scum" for quite some time, ignoring the policy of his predecessor and his current board of experienced chief "fishers" (while "causing" resignations of several proven leaders who saw things differently), as lwell as certain "retired" specialists, several of whom advocate the "supplying of the proper "fishing" equipment to those illl-supplied Kurdish "fishers"...what say you?
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SGT Team Leader
SGT (Join to see)
10 y
Put boots on the ground, arm the Kurds to the teeth. Reinforce the lines against and rain down the fires of hell on their extremist asses.
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