Did thee forget thy roots?

GySgt Bryan A. McGown "Gunny" — Wed, 04 Feb 2015 13:56:37 -0500

So, this is for the SNCOs and Os in the audience. How any times have you worked with a civilian manager (or higher) who served as a commissioned officer, and that individual lost all military bearing and professionalism by forgetting their roots and what sets us apart as SNCOs and commissioned officers? - i.e. not being a positive motivator, but just the complete opposite, and by trying to make themselves look better by exploiting your successes as their own, or failing to recognize your accomplishments?

Response by SMSgt Marty Culleton made Feb 4 at 2015 3:25 PM

SMSgt Marty Culleton — Wed, 04 Feb 2015 15:25:05 -0500

Bryan, that person you describe is everywhere. I think our choices on how to best deal with them are limited, depending upon just how entrenched they are with their self-serving behavior. I've dealt with this kind of person, occasionally successfully, also mentored younger troops on dealing with this kind of person ...and constantly hear stories from my loved ones about these people who seem to exist for no other reason than to create hate and discontent. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but if all attempts to understand/educate/rehabilitate this person who is behaving as a lousy, selfish leader only reveal them to be completely egocentric and entrenched, then defensive countermeasures are in order. Finesse is required. Try to get between them and the people they're negatively impacting. Standing up for what's right is required, but choose your battles carefully and remember, you can only fall on your sword once. Document. If they are intransigent in their harmful behaviors, the impact of those behaviors require a spotlight that is bright enough to enlighten those above them to replace them with more competent leaders. Done professionally and with great finesse, (the hallmarks of great NCOs) there is a way through the mess these difficult people create, but let's face it -- we all know it's a long haul. In the final analysis, nothing reveals a really unprofessional person more than a really professional person. In time.

Response by PO1 Aaron Baltosser made Feb 18 at 2015 1:24 PM

PO1 Aaron Baltosser — Wed, 18 Feb 2015 13:24:31 -0500

That happened regularly in my career. They were motivated by making higher marks than the other civilian and GS staff, and getting higher marks meant more money, more seniority. I had some great examples of how to do business that were often able to gift me with rock solid advice. The folks able to do that all had a common thread. At one time they were all Navy Chiefs.