What is the best way maintain momentum in the work place?

COL Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 26 Mar 2016 19:57:37 -0400

This series focuses on the transition from Company Grade / Junior NCO to Field Grade Officer / Senior NCO.

We are huge fans of Terry Bradshaw #12 and the Steelers. You are the Quarterback and must score touchdowns for the team to win. The only way to win is to get the ball down the field and across the goal line.

Lateral Movement is in fact movement. However, there is no progress made for you or your organization by moving side to side. You must push, claw, and scrape forward even in the face of adversity and resistance. Far too many Officers and NCOs spend their day organizing email and attending pointless meetings. Here is a tip to ensure you are moving forward every single day – Focus the majority of your efforts on Planning and Resourcing. Frankly, everything else in your professional life is secondary to those two things. You must plan for the organization and publish synchronizing documents (WARNOs, OPORDs, and FRAGOs). These documents keep the trains on time and add predictability for your organization. As discussed previously, you must follow the 9:6:4:13 Rule when planning and publishing orders. Resourcing is equally important. Ammunition and land are easy, there are systems in place that enable your success. How are you ensuring the required TADDS and other resources required for training are being sourced? Use anti freeze or CLP as your resourcing litmus test. When you are projecting how much anti-freeze you will go through during a training event you likely have it about right. As a leader if you are not planning and resourcing the ball is only being moved laterally and your unit is suffering. You are hurting Soldiers by ignoring these two critical areas.

Bottom Line- If you can plan and resource you will be an effective leader.

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Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Mar 26 at 2016 8:24 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Sat, 26 Mar 2016 20:24:06 -0400

All things being equal. Keep the morale high and the work standards crystal clear. I can go over my morale builders if you want.

Response by SGM James McCullough made Mar 27 at 2016 2:17 AM

SGM James McCullough — Sun, 27 Mar 2016 02:17:25 -0400

I found through the years that Soldiers are their most productive and their morale is highest when leaders are willing to invest in them. I was successful in large part because I realized that if I took care of my Soldiers and then got out of their way, that good things usually happened. The following are some of the things that I found useful and which helped me to be a better leader. These following are a few suggestions that may be useful to any leader willing to try them. They are in no particular order:

1. Be the best example that you can possibly be. Train your Soldiers well, make training purpose oriented, realistic, challenging, and whenever possible enjoyable. Afterward there should always be a sense of accomplishment and the value of lessons learned (both + & -). Teach them, coach them, and train them to succeed you if you should fall and to confidently take charge in your absence. This can be extremely rewarding foe everyone. Let them know that they will make mistakes along the way and that its' alright. After all Soldiers can't make mistakes if they aren't trying. Help them to understand how they can be more effective and let them know that the only unpardonable sin is for them to take no acttion for fear of erring.

2. Give your Solders ownership in the process and the product, praise and reward when warranted and remember to be positive with your critique of their efforts. You'd be amazed at how much you as a leader can learn from those that you are privileged to lead. Understand that EVERY Soldier has something to offer and can add to the discussion. You may find that occasional pearl of wisdom or challenging solution that you are looking for.

3. Make your expectations and standards absolutely clear! Let Soldiers know that anything worth doing is worth doing right/correctly the first time, then follow up by inspecting their work. Teach them what done right/correctly looks like. As a Jumpmaster we are taught to immediately recognize what properly rigged equipment looks like. Anything not rigged to that standard automatically jumps out at you (no pun intended). The same can be said about the everyday business that Soldiers must conduct. They will never know what right/correct looks like or why it's important until you show them and help them to understand why it is so. Endeavor to make them understand whey even the most mundane tasks done well and with an attention to detail view approach (weapons, vehicle, equipment, personal kit, etc.) maintenancecan be critically important when lives are at risk.

4. This one is IMHO the most important thing for a leader to realize in order to be successful.
Be smart enough to know that you do not have all of the answers! Treat every Soldier with respect, let them know that they are as important to you as your own family (because that's exactly what they are). If you don't believe this find another line of work. When Soldiers know that we genuinely care about them they will perform magnificently and they will make us look good, mine did!

5. And last but not least, NEVER, EVER forget that leading Soldiers is the highest calling and greatest privilege that a Noncommissioned Officer or Officer will ever be afforded. OK I'll get off my soap box now, hopefully this s useful.
Regards,

SGM James R. McCullough
United States Army (Retired)

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 27 at 2016 11:02 PM

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 27 Mar 2016 23:02:02 -0400

Establish a vision with quantifiable metrics. Sell the vision and objectives. The team has to own their objectives. Establish azimuth checks. At the tactical level this may be the units METL. At the strategic level this may be the organizational strategy. Both examples outline clear objectives and end states.