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Our articles are written by leaders from all walks of life on topics applicable to the development and success of junior officers in the Army.

Building Readiness through the Stoic Philosophy

Chris Slininger

"Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look" -Marcus Aurelius

A Soldier’s Death – A Leader’s Challenge

James Tollefson

I was a young Specialist standing guard in a small platoon outpost in Al-Karmah, Iraq in 2007 when time stopped. Dust particles froze mid-drift through the air.....

Make Room for the Antenna: Three Principles of Performance that Breed Success for Junior Officers

Geoff Logan

Three Principles of Performance that Breed Success for Junior Officers: Figure Stuff Out (FSO): see the problem, understand the problem, and identify a solution; Make …

Innovating the Bureaucracy from a Junior Officer’s Perspective

Addison McLamb

The US Army is a bureaucracy. And to most bureaucracies, “success” means cohesively rowing in unison – controlling variables at the individual level to create strategic cadence at scale.....

Lost and Found: Junior Leader Counseling in the Army

Michael Everett

How many formal counselings have you received during your military career? Can you count them on one hand? Two hands?

What do the U.S Army and Google Have in Common?

Mark Erwin

On many levels, the Army and Google are very different organizations.....

Three Things to Make You Good at Any Job

Lucas Thoma

Wisdom can come from the most unexpected places — like a bar.

Innovative Leadership in the Army: Four Lessons from a Start-up Incubator

Bryce V. Johnston

Many leaders in the Army would like to be innovative, but the task can seem so daunting that it is difficult to determine where to start......

WIN as a Platoon Leader in the Arctic

Alvin Cade

I knew Alaska would be extremely cold, but I just could not grasp how anyone could possibly train in this environment......

People First, Winning Matters: The Tightrope of Leadership

Connor Toomey

Take care of your Soldiers. From the first push-up of basic training to the first operations order brief of Officer Candidate School, to my incoming interview with my battalion commander, …

Making the Switch: What I Wish I Knew Before Becoming a Field Grade Officer

Don Gomez

Last week, the Army released the results of the 2021 Major Promotion Selection Board (PSB)......

Detailed Career Planning for the Junior Officer

Miguel Moyeno

One thing that you will learn quickly (if you haven't already) is that the path to navigate the ranks from Second Lieutenant to Captain can vary greatly.......

The Power of Cognitive Diversity for Our Military

Amy Saxton

As the modern battlefield becomes increasingly complex, the U.S. military will require innovative and adaptive thinking to meet diverse challenges. Foreign adversaries and empowered non-state …

First 90 Days as an XO (Part 3)

Hugh Kennedy, Lorenzo Llorente II, Andrew Bordelon, and Terry Lee

The purpose of this article is to help you understand the responsibilities as an XO, as well as actions you can take within the first 90 days in position for …

First 90 Days as an XO (Part 2)

Hugh Kennedy, Lorenzo Llorente II, Andrew Bordelon, and Terry Lee

After all, this is your first real test as an Officer and what you have aspired to be up until this point right? But what happens after your time as …

First 90 Days as an XO (Part 1)

Hugh Kennedy, Lorenzo Llorente II, Andrew Bordelon, and Terry Lee

But what happens after your time as a PL is over? More often than not you might find yourself serving as a Company Executive Officer.

The Cowardice and Casualties of Conflict Avoidance

MJ Cantrell

Being non-confrontational can have its upsides. Conflict-avoidant people aren't prone to burning bridges, and based on observation, they tend to strengthen teams rather than weaken them.

Some Quick Tips on Maintenance and Leadership for Junior Officers

Jordon Swain

I've served with more than a few Majors and Lieutenant Colonels who didn't know what a 5988E or a 2404 were, didn't know where their BII was stored in their …

“I’m not your friend” — Understanding the XO-PL Relationship

Joo Chung

When my fellow platoon leaders and I first met our Company Executive Officer, he immediately told us, "I'm not your friend, and I'm not here to answer your stupid questions."

Nine Tips to Guide Company & Troop Fire Support Officers

Steve Krawczyk

If you are reading this as a new Fire Support Officer (FSO), congratulations. You don't know it yet, but you have won the lottery.

We need fewer LEADERS and more leaders

Eric Evans

To all junior officers and future commissioned Army officers out there, I have a question: Do you want to be a LEADER, or a leader?

A Junior Officer’s Reflection on The Branch Detail Program

David Beaumont

Every year throughout the Army, junior leaders from The United States Military Academy at West Point, The Reserve Officer Training Corps, and Officer Candidate School …

What an Injury Taught Me About Leadership

Kristi Reed

5 leadership lessons the author learned after being injured.

Book Review of 2034: A Novel of the Next World War

Andrew Webster

Elliot Ackerman and Admiral Stavridis depart from most military fiction novels with their recently released novel titled 2034: A Novel of the Next World War. Instead of telling a story …

Company Command: Leading Change in the First 90 days

Jordan Terry

While a gradual approach may be prudent in many situations, some situations (like the one I experienced), require a new commander to act immediately and boldly to make necessary change …

Keep Calm and OCT On: The Hidden Benefits of OCT Taskings

Anna Rapp

The inevitable tasking comes down -- your unit is required to send Observer/Coach/Trainer (OCT) augmentees to support the rotation of the sister unit. However, OCT …

Becoming a Basic Training Platoon Leader

Marshay Harris

When my branch manager told me she had some Platoon Leader requisitions opening at Fort Jackson, I initially though she misspoke and meant Executive Officer. I mean why on earth …

Together We Rise, Divided We Fall: The Importance of DEI in the US Army

Katherine Hathaway

We need to talk about the Army values and our character as Soldiers in our sacred profession. I believe that out of our seven Army values, we are most deficient …

West Point Lieutenants Lack Self-Awareness

Jordon Swain and James Watson

If you're a West Point graduate, maybe you bristled at the headline. If you received your commission from another source, maybe you nodded and smiled. Why did we choose this …

Why Good Leaders Challenge the Stigmatization of Menstruation

Joy Schaeffer

We are in a profession training to use lethal force. An unwillingness to discuss menstruation in the military is not about a lack of intestinal fortitude to discuss a little …

Thoughts from a COVID Commander

Allyson I. Hauptman

Within a few weeks in the early Spring of 2020, COVID 19 caused an unprecedented level of confusion surrounding many aspects of military life, including …

Creating Strong Partnerships

Laura Keenan

The Army of today operates in a joint environment alongside civilians, contractors and interagency staff. It is not a question of "if" you will work with Army civilians, servicemembers from …

Why Ranger-Qualified 2LTs and SPCs are Hated

Ryan Rogers

The mentality that is the by-product of surviving the army's toughest school...

A Junior Officer’s Guide to Leading Creativity in the Army

Jordon Swain & James Armstrong

Junior officers in the United States Army lack creativity - this is what a survey of Army leadership reveals. Why does this matter and what you can do about it?

Why Relationships Matter for Effective Negotiation

Travis Cyphers

The greatest predictor of success in these situations is not how right you are or what justification you can provide to compel the other side to act -- the greatest …

“I Believe You.” How to Support Soldiers Who Have Experienced Sexual Trauma

Hope Hack

It would be naïve and ignorant for an Army leader to assume that they neither have a survivor of sexual assault in their ranks nor will they ever meet a …

Servant Leadership in Basic Combat Training Part 2

Wendy Almengor

Soldiers learn to be good leaders from good leaders.

Perspectives on the AIM 2.0 Marketplace — A Peek Behind the Curtain

Mark Gnodle, Michael Brodka, & John Hermida

The AIM 2.0 Marketplace can be daunting even for those who have navigated its changing structure over several movement cycles. We look at the Marketplace from three perspectives: the mover, …

Servant Leadership in Basic Combat Training Part 1: Empathy and Listening

Wendy Almengor

"When I initiated separation on the first Trainee, I learned two things about myself: 1. I needed to work on empathy and 2. I failed to truly embody what I …

Using Existing Doctrine to Understand and Secure the Information Environment

Robert Norwood

Every soldier scrolling through social media on their phone is like an intelligence analyst....

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