First, welcome to the profession!  Being a platoon leader is an awesome experience.  You will learn more about the Army in your time as a PL than just about any other assignment.  I think its awesome you’re thinking ahead and planning.

I think you’ve hit the nail on the head, it can be daunting to counsel someone who has so much experience. It…[Read more]

Michael,

Welcome back from the field.  I love a point that you made, their success directly contributed to my team’s success.  Such a crucial concept that gets missed in too many leadership books.  We are only as successful as we allow our teams to be.

As to logistics, I think a key to success is understanding if I don’t have it, where can I ge…[Read more]

The key is to re-read your existing regulations and skip a paragraph or two down.  There is usually a NG paragraph there.  Key to learning is to dive in and talk to a SME ask for the AR they’re quoting and read it for yourself.

As an M-day commander I rely on my full time support staff to help.

Brock, more years than I am willing to admit to ago, there was a saying painted on my DFAC’s wall at basic: training is everything and everything is training. As a leader I invest time in understanding what training requirements are and how can I incorporate it into the daily routine. For example many of the medic tables can serve as AWT task…[Read more]

I am experiencing this as an outsider.  I just received a new LT fresh from ROTC.  As I mentor the LT on being an officer I think the key opportunity is in preparing your attitude.  As a Candidate or Cadet you spent all your time learning and being graded.  That’s not as true for being an officer.  Yes, eyes are on you and yes you are compe…[Read more]

I have to say that as a brand new LT I wanted to do nothing more than just be an MS officer doing MSy officery things.  However a deployment where I was forced to work another staff role made me a much better officer.  Cross training is crucial to helping a young officer learn valuable skills and develop their talent.  I still love being MS and Do…[Read more]

Paul,

I’ve just taken command of my second company and I would love to help share ideas and experiences.  I had some staff time between commands which helped me to really focus on what I did well and what I must improve this time around.

Kenny, I’ve learned its important to be yourself.  One of the most important leadership traits is authenticity.  If you try to be something you aren’t you won’t be happy, you won’t lead effectively and your soldiers won’t trust you.

The first thing I would do if I could be a new PL again, is to meet with my NCOs.  Your success as a PL is tied to…[Read more]

As a young PL I was told some great advice.  Never say no.  Instead say We can do that but……  For example a new tasking is beyond your capability.  I would say Sir, we can do that but, I have these other taskers and would need relief from one of them to execute this new mission.  This lets the superior decide which tasks you are acco…[Read more]