There’s some really good points here that resonated with me. I agree with Jeff ( @x70037 ) that maybe a different title would be helpful. I also agree with Chad’s concerns about alcohol, as well as some of Brock’s counterpoints.

I personally think it significantly comes down to the US drinking age being 21 and alcohol (which is a drug, just as…[Read more]

@brock.j.young – great points about being cautious and bringing up commanders who over-react. Similar to Command Climate Assessments/ Surveys, it is important to gain perspective on people’s comments and as they say separate the signal from the noise.  Soldiers will complain, it is human nature. However, I argue what separates good and great…[Read more]

Great post, Chad! There’s tons in here and I love the variety.  13 pages is for sure a lot of variety!! A few things that resonated with me, in no particular order:

– “Be curious”. I think that’s a great way to inspire questions without relying on the trope far too often leaned on of ‘I’m just a LT/SGT/etc, what do I know?’. Everyone can be…[Read more]

Thank you Jason!

Trust…is earned not given! Cliché but true!
Just a few days ago we had an incident where a 1SG was “showing off” in front of our CSM and being a bit disrespectful to my NCO.

While in the meeting, I pulled the NCO and said, “let them speak, you are doing great, have the right info and the error that he is pointing out is…[Read more]

Thank you Cristian!

I’ve try to maintain everyone informed but also try to take care of things are the lowest level.

I am still learning on how to properly involve my HHC Commander/BN XO, it is a hard transition and I continue to just want to fix everything my self.

Thank you so much Brock! This is a real eye opener!
Being a leader is hard…I am learning that rather quickly and it is quite a challenge yet a challenge I plan on overcoming.

Your explanation on escalation of force makes complete sense…as a Junior Officer I am still learning on what the right thing to do is as far as mentoring others and…[Read more]

Thank you Adam! This is very true and I appreciate your words.
My first disagreement with this NCO turned into me approaching the CSM and requesting to move the NCO; his response, very professional and made me think twice, “ma’am, understand my fox hole first, how would it look on me if I give up on this NCO right away?”.
I was quite annoyed at…[Read more]

How do you lead civilians in your organization? If you don’t have civilians, how do you lead people that you don’t have command or supervisory authority over?

As an MI Officer, I’ve had the pleasure of working and leading civilians both downrange and at home station.  I agree with comments above that one must be authentic and understand the…[Read more]

Heather,

I love your comment that in an engaged team things just happen. What has to be present for things to just happen? Have you ever been in an organization where you felt comfortable to make things happen? Have you been in an organization where you didn’t feel comfortable to make things happen? What made the difference?

Finally, how do…[Read more]

Heather’s responses:

Engagement:
1. Think about your last OPORD. What systems of control do we
commonly use in mission planning? Is there a minimum needed to execute the mission?
I’d argue that the majority of paragraph 3 — Execution — is
mostly a control mechanism by dictating the “who”, “what”, and “when” for
nearly all tasks. For example,…[Read more]

The only civilians I came across in my time as lieutenant were range or simulation managers. The retired simulation managers were always very helpful. Range control can be finicky, but I just ensured to maintain my respect and patience so we could minimize lost time.

I appreciate these responses to consider for future challenges.

Thanks, I agree there is a need for solid planning in the NG and sometimes it is lacking…

Its true soldiers get paid for working in NG status, it isn’t pro-bono but it isn’t always enough to keep food on the table.  I have many soldiers who lose money when they are on active duty.  They’re proud of their service and are able to balance the t…[Read more]

Brock, great feedback.  I think though that is a component of the Guard 4.0 that gets overlooked we have State and Federal responsibilities.   While an ASMC like mine is going to do pretty much the same mission regardless most other units that will not.

I think you make a great point about quality training driving retention.  However, as an M-d…[Read more]