I’ve been in those organizations where NCOs tuned out. Amazingly, all I had to do was (2 things) ask, and then let them do it. NCOs used to tune out when they felt there was no difference/recognition/separation between the doers and the conmen. In the days when everyone got a 1 over 1, that killed organizations, as the conmen got the same report…[Read more]

I designed a coin w/ my 1SG and Soldiers really wanted to earn one. I also gave very short briefs on Friday – 1 min. Safety Brief, touching on the top 3 safety concerns, the top 3 mitigations, and 1-2 last minute updates from S-2. I did this by practicing succinctness before hand – worked out great. I spent another 1 min. talking about the Troop i…[Read more]

Thanks for posting.  I’d actually been struggling with this a bit recently.  While I may be “OOO” I still tend to keep up with email and respond when needed.  I stopped using the OOO message if I was planning on responding, but this article gave me a new way of looking at it as a way to let people know my response time will be slower than usual an…[Read more]

The tasks never stop, do they? A bit of good news is that we have shortened the list of AR 350-1 mandatory training requirements this past year.  Hopefully, people are listening to us as we continuously beat that drum.   Over the years I have learned a few lessons on how to prioritize my list of mandatory tasks.

1.  What metrics are being re…[Read more]

This is great! My rule of thumb is that if I’m going to be gone for more than a long weekend, I’ll put something brief up. I find myself getting caught up in the trap of posting an out of office response and jumping back on my e-mail anyways and responding to messages. It’s definitely something I’ve had to work on and shake the habit.

Micah

Tiara,

I’m unable to replicate this issue.  Are you on the very front page of JO when you do this?  If not, can you send me the url of the page you are on?  Also, can you right-click over the link (4, 11, ->, etc) and copy the link and paste it in a reply to me?

Tiara,

I’m unable to replicate this issue.  Are you on the very front page of JO when you do this?  If not, can you send me the url of the page you are on?  Also, can you right-click over the link (4, 11, ->, etc) and copy the link and paste it in a reply to me?

Tiara,

Yes.  We can put the number of replies on that page as well.  Great suggestion!

Tiara,

Yes.  We can put the number of replies on that page as well.  Great suggestion!

Management is definitely a major gap for me.  My last two commands comes down to one very serious problem; “professional development” isn’t a priority from the BN level.  I think I had management at the platoon level down; I’m still figuring out the company command management thing (but I’m getting it I think). However what’s next? The last 2 B…[Read more]

Jefferey,

Congratulations! This was something that I spent about a month trying to figure out, basically as soon as I took command right up until the point that I briefed my company for the first time. I guess it included my speech as the incoming commander during the CoC.

I tried to keep with a theme which boiled down to my vision for the…[Read more]

Can’t go past the first page on the topic threads- I click “2”, click “11”, and on the “->” but it only reloads the 1st page of topics. I am on a government computer and on IE, if that matters. 🙂

I LOVE these ideas! I especially like the idea of hand written notes and homemade food/potlucks. It speaks volumes to thank someone specifically on how they’ve impacted the organization. Meaningful versus generic goes a long way. Giving thanks and showing appreciation should be a part of every Leader’s personal battle rhythm.

I think Management was my biggest gap as a junior Officer. As a senior CPT, we are expected to be proficient in our leadership style and how we manage teams. I think we could do a much better job to ensure that senior CPTs and junior field grades do feel more confident in their management style. I’ve been in the military over 8 years now and still…[Read more]