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Being “Somebody” Isn’t Good Enough

“I always wanted to be somebody,
but I should have been more specific.” –Lily Tomlin

Today, we can draw some insightful leadership lessons from an unlikely source in Lily Tomlin. Her pithy quote certainly resonates to each of our personal ambitions, as it is dangerously easy to get sucked into the milestones of life without clearly defining where those milestones will lead…or the type of person we will become along the path.

Similarly, new Privates and Lieutenants step into active duty as proverbial blank slates, ready to combine real-world experience with the second-hand, academic, and imagined impressions they have of military service. Most have goals in mind, some vision of what “success” looks like for their time in service. Some want to be generals…some prioritize getting a college education…others are just happy to have survived Basic Training.

But how many service members, these future leaders, take their vision beyond a rank or position and specify the type of leader they want to be? Then, how many people outline how to develop those skills throughout their career to reach that endstate?

Somebody

U.S. Army Specialist Anthony Esparza provides security on the perimeter of the Khyber Border Coordination Center at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, Jan. 4, 2015. Esparza is assigned to the 3d Cavalry Regiment, Train, Advise, Assist Command – East. U.S. Army photo by Capt. Jarrod Morris. Link to photo.

Do Leader Development Programs Matter?

Question:  Does your unit or company leader development program have an impact on how you lead? Do the leader development activities actually inspire change?…Or are they just intrusions to your own tried and true leadership style?

Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Be selective about whom you take on as friends, colleagues, and neighbors. The world is full of agreeable and talented folk. The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.

But remember that our moral influence is a two-way street, and we should thus make sure by our own thoughts, words, and deeds to be a positive influence on those we deal with. The real test of personal excellence lies in the attention we give to the often neglected small details of our conduct. Make it your business to draw out the best in others by being an exemplar yourself.

Epictetus
The Art of Living (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1994), 54
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Command Performance Worth Plugging Into

Today, I’d like to highlight the work of military blogger Dale Wilson, the creator of Command Performance Leadership. Dale is a former Navy logistician and has two decades of experience in business management and leadership. He writes on a wide variety of leadership-related topics and is bringing a resurgence to his blog in 2015.

Command Performance

An MH-60S Knight Hawk helicopter passes the USS Chafee while delivering supplies to the USS Carl Vinson during a vertical replenishment mission with the USNS Bridge in the Pacific Ocean, Jan. 2, 2012. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class James R. Evans. Link to photo.

What I appreciate about Command Performance Leadership is that Dale takes great care to thoroughly develop his topics, providing multiple perspectives to consider, and cites other work to support his arguments. He balances the “no rules” nature of online blogging with academic legitimacy, which is refreshing.

My favorite example of this is Dale’s expanded look at Schofield’s Definition of Discipline, where he provides historical context and personal insight.

Here’s an excerpt:

The foundation of discipline is not accountability or punishment, but respect.  A leader must establish trust and credibility, communicate effectively, employ empathy, intimately know their people’s capabilities, and move their people into positions to be most successful.  Nobody should be the ‘bad guy’ when leading people.  No leader should be a bad guy intentionally, or go out of their way to be one.  If a leader is working to perfect his ‘bad guy’ image, he is dishonoring his responsibility as a leader, and is creating a hostile environment for his followers.  If a leader has successfully become a ‘bad guy,’ shame on them.  Their subordinates deserve better than that; and, so does the service they represent and the Command (organization) they are responsible for.[xi]  Ultimately, a good leader will lead through respect instead of leading through fear.  When you treat people right, word gets around.

And this post on toxic leadership tells how to avoid letting self-interested attitudes interfere with quality leadership:

Integrity of character is the foundation of a great leader.  To use a metaphor, it is what you build your very being up from, if you so choose.  The building blocks of leadership are built upon the value of integrity and trust.  Each block represents the values, virtues and principles that will house your team.  It will be built with duty, honor, courage, commitment, selfless service, respect, justice, judgment, dependability, initiative, decisiveness, tact, enthusiasm, bearing, unselfishness, knowledge, loyalty, and endurance.  It will be a strong structure if you build with these traits properly and effectively.  You need to make sure the leadership “structure” your team works in is built with these things.  Within that strong structure, under the strong roof of your leadership, your team will be safe and secure.

Also check out his posts on Leadership Defined and Authoritarian Leadership vs. Democratic Leadership ~ The Officer Corps Explained.

You can find Dale actively developing his 3,000 Twitter followers at @5starleadership.

Question: Do you have a military blog that people need to check out? Leave a comment below!

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The Top 15 Posts from 2014

I’m proud to report that 2014 was the most successful year ever for The Military Leader!!! …Ok, fine. If you want to split hairs, yes…2014 was also the first year for The Military Leader website and social media platform. Still, it’s been an amazing journey since the first post on March 24, 2014, which basically said, “Welcome to The Military Leader. Be sure to ‘Like’ me on Facebook!”

Since then, you (a community of engaged leaders) have grown from zero to almost 3,000 and have accessed the site’s content over 90,000 times! Truly remarkable! And here are the 15 posts that gained the most traffic this year, with a few insights following the list.

Start Here

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Addicted to Winning (Habit Series #1, pt 1)

Have you ever browsed the bargain section of Barnes & Noble and been automatically skeptical about the quality of the books? “This looks interesting…but why is it so cheap?” Because the only thing worse than being slightly dissatisfied with a full-priced book, is being fully dissatisfied with a discounted one you got tricked into buying. Right? So, I spend some time investigating a bargain book before I buy it.

That’s what happened with What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, by leadership coach and best-selling author Marshall Goldsmith. This book that I was skeptical about turned out to be a wealth of applicable insights on leader behavior, team building, and interpersonal influence.

One section of the book should be mandatory reading for every leader, especially we military leaders who have command authority to “fall back on” when personal leadership talent falters. It’s called “The Twenty Habits That Hold You Back from the Top.” Reading this section is like getting the results of a 360° peer feedback process without having to take the survey…eye-opening and humbling.

What I will do for this new series of blog posts is highlight a habit or two and apply them to the unique leadership environment we face in the military, giving examples and recommendations along the way. I encourage your participation in the Comments section, as I am certain that other leaders have experienced these habits and have useful insight to share.

That said, the first workplace habit that is holding back military leaders is…winning too much.

Winning

Sapper competitors complete the rope climbing portion of the obstacle course before sprinting to the finish line. The Best Sapper Competition gives engineers throughout the Army the opportunity to compete in a grueling six phase and three-day competition to determine who are the best engineers in the Army. DoD photo by Benjamin Faske. Link to photo.
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10 Microsoft Excel Shortcuts to Make Your Life Easier

by Dan Hudalla

Microsoft Excel is one of the most widely used software tools in the military.  We use it more than we fire our weapons.  Many a staff officer and commander have spent countless hours creating that perfect spreadsheet to accomplish the mission.  And if you’ve ever frustratingly uttered, “there has got to be a more efficient way to do this,” check out these Excel tips.

Productivity

Thanks to Army Captain Dan Hudalla for contributing this post!
If you found it useful, also check out “11 Keyboard Shortcuts You Must Learn.”
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The Science of “Mission First, People Always”

Is there a more nebulous, often clichéd phrase in our military than “Mission First, People Always?” I’ve long-struggled with how to first logically explain the idea, but then turn the concept into a tangible leadership strategy.

And for military leaders whose job it is to expertly place people at grave risk to achieve the mission, at what point is it acceptable for the “People Always” part to fade away? Clearly a complicated topic.

Maybe the real proving ground of “Mission First, People Always” is the road to combat, not combat itself. It’s all the training and leadership interactions that go into making a unit lethal while maintaining the cohesion of its people (and families) along the way.

Mission First, People Always

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jonathan Baird, left, provides security during a vertical assault at Combat Town, Okinawa, Japan, Dec. 10, 2014. Baird is a rifleman assigned to Echo Company, Battalion Landing Team, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit. U.S. Marine Corps. Photo by Lance Cpl. Richard Currier. Link to photo.