Authority is a Poor Subsitute for Leadership

The 4 man team moved through the brush with a practiced silence. The man on point froze and quickly thrust his hand into the air signaling for everyone to freeze. You could almost feel the his level of tension radiating from him like sparks thrown skyward from a Jacobs ladder. He was totally focused of what he alone was witnessing on the other side of the thick curtain of overgrowth.

The rookie fire team leader was focusing on the ground and had missed the signal. His mind was a million miles away and he had failed to freeze and pass the signal down the line. He stumbled within inches of the point man before he shuddered to a stop. His face was screwed up in anger as he prepared to get the point man moving on the mission. Before any words escaped his lips he noticed the hand signal and he quickly passed it down the line.

It was too late, the rest of the fire team had bunched up in the cramped clearing on their path. By the time the rookie leader had regained situational awareness he realized they had blindly walked into an ambush. Small arms fire erupted from hidden enemies and before the small squad had time to react they were all dead. The drill ended early and all that was left was the cussing and discussing.

Leadership is sacrifice and responsibility.

The fire team pointed fingers at the leader and the leader pointed a finger at the team. In the end we had a huge talk about leadership. Rank is not about respect and having people blindly follow your orders. Leadership is sacrifice and responsibility.

Leadership and Command

Leadership in a Military situation is the process of influencing others to accomplish the mission by providing purpose, direction, and motivation. Command is the authority a person in the military service lawfully exercises over subordinates by virtue of his rank and assignment or position. Most people think that because they have been put into a leadership position they are then in command. Most leaders are not in the military and are not backed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Therefore they must put a greater emphasis on the leadership task and less on command (ordering people around).

So What Does A Leader Do?

The leader is responsible for the accomplishment of the mission and the welfare of the team. You take responsibility for your actions, this means to take the initiative in the absence of orders and accept the responsibility for your actions.

So you get the orders and it's your responsibility to communicate the mission to the team. You set your objectives and you need the cooperation of your team to complete the mission. To put it bluntly you are the coach,

cheerleader and water boy for the team. You cannot complete your mission without your team so you must make sure everyone is doing their job.

Here are 4 basic actions of a good leader:

-Determine what is expected of your team

-Determine what is expected of you

-Determine the strengths and weaknesses of your team members

-Determine what other key people whose willing support is necessary to accomplish your job

Supervision

Just For Fun

Supervision is keeping a grasp on the situation and ensuring that plans and policies are implemented properly, including giving instructions and continuously inspecting the accomplishment of a task. Remember you can only expect what you inspect!

The danger of too little supervision is that it can lead to miscommunications, lack of coordination, disorganization or the perception by team members that the leader does not care.

The danger of too much supervision is that it stifles the initiative, breeds resentment, and lowers morale and motivation.

Bottom Line

I chose the picture on the right for a reason. Which one is the leader, the guy on top or the one on the bottom? The answer is the one who is getting the job done. Maybe the guy on top is a private who needs to call in artillery. Maybe the guy on top is the Lieutenant who needs to see the distance to an objective. The important thing this picture shows is two people working together to accomplish a mission. Neither of them can see what is beyond this wall without working together. The leader is the one making sure the team accomplishes the mission. Sometime you're on top and sometimes you're on the bottom. Lead by example and self-sacfrice and your men will follow.