Leadership Trait of the Day: UNSELFISHNESS

How important is unselfishness in today’s self-absorbed society?  If you ask me, it’s more important than ever.  In today’s “me-first” society, unselfishness sticks out.  Think about how many (or few) truly unselfish acts you see in any given day. 

Before we try to classify unselfish behavior, let’s define Unselfishness.  The Marine Corps defines it as the avoidance of providing for one’s own comfort and personal advancement at the expense of others.  In a Leader, this means looking out for the need of your subordinates before looking out for yourself. 

To some degree, Unselfishness requires a sacrifice to one’s self – it is more than simple kindness.  A perfect example is how Marines eat when they are out in the field for training.  Nothing beats a nice hot dinner after a long day of field training, but when dinner shows up, Marines eat in reverse rank.  The most junior Marine eats first and they follow by rank until the most senior Marine eats last.  As an officer who always ate with the latter groups, there have been a few times where I went hungry, or ate bread and butter for dinner.  But, that is just how it is.  Eating in the field is perhaps the most symbolic way Marines demonstrate Unselfishness. 

Here is a hero for you.  

Marines are trained to perform on the battlefield, and, unfortunately, war gives too many opportunities for selfless behavior.  All Marines are familiar with examples of Unselfishness on the battlefield.  Chances are that if you ask anyone who put on a Marine Corps uniform in the past 15 years for an example of Unselfishness they will say “Corporal Jason Dunham;” a young Marine who threw himself on a grenade to save his fellow Marines. 

As crazy as it may sound, I believe it is actually easier to be unselfish in a crisis than in the ordinary environment that we all live in.  However, the sacrifices of Unselfishness in our day-to-day routine that may seem subtle and inconsequential often have the most lasting impact on those we lead.  Why?  Because no one is expects it.  A sacrifice during ordinary times is like buying your significant other a gift on a random day – not a birthday or anniversary – it is surprise and has a bigger impact.  A good Leader will routinely make simple day-to-day sacrifices in his time and schedule for the good of his people.  These small sacrifices will always resonate with your subordinates. 

Unfortunately, too many people equate Unselfishness with weakness.  According to this article, people tend to gravitate to selfish leaders.  Why?  Well, according to that study, people believe that a Leader has to be decisive and strong – which he does – but people confuse selfishness with strength. 

"Weak" you say?

They are not the same thing.  Let’s use Marines as an example.  Marines deploy around the world and leave their families, friends and the comforts of home.  They give their lives and limbs in wars in service of others.  Generally, a very unselfish profession – no one in their right mind would call a United States Marine weak.  Nor would they consider a fireman or policeman weak. 

In my experience, it takes more strength of will and self-confidence to be unselfish than it does to be selfish.  Human nature as an evolutionary imperative compels us to act selfishly and “look out for No. 1” as part of a basic survival mechanism.  Only a strong person can overcome this natural tendency.  Remember this when someone says a decisively selfish person is strong. 

Click through for a discussion of how you can be Unselfish at work.

Leadership Trait of the Day: BEARING

         

Bearing has nothing to do with bears, but if you
can stay calm in front of this guy, you have bearing. 

      The first question many of you may have is: what the heck is Bearing, and how is it relevant to Leadership?  While in the Marine Corps, we simple call this Bearing, but the best way for non-Marines to think of this is as “Military Bearing.”  You may also think of this as comportment.

            In the Marines, Bearing is your ability to “create a favorable impression in carriage, appearance, and personal conduct at all times.”  Meaning, you look, talk, and act like a leader at all times – even when you don’t feel like it.             

            Let’s unpack this further.  If you want to have the Bearing of a Leader, there are three areas you need to focus on: 1) physical appearance; 2) day-to-day behavior; and 3) behavior under stress. 

Funny - but not a leader

Physical Appearance: Now, the Marine Corps is a physical job – so physical appearance means you need to look like a Marine.  Now, for civilian purposes, there is no need to look like this guy. But, you don’t want to look like Matt Foley, motivational speaker – if you do, you may be end up living in a van down by the river. 

            Bearing for the civilian leader means look like a professional.  Dress and carry yourself like someone who can be trusted with responsibility.  The first thing people will see is how you look.  In the Marine Corps, we are fanatical about our uniform appearance – not just because we want to look better than the Army, Navy and Air Force (ok, that’s a big part of it).  Marines understand that part of being professional is looking professional.  This also shows that you have the discipline to take care of the small things, which leads people to trust that you can take care of the big things.

            So, if you want to be a Leader, look like one.  This does not mean wear a suit or a tie every day, but you should dress a little bit better than the people you work with – just enough to show that you are professional.  It also helps to have a neat and orderly appearance.  Look in the mirror before leaving your house and decide if you look like the sort of person someone would trust with responsibility. 

            Click through for more discussion on Bearing.

Leadership Trait of the Day: ENTHUSIASM

Give me an “L”, give me and “E”, give me an “A” …. okay, you get the point.  However, being an Enthusiastic Leader does not mean you are a cheerleader. 

The Marine Corps defines Enthusiasm as the display of sincere interest and exuberance in the performance of your duty. Meaning – you are happy and motivated; you are optimistic, cheerful, and willing to accept challenges. 

Obviously, in the Marine Corps when we are dealing harsh physical training or grueling field conditions, the ability to be a little “Ooh Rah” is important.  Nothing can ease the burden during a 25 mile forced march like someone cracking jokes and getting laughs. 

But Enthusiasm is much more than that.  It is embracing your life and your job with zeal.  Dale Carnegie said that “enthusiasm is the little recognized secret to success.”  It is impossible to be successful if you do not love what you are doing.  If you are not dedicated to your job and excited about what you do, you will “mail it in.”  No one succeeds that way. 

What about as a Leader?  It is doubly important for you.  We all have experienced it – Enthusiasm and positive thinking are contagious.  Try to be depressed next to an upbeat and happy person – it is impossible.  As a Leader, your Enthusiasm is flows down to your people. 

John Wooden, the legendary basketball coach said “Your energy and enjoyments, drive and dedication will stimulate and greatly inspire others.” 

Let’s look at this angle a little differently.  It is fine to motivate and inspire others.  But as a Leader, you need to get others to believe in you and to believe in your ideas.  Why on Earth would someone buy into your ideas if you have the Enthusiasm of Eeyore?  They won’t.  If you are not passionate about your ideas and decisions, guess what?  No one else will be. 

Enthusiasm is not only a joy in your life and what you are doing, but it requires that you belief in yourself and your choices.  You cannot be enthusiastic if you are not confident in yourself and your decisions. 

Click through for a discussion of faking Enthusiasm.

How far can you bend?

Are you bendable? 

The Marine Corps has an official motto:  Semper Fidelis - Always Faithful.  Marines have an unofficial motto: Semper Gumby - Always Flexible.  (If you are under 30 and do not know who Gumby is, his picture is over there ===>, or you can ask your parents about him!)

This unofficial motto is a sarcastic take on the fact that things are constantly changing in the Marine Corps - formation is here, not it's there, it is a this time, nope we moved it to that time.  Marines could allow these types of changes to drive them crazy, or they can learn to roll with the punches -- hence, Semper Gumby.

However, in the big picture, learning to be flexible in the small things allows you to be flexible in the big things.  When you learn to roll with it, you learn to not panic when plans have to change.

I thought about the great lesson in flexibility and adaptability I receive in the Marine Corps when I had to make an audible to my plans this morning.  I was driving into D.C. for a 9:00 meeting that I could not be late for.  Those of you who know D.C. traffic know that that is a bad time.  Traffic was horrible and I was not going to make my meeting.  Instead of panicking, I looked at my options, realized I could park near the Pentagon, hop on the Metro and make head to my meeting.  I walked into my meeting at 9:01 - not ideal, but a lot better than if I had stayed with my original plan.

Now, this story is not about how smart and savvy I am, it is about how when I was faced with the fact that my plan was blowing up, I stayed calm, considered my options, and made an informed decision.  The Marine Corps taught me that skill.

In the Marines, you train your leaders to be flexible on the battlefield - often, if you stay married to a plan, people will die and other bad things with happen.  You need to be able to be adaptable and flexible and willing to change your plan as required.

This often requires you to look at the problem and the solution from different angles.  For instance, when I was driving in to D.C. today, I realize that my plan would not work, so I had to consider another angle - the Metro.

Similarly, when you are a Leader and you come up with a plan, you have to be flexible enough to adjust when things are not working.


Click through for a discussion on some tools that will help you stay flexible in your decision-making and execution.

Leadership Trait of the Day: INTEGRITY

This one is a no brainer – everyone knows that good Leaders have to have Integrity.

Here are just a few quotes on Integrity from notable Leaders:

·         “Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters.” – Albert Einstein

·          “I am a slow walker, but I never walk backwards.”
– Abraham Lincoln

·         "A person who is fundamentally honest doesn't need a code of ethics. The Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount are all the ethical code anybody needs." – Harry S. Truman

·         “The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.”  -- Dwight D. Eisenhower    

·         “Dependability, integrity, the characteristic of never knowingly doing anything wrong, that you would never cheat anyone, that you would give everybody a fair deal. Character is a sort of an all-inclusive thing. If a man has character, everyone has confidence in him.” – Omar Nelson Bradley

·         “Character is much easier kept than recovered.” – Thomas Paine.

There you have it, whether you call it Integrity, Honor, Character, or Honesty, everyone agrees that a Leader has to have it.  This is because good Leadership is built on trust – there cannot be any trust if the leader does not have integrity.  Further, once that trust is broken, it will take a long time - if ever - for it to be repaired.  

While it is universally accepted that a Leader has to have Integrity, it is not a trait that is universally practiced.  According to the 2002 article “Leadership 101: Integrity” by Thomas Cunningham, 75% of polled employees observed unethical conduct in the workplace.  Only 40% of these same employees said that their workplace had honest and ethical management. 

While those statistics are sad, they are also an opportunity.  If you become an ethical leader, your employees will trust and respect you.  When your people trust and respect you, they will work harder for you.  When this happens, everybody wins. 

 How can you be a Leader with Integrity?  Click through for some tips. 

Leadership Trait of the Day: TACT

If there is one leadership trait that people struggle with, it is Tact.  However, if there is one leadership tool that will earn you more bang for your buck, it is Tact.  When you treat your subordinates respectfully, you will earn their respect and trust. 

The Marine Corp defines Tact as “the ability to deal with others in a manner that will maintain good relations and avoid offense.”  More simply stated, tact is the ability to say and do the right thing at the right time.

This is especially important for a Leader.  When you are in charge, you can demean your subordinates without repercussion – what can they say to you?  This is doubly true in an organization like the Marine Corps, where there is true power with rank and position.  This is why Marine leaders are taught to use Tact in dealing with their subordinates. 

When you are tactful, you consistently treat peers, seniors, and subordinates with respect and courtesy.  This is a sign of maturity and civility.  It is not, despite what many people may think, a sign of weakness.  Instead, Tact allows commands, guidance, and opinions to be expressed in a constructive and beneficial manner.  This deference must be extended under all conditions regardless of your true feelings.

Tact does not require you keep quiet - you are allowed to criticize and correct.  You just have to do so in an appropriate manner. 

There are multiple reasons for this.  First, from a purely leadership perspective, if you constantly criticize in a harsh manner, your words will eventually fall on deaf ears.  In some ways, this is like the boy who cried wolf – if you are always critical towards and berate your subordinates, you will become the boss that is never happy.  Now, your criticism is meaningless because, from your subordinates’ perspective, you are the problem. 

Second, no one will respect you or want to follow you if you are caustic and critical.  Let’s look at Simon Cowell from American Idol fame.  He was nasty, abusive and downright mean to the contestants on that show.  Tell me, would you want to work for him?  No one in their right mind would. 

Click through for a discussion on how Leaders can be Tactful.

Leadership Trait of the Day: DEPENDABILITY



 Marines will tell you that there are two types of people in the world: Marines and everyone else.  There are many things that set Marines apart, but one of the foremost is Dependability. 

Along those lines, we can expand this statement.  There are two types of people in the world: those who are dependable, and those who are not.  If you are not dependable, you will never make it as a leader. 

The Marine Corps defines a Dependable individual as one who can be relied upon to perform their duties properly; can be trusted to complete a job and is willing to support the policies and orders of the chain of command.  Dependability also means you consistently put forth your best effort in an attempt to achieve the highest standards of performance.  A Leader makes and keeps commitments, has the discipline to avoid procrastination, and puts forth a full effort to complete a task.

Let’s distill this down even further.  You are Dependable when you when you are consistent and you do what you say you will do.   

By this definition, are you dependable?  If you want to be a Leader, you better have said yes.

Are you as reliable as Old Faithful?

Stress, chaos and difficult circumstances are no excuse for failing to be dependable.  Leaders have to remain consistent in a crisis.  Indeed, a Leader’s Dependability during a crisis is often what can guide his team through the rough seas. 

A Dependable Leader is not discouraged when faced with obstacles.  Instead he will find ways to improvise and overcome.  A Dependable Leader will take pride in being reliable and accountable, and zealously protects that accrued trust with consistent, steadfast behavior. 

So, how can you learn to be Dependable?  Click through for my suggestions. 

Leadership Trait of the Day: INITIATIVE

Yesterday we discussed decisiveness – today we will look at the closely related Leadership trait of Initiative.  When the Marine Corps developed its acronym JJDIDTIEBUCKLE for its 14 Leadership traits, there is a reason it put initiative next to decisiveness – they are two sides of the same coin.

At their simplest, Decisiveness is your ability to make a decision – Initiative impacts your ability to act on that decision.  You can make the best decision in the world, but it is meaningless until you put it into action. 

In this sense Initiative is CARPE DIEM – Seize the Day!  Make a decision and move on it.  As the great Will Rogers said “Even if you’re on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” 

However, making a decision and acting on it is only one part of Initiative.  Yes, it is an important part, and yes, a good leader has to have the initiative to act on his decisions.  But a great leader will show Initiative in other ways as well. 

The Marine Corps defines Initiative as "taking action in the absence of orders."  In other words when you see something that needs to be done - do it ... don't wait for directions.  This is above and beyond merely making a decision.  This is the heart of being proactive; of seeing and solving problems before they are Problems.


As a Leader, you have to exercise this type of Initiative.  You cannot wait for things to happen - if you do, you are constantly reacting and are never directing.  Leaders are proactive, not reactive.  You cannot successfully direct your people if you are constantly reacting.  So, to be a successful Leader, you have to anticipate what is coming and plan accordingly.  Often, if you act first, you can shape and control events - instead of letting events control you.  This allows you to direct your people and to have a plan.  Your subordinates will be more effective when you are proactive - they will also be happier.   

Click through for a further discussion on how a Leader can develop initiative.

Leadership Trait of the Day: DECISIVENESS

 I can still here my Basic School instructors “Make a decision lieutenant, any decision.”  “The only bad decision is no decision.”  “Decide and act.  Don’t wait for all the information, you will never get it.”

If there is one leadership trait that the Marine Corps spends a lot of time beating into its officers and enlisted leaders it is decisiveness.  This makes sense when you are talking about a combat environment – trust me, there is not a lot of time to ponder options when someone is shooting at you. 

What about everyday life?  Is decisiveness that important when there aren’t bullets flying around?  Let’s do some brief and unscientific research.  If you google “learning to be decisive” you will get over 12 million hits.  If you google “books on decisiveness” your get only 283,000 hits.  Amazon has scores of books on Decisiveness  So, clearly there are a lot of people who think that decisiveness is important and that there is general lack of decisiveness in our modern American society. 

I happen to be one of them.  We have all seen and experienced a lack of decisiveness – be it in the grocery store, on-line shopping, at a restaurant, or in our business or professional lives.  I actually have a funny story on being in-decisive, one that most anyone who deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan could appreciate.  When I came back from Afghanistan two years ago, I got stuck in Camp Lejeune for a weekend before I could go home to see my family.  So, like any good Marine recently returned home, I really, really wanted a beer.  So I went to beer and liquor store on base.  I then proceeded to spend the next 45 minutes trying to decide what type of beer was going to be my first drink in seven months.  I have never been so wishy-washy in my life, but, I will forgive myself given the circumstances. 

Let’s focus on business and professional life.  How many times have we suffered through an indecisive boss?  How many times have we had to do extra work, or waste time because our supervisor could not decide on a course of action?  How many times have we been frustrated by a boss who could not provide guidance and direction?  There are few things worse than working for a boss who suffers from “paralysis by analysis.” 

Even worse than how an indecisive boss makes us feel personally, we have all seen how an indecisive leadership impacts an organization by destroying trust and confidence.  Subordinates will not trust a leader who does not trust himself.  This ultimately ruins the entire team dynamic. 

On the hand, we have all seen how a sure, decisive leader inspires confidence and builds a stronger team.    

Before discussing how to be more decisive, let’s discuss what Decisiveness is not.  Decisiveness is not being stubborn, arrogant, hasty, or reactive.  It does not mean that you need to live under a principle of “Ready, Fire, Aim.”  Being Decisive does not require snap decisions. 

Decisiveness is the ability to make clear decisions quickly.  Quickly is relative.  You should spend more time shopping for a house than for a pair of shoes.  You should put more thought into what job to take than what movie to go see.  The scope and magnitude of the decision will impact how “quickly” you need to act to be decisive. 

Click through for some tips on how to be more decisive. 

Build Leaders By Letting Them Lead

Yesterday, my Google “leadership” news feed fed me this article written by Dr. Brad Hall, who I was introduced to through this article – way to go Google news feed!  (If you haven’t read any of his stuff, you should – his articles are awesome.)

So, now that I have touted Dr. Hall’s articles, I am going to challenge this one – at least a little bit.  In this article, Hall lists three ways that a company can improve its leadership development: 1) Buy Leaders; 2) Measure leadership; and 3) teach, practice, and teach.  These are great steps and would improve leadership development in 99% of the companies out there. 

(Note: On the “Buy Leaders” front – everyone should be clamoring to hire military veterans.  I don’t know any other 18-25 year olds who have had as much leadership experience.)

However, I think Dr. Hall left out the most important way you develop leaders: let them lead.

You let them lead, by empowering them and being BEHIND them to support, mentor and assist.  This above quote from Lao Tzu is one of the best visual descriptions of leadership that I have ever heard. 

This is perhaps the biggest difference between the U.S. military and corporate America – in the military, our young leaders are given real responsibility and allowed to execute.  One of the many things that makes the Marine Corps different (read: better) than the other services is as an organization the Marine is religious about empowering its junior people.  Right now, in Afghanistan a Marine Corporal, who may not be old enough to drink, is making a life and death decision.  There is no other organization in the world that empowers its junior leaders like the U.S. Marine Corps. 

Click through to learn some ways you can learn to empower your people to lead like the Marine Corps does. 

Leadership Lesson from The Blind Side?

So, I was watching The Blind Side the other night, and, for the first time, I realized the fantastic 5 minute leadership lesson when the young Michael Oher learns about the Lord Alfred Tennyson poem, "The Charge of the Light Brigade."

The lesson comes during the voice-over of Michael's English essay where he discusses "Courage & Honor." In this essay, Michael writes that "any fool can have courage," but honor is what really separates people.  And, truly, what you want is both.  (Michael is 2/3's of the way there - the USMC Core Values are Honor, Courage and Commitment, but that is another post).

He is absolutely right - courage alone cannot make you a good leader - neither can honor alone.  If you have courage and no honor, you have no moral underpinning and your bravery goes only to further your own ends, our prisons are full of courageous men who don't have honor.

On the other hand, if you are honorable with no courage, you will shy away from difficult decisions and confrontations.  That is no way to lead.

Click through to see a great 5 minute clip from The Blind Side explaining why good leaders need to have courage and honor.

Leadership Trait of the Day - JUDGMENT

Judgment.  Now, there is a word that is rife with implications.  Judgment has many definitions, so we need to clarify which definition relates to Leadership. 

The Marine Corps defines Judgment as “The ability to weigh facts and possible courses of action in order to make sound decisions.”  Put another way, the Leadership trait of “Judgment” is the ability to make good decisions. 

Before delving into this discussion, let’s recall how we first defined the Leadership Traits.  These traits are actions and thoughts that help a leader earn the respect, confidence and cooperation of his subordinates.  Remember that whenever you examine one of these traits, they are internal actions and thoughts exercised by good leaders.

Now, with that in mind, let’s look at Judgment.  In one regard, this is simple and straightforward – if you make bad operational decisions, no one will follow you.  This is doubly true in the Marine Corps where bad decisions can often equal death.  However, while operational know-how is an important part of being a leader, that is not the focus of this Leadership Trait.  Simply put, you can be brilliant in operational decision making and still be a terrible leader – just look at General Douglas McArthur, a vainglorious megalomaniac, despised by most people who interacted with him, but the driving force behind the Inchon Landing – arguably the most tactically brilliant large scale military operation of the 20^th Century.

So, if the Leadership Trait Judgment does not mean excellence in operational ability, what does it mean? 

Simple – it means making good decisions when it comes to setting the example and taking care of your people. 

Click through for some specific examples. 

You want to see Leadership .... this is Leadership

14 Apr 2004:Cpl Dunham saved fellow #Marines by covering a grenade with his helmet & body:http://t.co/5WoqY0Lvcm | pic.twitter.com/LyohaOy6Yp

— Marine Corps Museum (@MarineMuseum) April 14, 2014

Leadership Trait of the Day: JUSTICE

In our examination of the Marine Corps Leadership traits, we will begin at the top of the JJ DID TIE BUCKLE list – with JUSTICE.

As stated the other day, the Marine Corps defines Justice as “administering a system of rewards and punishments impartially and consistently.”  Okay, so what does that mean? 

We have all seen the pictures of “Justice” with her scales and her eyes covered – “Justice is blind.”  Meaning, everyone is treated the same, or, at least they are supposed to.  We all know what it feels like when we see people given special treatment – or especially bad treatment – for a non-defensible reason.  We have all looked at something at said “That’s not fair.” 

That is the point of how Justice fits into Leadership.  If you are going to be a good leader, your decisions have to be fair – all of them.  If you treat one employee different than the others, be it good or bad, you will poison your team.  If you treat yourself differently than the rest of your employees, you will be labeled a hypocrite, and no one will respect you. 

We all understand that to be a good Just Leader, we need to treat everyone the same.  Awards, punishments, vacations, etc. all have to be administered evenly and fairly. 

But, what happens when Justice requires that you treat someone differently?  That’s where a good leader makes their money. 

More after the jump. 

PTSD Sucks

I know this is a leadership blog, but I am a veteran, and I have had some issues myself.

There are those out there suffering much, much worse. Please remember them and do what you can - a simple "thank you for your service and sacrifice" means a lot.

There is a price to pay to be a hero.  

Leadership Done Right

           A few weeks ago, I was asked to speak on behalf of a Marine at his retirement ceremony.  This Marine worked for me for a little over two years when I was a Battalion Executive Officer.  This invitation was quite an honor, and one I quickly accepted.  (It also means that I am getting old, but we will ignore that part.)

           Yesterday, I met with the Marine who recently retired to catch up over a couple of beers.  He wanted to give me a small gift for speaking on his behalf at the retirement - I protested that this was not necessary, but he insisted.  (The "small gift" turned out to be a box of nice Monte Cristo cigars and a fancy Black Ops lighter - so nice that my wife said - "shouldn't you have gotten him something for retiring?"  Thank you, Dave Howell!)  

           The thank you gift is what relates to leadership.  With the gift, Dave gave me a card with a terrific handwritten note in it.  He thanked me for speaking at his retirement, for helping mentor and support him when we worked together and, here is the kicker, he said that two plus years we worked together were the highlight of his 24 years Marine Corps career.  As a leader, that comment beats a box of great cigars any day.

After the jump, we will look into the things that he said made this time period so memorable.

Marine Corps Leadership Traits

JJ DID TIE BUCKLE!

The Marine Corps leadership comes in many facets, from hands-on leadership at the young non-commissioned officer or junior officer ranks through the vision setting leadership by the General Officers. 

One thing that permeates through all levels of Marine leadership is the Marine Corps Leadership Traits.  These traits are actions and thoughts that help a leader earn the respect, confidence and cooperation of his subordinates.  If you want to be a good leader, you need to embody these traits.  Again, these are not specific things you do, but ways you act that will earn you respect. 

Now, if you go up to any Marine or former Marine and ask them for the 14 Marine Leadership Traits, they will say “JJ DID TIE BUCKLE” – which is the acronym we use to remember the traits.  Of course, most of them would not then be able to list all 14 traits.  However, every good Marine I know – and every civilian I respect – embodies these traits, whether they can list them out our not. 

Click through the jump for a list of the 14 traits and their brief USMC definition.

Upcoming Posts

As this is a new blog, I think I should begin at the beginning - or, at least at the building blocks of Marine Leadership.

So, with that in mind, over the next three weeks, I am going to start a series on the Marine Corps Leadership Traits where I will analyze each trait and discuss how a leader can incorporate each trait into their thoughts and actions to improve their leadership.

A Question of Accountability and Initiative

On patrol in Afghanistan - that's a lot of weight!

Last week Marine colleagues on Linked In called my attention to this article.  There are several good leadership lessons to be gleaned from this article – but I just want to focus on the issues of accountability and initiative – two traits all leaders must have. 

For those too lazy to click on the link, this article is an editorial by a female Marine lieutenant, Lt. Sage Santangelo, who failed the Combat Endurance Test required for admission to the Infantry Officers Course (IOC).

Historically, the infantry military occupational specialty (MOS) has been a male-only profession.  As we have seen women’s role in the military evolve over the past decade of conflicts, the administration is having the Department of Defense determine if historically male-only combat MOS’s can be opened to women.  As part of this initiative, the Marine Corps is allowing women to attend infantry training – if they can pass the screening tests.  Thirteen female enlisted Marines have completed the enlisted infantry training course – non-of the fourteen women who have attempted the IOC screening test have passed – hence Lt. Santangelo’s editorial. 

This posting is not going to address the issue of women in combat units – that is not necessarily a “leadership” topic. 

After the jump, I am going to call out Lt. Santangelo for her lack of initiative and accountability – those are leadership issues. 

What is Leadership?

No blog devoted to discussing leadership can be complete without defining leadership.  Of course, “leadership” is not the easiest word to define – many people have many definitions, and they all have credence.  So, where does that leave us? 

Let’s start with the dictionary: Merriam-Webster’s defines “leadership” as the capacity to lead or “the act or an instance of leading.”  That dictionary goes on to define “leading” as “exercising leadership.”  Hmmm, that is not very helpful.

The on-line Business Dictionary has a better definition to work from.  It says that leadership involves creating and sharing a vision, providing the tools and information to realize that vision and coordinating everyone’s actions to achieve that vision.  This is a pretty good definition, it shows leadership as action.

Even better, and more informative is the Business Dictionary’s further description of a leader:

A leader steps up in times of crisis, and is able to think and act creatively in difficult situations. Unlike management, leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned and enhanced through coaching or mentoring.

Ok, so that how the civilian business community defines leadership.  As this is a blog focused on Marine Corps Leadership, how does the Marine Corps define leadership.  Definition after the jump.