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The Power of Handwritten Notes, Revisited

Though we’ve discussed the power of handwritten notes in the past, President George H.W. Bush’s passing gives us good reason to revisit the topic. I don’t know about you, but I am often challenged in communicating praise and gratitude as a military professional. Though I don’t do it enough, writing a simple note to someone who has made a positive impact or contribution is a great method to bridge this gap. Here are a couple of thoughts, embracing the example President Bush set, to help you employ handwritten notes as a military professional.

Improving your Morning. A Review of My Morning Routine by Benjamin Spall and Michael Xander

 

Our routines can make or break productivity, yet many of us rush through the morning without a deliberate approach or focus. Given the importance, I am a big fan of the insights provided in My Morning Routine, a book by Benjamin Spall and Michael Xander. It gives a look into the mornings of successful people from all walks of life, tips that are very useful for any professional interested in improving their morning routine. Here are some of the key ideas that resonated with me.

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The Art of Listening

A Guest Post by Nate Player

Successful officers are good listeners. They use effective listening skills to gain perspective from their subordinates and listen to their Soldiers to build a foundation of trust. Officers who do this are more effective in leading their teams than those who do not. This essay will enable better understanding by discussing three topics: listening to gain perspective on assigned missions or tasks; listening to build trust in the team and; some tips for improving listening skills.

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June 24, 2015 – Photo by U.S. Army Maj. Randy Stillinger
U.S. Army Sgt. Troy Lord, a CH-47 Flight Engineer with the Texas National Guard’s 2-149th General Support Aviation Battalion, guides a CH-47 Chinook helicopter, as Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 133rd Field Artillery, hook up a 105mm Howitzer during an air assault exercise on Fort Hood.

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On Gratitude

U.S. Army Soldiers eat their Thanksgiving meal on Combat Outpost Cherkatah, Khowst province, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. The Soldiers are deployed with Company D, 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment.U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Smith

Each Thanksgiving, our Nation pauses to give thanks for all of our blessings. For most Americans, this holiday is about enjoying friends and family, celebrating, and sharing a meal together. But beyond Thanksgiving, how do we express gratitude as military leaders? We are trained to be ruthless skeptics, hunting through our daily duties in search of poor planning, flawed logic, or lack of grammatical aptitude. Often, we fail to express gratitude and recognize how fortunate we are to serve our country. As we celebrate Thanksgiving, consider expanding your gratitude by actively seeking a positive perspective. Take a look at all of the positive things in your life and make gratitude a part of your daily routine.

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Why I Serve

By Josh Powers

In memory of Dwight Davis, who passed away 01 November 2018

The memory is clear in comparison to others that have faded over the years. The early morning Ohio air seemed crisp even though it was the middle of summer, somewhere around the end of July I suppose. I stood by, waiting for Grandpa as I did every morning and evening, during every visit to Ohio throughout my childhood. Grandpa emerged from the garage with his American flag, rolled neatly from the previous evening. The flag was slightly weathered from daily use, but still in good condition. Every so often, during road trips, Grandpa would stop and complain to a business owner who flew a tattered flag. Each morning he carried the colors at a modified port arms, calling me to attention and then present arms, singing a fine rendition of To The Colors while unrolling his flag. I’d watch the flag sway in the breeze, maintaining the best salute a seven-year-old could render until Grandpa completed the tune and slid the staff into the bracket on the garage. My Grandpa taught me what it means to be an American. He taught me about ideals and traits that I now observe in our Army’s Soldiers, and that I hope I embody through service to our Nation and these Soldiers.

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What it Means to Lead

A Guest Post by Nate Player

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US Army Photo by Staff Sgt. Marcus Fichtl

By presidential appointment and congressional approval, the commissioned officer corps of the United States military serves as the principal leadership cadre of the armed forces. The duties of small unit leaders are often delegated to non-commissioned officers, but the ultimate responsibility of mission accomplishment or failure always rests with the commissioned commander.

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How to Fail as a Major

A Guest Post by Terron Wharton

 

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October 30, 2013 – Photo by Staff Sgt.Tim Chacon

 

“…the expectations of a Major are very different than those of a captain, and not everyone knows what these expectations are or the impact they have on personal and professional success.”

-MG(R) Tony Cucolo, “In Case You Didn’t Know It, Things Are Very Different Now: Part 1”

While attending the Command and General Staff College (CGSC), instructors and mentors constantly drove two points home. First, transitioning to the rank of Major and the expectations of a Field Grade Officer is a difficult and steep learning curve. Second, what made an officer successful at the company grade level does not necessarily translate to success as a Major. I have been a combined arms battalion S3 for ten months now and during this period I’ve planned, resourced, and executed field training exercises, live fire events, gunneries, an NTC rotation, and spent enough hours on my Blackberry that I never want to see one again.  However, I can definitively say two things about my instructors’ advice: They weren’t kidding about either point … and they vastly downplayed both.

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The Eight Essential Characteristics of Officership

A Guest Post by Nathan Player

 

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I wrote this article while sitting in a hotel room in Madrid contemplating how I got here. I was visiting the Spanish and Portuguese militaries as part of my experience in the Army’s Schools of Other Nations (SON) Program. I have spent the last nine months studying at the Colombian Superior School of War, and I sometimes pinch myself to make sure I am not dreaming.

In 2007, if you told 2LT Player, a “CHEMO” for 3-7 Field Artillery, what the next decade would look like, he would have told you to stop teasing him because he had to finish the USR.  I am confident about what he would have said, because I am him, just ten years later. However, in the next ten years, I served in multiple leadership positions at the platoon and company level. I also served in a joint special operations unit, taught ROTC, and was selected to attend a foreign service’s ILE.

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Is E-Mentorship A Viable Method of Professional Development?

A Guest Post by James McCarthy

By James McCarthy

U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Keith James, 21 September 2018

It is a senior leader’s duty to mentor junior officers and prepare them to take the reins of the future force. The biggest challenge we face is where and how this mentorship will take place. Our most junior officers have been raised in an environment where social media and electronic messaging are the predominant methods of communication. While it will be imperative for senior leaders to gain confidence and competence in the digital realm, the possibility of mentorship ever becoming a solely electronic endeavor is something that should be discussed.

Colonel Raymond Kimball, author of, “The Army Officer’s Guide To Mentoring,” claims the transition to e-mentoring is logical due to the convenience of social media, the amount of time younger officers spend on these mediums, and the diminishing use of the O-club and squadron bars as centers of mentorship. To continue October’s theme of Digital Leadership, I reflected upon my e-mentorship experiences in the form of MyVector and Facebook and the effectiveness of each.

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The Path from Funny Cat Videos to Professional Mastery

A Guest Post by Nick Alexander

Australian Army soldier Private Ben Hale from 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, provides security at the airfield in the Townsville field training area during Exercise Brolga Run on 19 October 2016.

The debate still rages as to whether social media (SoMe) is a tool for good or evil within military circles. What’s not up for discussion anymore is whether it’s going to last. A recent study on Australians’ usage of SoMe indicates 80% of the population use it; 60% use it every day; 30% it’s the last thing they do at night before going to sleep; 13% use it while on the toilet. I’m totally comfortable with at least three of these stats, and I think we all recognise the numbers are way below the true figure for accessing the internet on the loo. For what it’s worth I’m firmly entrenched in the “good” camp, but recognize that just as there are huge opportunities for us, those opportunities also exist for our adversaries. Below I’d like to highlight what I think is one of the most important opportunities SoMe brings to the profession of arms; getting our people to replace funny cat videos with professional development as their main use of SoMe and how through a focus on this opportunity we also assist in building the counter-narrative to those who wish to use it for nefarious ends.