military leadership - ch5

7/28/2019 Military Leadership - Ch5

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A leader must learn before he leads. You needto KNOW (understand) standards, yourself,human nature, your job, and your unit to be an

effective leader. This knowledge will give you astrong foundation for what you must BE andwhat you must DO. Keep in mind as you readthis chapter that knowledge is far more thanmemorizing information. Knowledge is theunderstanding of information.

KNOW STANDARDS

You will need to meet and enforce thestandards of behavior you expect from yoursoldiers. The Army has already established

standards in many areas, Regulations, laws,ARTEP mission training plans, soldier trainingpublications, field and training manuals,

general defense plans, and SOPS all containstandards. Your role is often to take existingstandards and translate them into goals thatyour soldiers understand and believe in.

Standards define acceptable performance,control behavior, and influence actions. Youmust communicate standards clearly andensure they are understood and attained.

You must set and enforce high standards inall areas that relate to specific training missions

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and tasks critical to wartime missionaccomplishment. Here is a word of caution,

however. Sometimes leaders have a particular

area of interest or expertise into which they put

so much of the uni ts energy that other

standards are not met. You and your soldiershave only so much time and energy; use this

time and energy to meet the standards in a11areas.

If your soldiers do not meet your standards,analyze the situation and decide on a course ofaction for handling the situation. Decide if your

standards are realistic. What are the demandsof combat.? What makes good common sense?

Ask your leaders an respected peers; listen totheir ideas. Adjust your standards if necessary,

but do not change them if they are correct. Askyourself these questions:

Did your subordinates understand what wasexpected?

Did you provide the resources, authority,training, and direction your subordinatesneeded?

Did your subordinates know how to do whatwas expected?

Were your subordinates motivated to do whatwas expected?

The answers to these questions will guideyour actions. Your subordinates may need moretraining, supervision, or counseling. You may

need to explain the standard better so that yoursubordinates understand it and its importance.

If standards are not met and counseling is

appropriate, do not become arrogant or abusive.

w h e n y o u c o u n s e l , e x p l a i n w h a t t h e

subordinate d id wrong and why i t isunacceptable in terms of standards. Explainhow to improve performance. Eecus on the

specific behavior you want to change. Do notdegrade his feelings of self-worth. How youcounsel affects the future behavior and attitude

of your soldiers. Your manner can increaserespect for you or it can cause deep feelings ofresentment, hostility, and injustice. FM 22-101is devoted entirely to leadership counseling.

All leaders want their soldiers to do well.

Soldiers also want to do well. Poor performancefrustrates soldiers and leaders and may causeanger. In these situations, you may be temptedto work off your frustrations by yelling atsoldiers, threattning them, or otherwiseverbally abusing them. You are in an officialposition of authority over soldiers and mustkeep yourself in check while reprimanding orcounseling. You must maintain the r ightbalance of military firmness and appreciation

of human dignity.

Here is a true example of how one leader incombat set standards and ensured they were

met.


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KNOW YOURSELF

Know thyself."l

To lead others successfully,you must know about people and human nature.Before you can understand other people,however, you must know yourself.

Using Chapter 4 as a guide to self-evaluation,you can better understand yourself, yourpersonality, and your strengths andweaknesses. Are you an analytical person wholikes to work objectively with facts or are youintuitive, preferring to rely on your instinctsand feelings as you gather information to makedecisions? How sensitive are you to the feelingsof other people? Do you tend to be a loner or areyou outgoing and able to relate easily to otherpeople? Do you like a planned, orderly way oflife or a flexible, spontaneous one?

Everyone has preferences, strengths, andweaknesses. Crucial to your development as

a leader is knowing yourself so that you canmaximize your strengths and work to improveyour weaknesses.

As a leader, you must realize you are threepeople: who you are, who you think you are, andwho others think you are. In some cases, there isa close relationship between and among thethree yous. In other cases, the relationship isnot close at all. Here are some questions you canask yourself

. . . YOUR MUST REALIZE YOUA R E T H R E E P E O P L EWho you are.Who you think you are. Who others think you are.

How do I establish priorities?Am I reliable?

How well do I listen to others?Do soldiers fear me, or trust, like, and respectme?

Do I show others I enjoy what I am doing?Am I a delegator or a micromanager?Am I an optimist or a pessimist?Am I selfless or self-serving?Am I a decision maker or a decision ducker?Am I competent at my job?

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Do I lead by example?Do I allow standards to slip when I am tired?

Your seniors, peers, and subordinates willgive you honest feedback if you ask for it and areopen to it. Candid feedback can help you betterunderstand yourself. If you know yourself andtry to improve, you have a foundation forknowing your job and your soldiers.

1Inscription over the entrance to P1atos Academy.

K N O W H U M A N N A T U R E

S. L. A. Marshall said that the starting pointfor understanding war is the understanding ofhuman nature. This is a fundamental truth. Asa leader, you need the support of followers,peers, seniors, and other people outside of yourorganization to accomplish your mission. Youmust be able to motivate all these people tosupport you. To understand and motivate troopsand to develop a cohesive, disciplined, well-trained unit, you must understand humannature.

People behave according to certain principlesof human nature that govern behavior in war

just as in peace. The stresses of war mayunleash certain fears that have been suppressedin peace. War, however, does not change humannature. Since all humans react according tothese principles, it is important that youunderstand the human dimension ofwarfighting.

Human nature is the common set of qualitiesshared by all human beings. Chapter 4examined some of these qualitiesbeliefs,values, and character-of individuals. Thefollowing discusses some basic aspects of

human nature that you should consider as aleader. You must understand how these aspectsaffect the behavior of people under stress beforeyou can become a skilled, inspirational leader.

Potential for Goodand Bad Behavior

All people have the potential for good and badbehavior. One of your most important jobs is tosuppress the bad, bring out the good, and directthat good behavior toward accomplishing theunits mission. Most people want to do the rightthing, but unfortunately, many lack the moral

fiber or character to do the right thing undertemptation or stress. You must realize this andknow the conditions that bring out the good andthe bad in people. You can then encourage thegood and suppress the bad. The followingexample illustrates this point.

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Perry M. Smith, Taking Charge, A Practical Guide for Leaders, pp 95-111.

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War can bring out the worstin human nature. reduce their inhibitions against war crimes.

There are examples in war of people committing Your task is to understand the effect stress can

horrible atrocities, such as murdering disarmedprisoners and innocent civilians. You must

exercise self-discipline to bring out the good andsuppress the bad in your subordinates.

Why do such war cr imes occur? MostAmericans desp ise cr ime, vio lence, andespecially killing. However, on the battlefield,soldiers desire for safety and survival willincrease their willingness to kill. Most soldiers

do not want to cause unnecessary suffering, butthe stress of war and the emotion and anger thatcome with fatigue, fear, or loss of comrades can

have on behavior and lead your soldiers by yourexample so that they know you will neverapprove or tolerate behavior that is a war crime.

Every war has taught us that the leadersbehavior is the single most important factor inpreventing war crimes.

Some people believe atrocities are inevitablein war and nothing can be done about them. It istrue that human nature, allowed to run itscourse under certain conditions of war, can

produce atrocities. However, it is also true thatleaders can prevent atrocities. In nearly every

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case in past wars where atrocities haveoccurred, a competent leader could haveprevented them. If the leader had controlled hisown emotions, set the correct example, andgiven appropriate orders, the atrocities wouldnot have been committed. A leader who valuesthe American ideals of truth, justice, freedom,and human dignity does not condone atrocities.You must control yourself and your soldiers, nomatter how difficult the situation. You mustnever forget that you are responsible for yoursubordinates performance and accountablewith them for their actions.

FearFear is a natural human emotion caused by

anticipation or awareness of danger. Interviewswith seasoned World War II combat veterans

indicated they primarily feared death andmaiming; veterans with little combatexperience were usually more afraid of lettingtheir buddies down or being thought a coward.Over half of the combat veterans admitted tobeing paralyzed by fear at least once. It will benatural for you and your soldiers to feel fear ifplaced in a dangerous situation. If you feel fearand know your soldiers are experiencing it aswell, let them know how you feel and that youare confident in the units ability.

Earlier in this manual you read how theunexpected bayonet charge and devastatingsurprise fire by the 20th Maine caused ColonelOates Alabama regiments to panic at LittleRound Top. The following illustrates soldiersfear in war.

During operations following the Battle ofAntietam, the men of the 20th Maine felt thefear of battle for the first time. On 20 September1862, the Union Army began followingConfederate units across the Potomac River. Asthe men heard the sounds of fighting across theriver, the imminence of personal death beganto develop its involuntary, uncontrollable

physiological reactionsthe too-fast, too-hardpounding of the heart, the dry knotting of thestomach, and a general shakiness.

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Before thefight at Little Round Top, the men of the 20thMaine felt blood beating harder and fasterthrough the arteries; lungs seeming to dilatedeep down, reaching for more oxygen; stomach

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John J. Pullen, The Twentieth Maine, p 27.l

Pullen, p 115.

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and intestines shrinking and stopping allmovement, and tension rising to the point whereit could shake a man like the passage of apowerful electric current.

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Fear causes definite physical reactions. Youcan see it in the eyes and sense it in theshakiness of a person. Fear is an emotion thatoccurs naturally before or during battle. What isimportant is how a person handles fear, and thisdepends on courage, competence, confidence,and strength of character.

Courage is not the absence of fear. It is theability to put fear aside and act as you believeyou should. Courage is strength of willovercoming instincts and fear. Competence andbelief in ones ability to succeed are powerful

agents in counteracting fear. A soldier feels fearin direct proportion to his beliefs that he mayfail. As a leader, you can counteract fear bybuilding competence, motivation, andconfidence in your soldiers.

Train your soldiers and teams in peacetime asthey will fight in wartime. Tough, realistic, andchallenging training willbuild courage andconfidence, bolster morale, and instill the will tofight and win.

Prepare your soldiers for the fears of battle.Learn about the carnage and confusion of the

battlefield by reading books about war and bydiscussing the details of past battles. Talk aboutwhy some units panic and other cohesive unitshave the discipline to overcome fear and holdtogether. Discuss the isolation soldiers feel onthe battlefield when under fire. Without propertraining and confidence, this isolation cancause paralyzing fear.

Keep your soldiers active before battle if theydo not need rest. Positive action conquers fear.You and your troops can overcome fear; soldiershave been doing it for centuries. Get your

soldiers to think about the mission, each other,how to perform their duties, and what to do invarious situations. If they force themselves tokeep their minds on the task at hand, on theircomrades, and on the unit, fear will not have achance to take over. They must think positivelyand take positive action.


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Do not push your soldiers unnecessarilybecause fatigue drains courage. Try to givethem adequate food, water, rest, and protectionfrom the weather. In the words of S. L. A.Marshall:

In battle, whatever wears out themuscles reacts on the mind andwhatever impairs the mind drains

physical strength. Tired men take frightmore easily. Frightened men swiftlytire. . . . Half of control during battlecomes from the commanders avoidinguseless expenditure of the physicalresources of his men while takingaction to break the hold of fear. . . . Asa man becomes dehydrated duringsummer fighting, his courage flows outthrough his pores, along with hismuscular strength. He loses the will tofight or to take constructive action.

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Keep your soldiers informed of anyinformation you have that will give them peaceof mind. Do not allow rumors to start or spread.Get the facts and talk straight with yoursubordinates. Use the chain of command andthe NCO support channel and quickly pass oninformation your soldiers need. This is one ofthe time-tested principles of leadership; it is

fundamental to building trust and reducingfear.

Emotions That Contribute to FearDepression, sadness, and feelings of

hopelessness and lack of self-worth aredangerous emotions that breed fear and lead tocombat ineffectiveness and panic. You can havean important influence on these emotions.Control them in yourself by exercising self-discipline. Sense these emotions in yoursoldiers, and take actions to control them.

Attack the emotions that contribute to fear by

setting a positive, cheerful example and bytalking with soldiers. Give your soldiers a senseof confidence, purpose, meaning, and self--respect. Often, sitting down and talking with asoldier who is depressed or scared is enough. Ifyou have a soldiers confidence, he will tell youthe causes of his fear. Sometimes, all it takes is

for you to say I understand. It is natural todoubt yourself and have the emotions that youare feeling. But youre a good soldier. I knowyou; you will do fine. I have confidence in YOU. Words like these inspire confidence and showthat you sincerely care about the soldier.

KNOW YOUR JOBTechnical Knowledge

Technical knowledge is the knowledgerequired to perform all tasks and functionsrelated to your position, including the ability tooperate and maintain all assigned equipment.You should strive to learn how to use yourequipment in the most effective manner tosupport your mission accomplishment.Additionally, you must be able to train yoursubordinates on all job tasks and items ofequipment.

To obtain this knowledge, study and workhard in schools and in your unit. Individualstudy of Army manuals and publications is alsoinvaluable for acquiring such expertise. Do notbe afraid to ask your seniors, peers, andsubordinates to help you learn. If your technicalknowledge is deficient on a particular system,admit it and take immediate action to correctthe deficiency. Any attempt to bluff your waythrough a situation will only result in your lossof personal credibility and could result in anaccident or injury, if a soldier follows bad

advice.Specialist Lose, the medical aidman

supporting Sergeant Savages platoon inVietnam, used his technical competence andprofessionalism to save at least six lives. Hecalmly reassured wounded soldiers,administered competent first air to thewounded, and demonstrated initiative by usingtoilet tissue packets to bandage wounds afterrunning out of first-aid packets.

Tactical KnowledgeTactical knowledge is the ability to employ

your soldiers and their equipment. Combatarms leaders work directly to gain anadvantage over the enemy while combatsupport and combat service support leadersprovide the necessary support for thatemployment. The Army recognizes nineprinciples of war. You must understand these

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S.L.A. Marshall, The Soldiers Load and the Mobility of a Nation, pp 46-47.

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principles and consider their applicability toyour situation:

Objective. Direct every military operationtowards a clearly defined, decisive, andattainable objective.

Offensive. Seize, retain, and exploit theinitiative.Mass. Concentrate combat power at thedecisive place and time.Economy of force. Allocate minimumessential combat power to secondary efforts.Maneuver. Place the enemy in a position ofdisadvantage through the flexibleapplication of combat power.Unity of command. For every objective,ensure unity of effort under one responsiblecommander.Security. Never permit the enemy to acquirean unexpected advantage.Surprise. Strike the enemy at a time, at a

place, or in a manner for which he isunprepared,Simplicity. Prepare clear, uncomplicatedplans and clear, concise orders to ensurethorough understanding.Todays technology and warfighting doctrine

have made tactics more complex than in thepast, yet the fundamental principles continue toapply at all levels. In addition to understandingthe Armys warfighting doctrine and tactics,your tactical knowledge will not be completeunless you also understand the doctrine andtactics of potential enemies.

KNOW YOUR UNIT

Tactical and technical knowledge is crucialbut, by itself, will not make you an effectiveleader, You must couple it with knowledge ofyourself and your unityour team. GeneralOmar Bradley said:

The greatest leader in the world couldnever win a campaign unless heunderstood the men he had to lead.

To build a disciplined, cohesive team, youmust know your unit. What are your unitslimitations and capabilities? You must clearlyunderstand discipline and cohesion. In effectiveunits, soldiers know themselves and each otherwell. They care about each other; share mutualtrust, respect, confidence, and understanding;and work as a disciplined team.

DisciplineDisciplined soldiers are orderly, obedient,

controlled, and dependable. They do their dutypromptly and effectively in response to orders,or even in the absence of orders. The forces thatdrive a disciplined unit come from within thatunit. These forces are the values, character, andwill of the leaders and troops,

A units character reflects the character of its

leaders and its troops. If the soldiers havediscipline, courage, and initiative and thinkcreatively, the unit develops a personalityacharacter with these elements as itsfoundation.

Self-discipline means forcing yourself to doyour dutywhat you ought to doregardless ofstress, exhaustion, or other conditions. Adisciplined unit forces itself to do its duty inevery situation. In a disciplined unit, soldiershave the self-confidence and initiative needed totake decisive actions, at the right time, that willhelp the unit accomplish the mission.

Your soldiers will take pride in being amember of a unit with disciplined proficiency.Disciplined proficiency is more than justcompetency. It comes from realistic trainingand cross training, and from leaders who careenough to coach and teach their soldiers. Itoccurs when soldiers are so proficient andmotivated that they want to focus all theirenergy on the mission. They willingly give ofthemselves to make the unit better. Morale ishigh because each soldier knows that what he isdoing is important and contributes to

accomplishing an important mission,Recall from Chapter 4 that beliefs and values

influence soldiers behavior. That is why aleader must understand how to influence thedevelopment of beliefs and values.

CohesionCohesion represents the commitment of

soldiers of all ranks to each other andstrengthens their willingness to fight andsacrifice personal safety. It is a product of thebonding of soldiers with each other and thebonding of leaders and subordinates. Cohesion

requires strong bonds of mutual respect, trust,confidence, and understanding within units.Cohesive units function smoothly and performmissions well under stress.

Battle data from four divisions in World WarH show that battle fatigue rates were muchlower in cohesive units than in noncohesive

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units. Early in the North African Campaign,battle fatigue casualties from noncohesive unitstotaled 40 to 45 percent of those wounded inaction. The conclusion is evident, You need todevelop cohesion prior to combat and maintainit during combat.

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Caring is essential to cohesion among allsoldiers and leaders in a unit. A soldiers beliefthat his leaders and buddies care for him, andwill always do their best to help him, increaseshis desire to fight to protect his fellow soldiers.This bonding is the basis for the cohesionneeded on the battlefield.

The following quotations by Ardant du Picq, aFrench military writer, give some perspectiveon cohesion:

A wise organization [or leader] ensures

that the personnel of combat groupschanges as little as possible, so thatcomrades in peacetime maneuvers shallbe comrades in war.

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Four brave men who do not know eachother will not dare to attack a lion. Fourless brave, but knowing each otherwell, sure of their reliability andconsequently of mutual aid, will attackresolutely.

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In other words, cohesion actually buildssoldiers confidence, morale, courage, and willto fight. This has the following implications forleaders:

Do not continually reassign subordinateleaders and soldiers to different jobs andsquads simply because one squad temporarilyhas fewer members than the other squads. Donot continually reassign drivers or they willnot take pride in their vehicles. Do not rotatemore experienced people into softer jobs asa reward for good service. Assign units(squads or platoons), not collections ofindividuals, to accomplish tasks. Bonds ofrespect, trust, confidence, and understanding

take time to develop. When people or leadersare shifted, bonds are broken and new onesmust be built.

Put your soldiers through tough and realistictraining that requires them to do things they

Tactical and technical knowledge byitself will not make an effective leader.

An effective leader must clearlyunderstand discipline and cohesion.

Disciplined soldiers are orderly,obedient, controlled, and dependable.

Cohesion represents the commitmentof soldiers to each other and theirwillingness to fight and sacrificeper sona l sa fe ty . Department of the Army Pamphlet 350-2, p i.

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Ardant du Picq, Battle Studies, p 96.8

Ardant du Picq, p 110.

do not believe they can do as individuals or asa unit. As they go through the training, theymust help each other learn and developthrough the after-action review process.Resolve interpersonal conflicts to restorer es pect , con fidence, an d can didcommunications between soldiers. Brokenbonds between unit members cause the unit todeteriorate and become unable to functionunder stress.Make garrison training interesting and asrealistic as possible so that it does not becomemonotonous and destroy morale.Keep unit members working as a team towarda common purpose that supports the mission.This principle applies to all trainingdetails,maintenance, and administration.Unit cohesion is an important factor in

peacetime and in combat. Cohesive units under

good leadership will work together to ensurethat training is properly planned, executed, andassessed with the objective of maintaining thehighest possible readiness standards.

Unit cohesion is an important factor in peace-time and in combat. Cohesive units under goodleadership will work together to ensure thattraining is properly planned, executed, andassessed with the objective of maintaining thehighest possible readiness standards.

Unit cohesion cannot be developed andmaintained without strong leadership, andsmall-unit leadership is the key. Good leadershipensures that the energy in the cohesive unit isused effectively and efficiently toward ac-complishing unit objectives. FM 22-102 is anexcellent source of additional information ondeveloping and maintaining unit cohesion.

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SUMMARYTo be an effective leader, you must KNOW how

the four factors of leadership affect each otherand what standards your soldiers and units mustmeet to accomplish your warfighting mission.You must understand human nature and becompletely familiar with your job and your unit.Most of all, you must be keenly aware of yourown strengths and weaknesses.

Implementing our warfighting doctrinerequires you to be a competent and confident

cohesive unit. You must be able to operateindependently within your commanders intentand be willing to take well-calculated risks thathave a high chance of ending with success onthe battlefield.

You must learn how to make a group ofordinary soldiers into an extraordinary team.You do this by caring for your soldiers and

by building trust, suppressing the potentialfor bad behavior, and bringing out the

leader capable of building a disciplined and potential for good behavior.

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military leadership - ch5

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