REFLECT
Knowing When to Hang Up Your Boots
by Jakob Hutter Deciding when to hang up your boots is not as straightforward as some make it out to be, especially when someone has dedicated a larger part of their life to serving their country. People in the military come from diverse...
A Lesson from History: Never Present the “Throwaway” COA
by Rick Chersicla From 431 BC to 404 BC, the two preeminent Greek city-states of the time engaged in what would be a generational struggle. This war (really a period of intermittent conflict with the occasional stretches of peace) commonly known as...
Yours, Mine, Ours: Identifying Responsibilities Amongst Leaders
by Andrew Wilhelm and Michael Hellman In the winter of 2021, my new Platoon Sergeant and I sat down over coffee and began building our new partnership. I had seven months of Platoon Leader time under my belt and a relationship with my first PSG...
Transparency and Stability: The Twin Beacons of Leading Highly Effective Organizations
by Ben Showman The Leader’s Responsibility The Army has a clear definition of leadership. It is carefully and intentionally crafted for Army leaders to flexibly accomplish missions while simultaneously improving their organizations. However,...
Is Foreign Service ILE Right for You?
by Jake Kohlman As I filled out my location preferences ahead of Intermediate Level Education (ILE), I knew I wanted to try something other than the traditional path of the Army’s Command and General Staff College (CGSC) in Fort Leavenworth,...
Creating an Army Master Tactician Additional Skill Identifier
by David Weart Editor’s Note: This article was modified from its originally published version on February 7th, 2023. Simply stated, the Army should expand the Master Tactician Test (MTT) offered at the Command and General Staff Operations...
Searching for a Purpose in Professional Military Education
by David Kahan My time at the Captain’s Career Course (CCC) was a disappointment. Arriving at Fort Huachuca, Arizona in April 2022, I hoped that Military Intelligence CCC (MICCC) might help either to prepare me for my next position or teach...
Counterproductive Leadership: Impact to People and the Organization
by Jakob Hutter Effective leaders who demonstrate confidence, courage, compassion, and character enable an organization’s success. Stay in any organization long enough, and you will understand that counterproductive leaders can leave serious harm...
Sixteen Things I Wish I Could Tell My Senior Rater
Authors’ Note: The authors of this post, @notyourtacofficer and @therecoveringcommander, are mid-career, post company-command officers wallowing in their KD-complete broadening assignment lives and contemplating what’s next. Referred to as the,...
Running the Race, Real-Time Resilience
by Caleb Miller The Olympic runner Eric Liddell, of Chariots of Fire fame, would say that “he felt God’s pleasure” when he ran. I have no idea what he is talking about. I’ve always hated running. I’m not bad at it – that doesn’t mean I...
Seinfeld, Edison, and Seneca: 3 Strategies for Achieving your Goals
By Joe Byerly (This post originally appeared on ClearanceJobs.com) Goal setting is easy. Developing a plan to achieve goals is also easy. Gaining the momentum to turn an aspiration into action–that’s the hard part. In his book Good to Great, Jim...
Staying Sane for Holidays: 4 Tips for Managing Your Digital Devices
By Joseph McCormack As we move full speed into the holiday season, most everyone becomes increasingly stressed by their never-ending to-do lists, both personal and professional. The holidays are ripe for multitasking. Everyone is trying to get...
Learn and Look Before You Tweet
Some things you should understand before jumping headfirst into the information environment By Larry Kay Last week was “media literacy week,” which unlike national doughnut and Twinkie day, should be elevated to a more prominent occasion given how...
When the Unexpected Happens at Home
By Aaron Childers As a member of the military, we are programmed to plan, especially for deployments. We have to fill out DD93s, Servicemember’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) paperwork and get medical clearance. Whether we want to or not, we are...
Finding Purpose: Get Comfortable with the Uncomfortable
By Megan Jantos Every year I challenge myself to complete at least one major task that takes me wildly outside my comfort zone. One of the first years I took part in this tradition, I unexpectedly qualified for the Obstacle Course World...
Digital Readiness: What You CAN Do
(Credit: U.S. Army/Spc. Hubert D. Delany III) By Megan Jantos Two years ago during an Army-led focus group, an older private first class made an astute observation that I’ll never forget. “The Army does a great job telling me what I can’t...
How a Lesson from College Football Helped Me Fight Anxiety in the Military
By Joe Byerly My favorite time of year if here –college football season. And while I enjoy spending my Saturdays watching football with friends and knocking back a six pack, I also enjoy studying the coaches. How do they turn losing teams into...
Important Lessons from an Outgoing Commander
By Ryan Kendall At the end of a National Training Center rotation, the Brigade commander said something that resonated with me. He said that at some point, we would have to come to terms with our experience in training. The lessons our...
On Followership: Seeing the Weight of Leadership
By Joe Byerly When I was a company grade officer, I used to complain about the bastards up at squad. I remember thinking if LTC X or COL X only thought the way I did, we wouldn’t have this problem. If I’m being honest with myself, it wasn’t until I...
Before You Commission, Read These 5 Books
By Oren Abusch-Magder Former Defense Secretary Mattis famously once wrote, “Thanks to my reading, I have never been caught flat-footed by any situation, never at a loss for how any problem has been addressed before. It doesn’t give me all the...
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Instant Expectations of the Iron Major: The 5 GAS Principles
By Will Laase and Todd Turner The Iron Major who understands Mission Command, commander’s intent, and practices the 5 Give a $#!t (GAS) Principles, is the team member that commanders request “by name.”. Regardless of the leader’s background,...
Leveraging Policy to Performance: Optimizing the Potential of AIM 2.0
By Don Orlando AIM 2.0 has a strong policy foundation for talent management for the Army and its officers. Like all new and better efforts, a key challenge is making that policy come alive…one officer at a time. Virtually all officers are...
Important Lessons from an Outgoing Commander
By Ryan Kendall At the end of a National Training Center rotation, the Brigade commander said something that resonated with me. He said that at some point, we would have to come to terms with our experience in training. The lessons our...
How to Nudge the Army Onto a Different Course
By Joe Byerly and Casey Dean For many young leaders, the Army can be a frustrating experience. They see areas that can be improved upon but quickly become frustrated with conservative leadership, bloated bureaucracies and navigating a system that...
Has Anyone Seen the Boss?
By Sam When faced with a toxic leader, you can find multiple studies and a massive amount of information on what can be done to deal with this individual, but what happens when you have a boss who is just plain ineffective? They aren’t a bad person...
A Military Justice Philosophy
By CPT Kevin D. Anderson To be effective in combat, units must maintain good order and discipline. Undisciplined units compromise mission effectiveness and readiness, putting soldiers at unnecessary risk. Good order and discipline is maintained...
The Special Projects Officer Guide to Event Planning
By Zachary Griffiths Military officers plan and execute complex operations. Junior officers cut their teeth on platoon attacks, convoys, military balls, and even conferences. These latter events are hardly new challenges. The Army Officer’s Guide...
The Leader’s Guide to Being Featured on U.S. Army W.T.F! Moments
By: USAWTFM Admin Team Over the years, U.S. Army WTF! Moments has grown from a couple of guys messing around on Facebook to a following of 1.2 million people. We’ve expanded to internet radio with hundreds of interviews under our belt, including 2...
How to be a Successful S6
By: LTC Joshua Trimble Did the Army select you to serve as an S6? If you are lucky, you remember your training. If you are extra lucky, the Army even sent you to a refresher S6 course. Chances are, you are not that lucky, and you probably do not...
How to Turn Performance Counseling into a Conversation
By Joe Byerly When it comes to intentionally developing our subordinates, one of the greatest tools in a leader’s kit bag is one-on-one counseling. Unfortunately, counseling is hit or miss across the Army. I would argue that the majority of...
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