REFLECT
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...
The Genius of Sherlock Holmes
by Paul W. Smith Admittedly, I am probably late regarding my admiration of this particular subject, but thanks to the glory of my DVR I have been reintroduced to the show Elementary, a modern take on the adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Joan...
Don’t Read This, Just Go To Bed
by Chris Murray In 2015, as a young Infantry lieutenant, I found myself once again in a crowded, overheated battalion conference room. I was attending what seemed to be the hundredth staff meeting since I had arrived at the unit two months earlier...
Thinking Like a Fox: The Military’s New High Ground
by Nate Bump In our modern world, complexities abound. As a result, many assume more specialists focusing on challenges like ‘strategic competition’ is the answer. However, evidence supports officers specializing as generalists via a...
Mentoring Through Setbacks
By Michael Quigley Mentorship is about empowering and building a future generation of leaders; to do that leaders should share the reality of their careers, including examples of personal setbacks. In a recent meeting with a mentor, we used the...
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...
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...
The Goal of Self-Development: Knowledge vs. Wisdom
By Joe Byerly “For even sheep do not vomit up their grass and show to the shepherds how much they have eaten; but when they have internally digested the pasture, they produce externally wool and milk. Do you also show not your theorems to the...
How to Keep a Notebook Like Da Vinci
By Joe Byerly When we hear the name Leonardo Da Vinci, the word “genius” immediately comes to mind. His 16th century works “The Last Supper,” “Mona Lisa,” and “Vitruvian Man” are still popular today. The Da Vinci namesake is a part of our modern...
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...
5 Battlefields that Influenced My Outlook on War, Leadership, and Life
By: Jim Greer Throughout my life I have visited many battlefields, certainly more than I can remember. The first battlefield I visited was Kennesaw Mountain, with my Dad when I was seven years old. The most recent was Fort McHenry last year...
Can You Learn to Take Initiative?
By Joshua Spodek Chatting about my upcoming book, Initiative, a friend and fellow blogger, Joe Byerly of From The Green Notebook, asked if people could learn to take initiative. I saw his question as rhetorical, since he’d read an advance copy, so...
How Writing Books Gave Me an Education
By Joe Byerly This is the final question, in a five question interview with author Robert Greene. Joe: Because of writing, I’ve had the opportunity to interact with academics and those with advanced degrees and it can be a bit intimidating. You...
Leaders Worth Studying: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
By Joe Byerly This is the fourth question, in a five question interview with author Robert Greene. Joe: In your books, you’ve examined the stories of hundreds of leaders. Who are some great and bad leaders we should study? And what do you think is...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
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...
5 Tips to Help New NCOs Succeed
By Alex Licea Congratulations, you are now a Noncommissioned Officer. First and foremost, be proud of your accomplishment! Earning the title of NCO is an important step in the military career of enlisted personnel regardless of their branch of...
Things You Need to Know About Commanding a Brigade HHC
By Chris Ingram Commanding a line company is the ideal job for most company grade officers; the culminating point of company grade leadership. Being told you have been asked to relinquish command early and take on the responsibility of a Brigade...
AIM 2.0: Tinder for Army Talent Management
Tinder By: Megan Jantos Over the last couple years, the Army has rolled out a new system that allows it to better manage talent while involving active-duty officers in the assignment process. This system, called the Assignment Interactive Module...
4 Questions Commanders Should Ask Their PAOs
By: Megan Jantos As a commander, leveraging the unique capabilities of a public affairs officer can prove challenging. Sometimes leaders grossly micromanage the PAO with redundant or unnecessary product quotas because they jump to tactical...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
Podcast
Listen to our latest episode.
Store
Support our work.
Get Involved
Learn how to partner with us.
Lead with the best version of yourself.
Sign up for our emails.