MISSION REPORT: FORT FUBAR
(CLASSIFICATION: BETTER NOT TELL NOBODY)
SITREP: Withholding Policy: A leader’s way of saying you can’t be trusted
“Command me harder, Sir,” said no Battalion Commander ever! Yet when they become a Brigade Commander they’re all like, “I need to make sure all punishments and decisions are held at my level, because there’s no way that LTC with 20 years of experience could ever make the correct decision.” It gets worse with Generals who have been out of the game so long, they don’t even know what it’s like at the tactical level. Why would a LTC with 20 years in or even a COL, not be able to properly adjudicate punishment for an E7? Or a CPT? These are company level issues. When you have a withholding policy for punishments, you are essentially saying that you don’t trust your leaders to make the proper decision. And if that’s the case, then replace those leaders!
But what if the leaders make a wrong decision? Then you counsel them, providing proper teaching, coaching, and mentoring just like you were supposed to do all along! If the action your subordinate took was so egregious that there is no recovery, then you take it out on their OER/NCOER and replace that leader. In the words of our illustrious POTUS, “You’re fired.” Or you can do some other sort of administrative action. But the bottom line is, you as the superior leader have all sorts of options to make things right. You shouldn’t be micromanaging your subordinates. As mentioned before, you either have trust issues or nothing else better to do.
However, let’s not focus on the negative, let’s focus on the positive. By allowing your subordinates to lead, and by you delegating these decisions, it should free you up to focus on things that are more important than punishing an E7 or O3 for having a nudie magazine in country. The more time you spend as a leader on minute issues, the less time you are focused on the mission and the things that matter.
What’s the takeaway here? Get rid of your withholding policy. Allow your subordinate leaders to lead. If they screw up, teach them or punish them. Either way, you should be focused on big picture things. Treat your subordinates the way you want to be treated. I’m sure you don’t want someone else withholding decisions from you and deciding the fate of your soldiers.
Love this article? Great! Let me know and I’ll produce more. Hate this article? Well, it’s probably ‘cause you’re an extreme micromanager with trust issues stemming from daddy. Why don’t you go ahead, respond, and let me know why I am wrong.
*This article was written by FUBAR 6. All opinions expressed in this article are that of the author. This article is not endorsed by the Department of Defense, the United States Army, or the Kentucky National Guard. Comments to the author can be submitted below.