Army Role Model Essay

All throughout history there have been a many leaders that range from the tyrannical, heavy-handed like Adolf Hitler to the compassionate and caring like Nelson Mandela. There is no set list of characteristics that define an effective leader. One's ability to influence people to achieving a goal, whether that goal be good or bad, is effective leadership.

Knowledge is power. It is what drives innovation and progression for the Army to move forward and carry on it’s mission of protecting this country. The Army is structured to utilize knowledge as a tool to develop leaders. That is why I believe educating Soldiers is a top priority for leaders. Soldiers must be knowledgeable of regulations, policies, their work roles and jobs. How can one possibly be an ideal role model without this knowledge? Regulations lay out the guidelines on how things are done. Policies generally outline and define your left and right limits for specific situations. Knowledge about how to perform all the tasks required to be proficient at one’s job is vital

There is clear cut guidance in the military to what is right and what is wrong. During these times of trial is where you can grow a stronger relationship with your Soldier. The Army has made a strong point to reinforce the use of counseling statements to reflect positive and negative events in a Soldier’s career. All too often the negative events are the ones that actually make it to paper. However, most things should not make it that far. I find it more effective to communicate with a Soldier to get down to the root cause of the situation. Some Soldiers may see negative counselings as building the gallows to eventually end their career and have the opposite effect than what the leader intended them for. Corrective training should be scaled to the magnitude of the problem; from one on one talking to