A Message to Garcia” is based on the true story of a lieutenant during the Spanish-American War. Lieutenant Rowan was sent to Cuba to carry a message to Garcia. Garcia was the leader of the Cuban insurgents and the President of the United States, William McKinley, needed his help with the war. To persuade Garcia to aid in the war effort, Rowan was chosen to deliver a message. Rowan knew the importance of this mission and took the task without question. The only thing he knew was that Garcia was somewhere in the Cuban mountains. Rowan traveled alone, took a boat to the coast and made his way through the jungle to Garcia’s hideout. The message portrayed in “A Message to Garcia” focuses on specific qualities everyone should strive to achieve. …show more content…
Even though asking questions is a good idea, it is not always necessary. People become reliant on others to answer what they don’t know. In a way, they never learn to think for themselves. What makes Lieutenant Rowan special was not “what” he accomplished but “how” he accomplished it. He thought for himself and through his resourcefulness, he successfully completed the mission.The world lacks men and women like Lieutenant Rowan. There are few who are willing to take on responsibilities and see them through to the end. A lot of people need someone to look over their shoulder to keep them on track. To compensate for this poor work ethic there will always be a need for others to get the job done, correctly, and on time.Military personnel are often told what to do and expected to do it. They are usually given guidance but it all comes down to the individual to complete the task. For example, when standing watch, the watch officer is responsible for the safety and operation of their area. They are taught everything they need but it is up to them to maintain a safe and secure environment. If something goes wrong, the watch officer is responsible for taking the proper measures and resolving any problems on their
As leaders, we must maintain a clear separation between ourselves and those we lead, both, on and off duty. I’m not saying that you and I are better than anyone else; however, as leaders we are charged with tremendous responsibilities and are held to higher standards. To put in bluntly, “we cannot lead soldiers and act like the soldiers”. Do not be a soldier’s buddy! We cannot get away with the indiscretions that out soldiers may because we must lead by example.
Through his guidance, mentorship, and active leadership MSG (Ret.) Keith McKinney molded me into the Solider and military intelligence professional that I am today. His strong character lent credibility to the fatherly role he filled for so many in his charge. Those in his charge were not only subordinates, but also his peers and superiors would find his presence reassuring as it invited them to seek his counsel. Keen intellect and natural leadership abilities grounded MSG McKinney’s wise counsel. He used his abilities to develop those within his sphere to achieve results as military professionals and individuals who could contribute to society. During his time in the Army, MSG McKinney had a profound impact on the Soldiers he encountered and the organizations he supported.
When analyzing the mishaps of 1st platoon, one cannot help but to point out the many errors that resulted from poor leadership qualities. The Army publication ADP 6-22 characterizes leadership as “a complex mix of organizational, situational, and mission demands on a leader who applies personal qualities, abilities, and experiences to exert influence on the organization, its people, the situation, and the unfolding mission. Difficult and complex situations are the proving ground for leaders expected to make consistent timely, effective and just decisions. (Army Leader Defined, 2012)” A lack of effective leadership was the main cause, among many others, which led to the downfall of 1st platoon and can be said to be major contributors to the gruesome incident that occurred. One example of ineffective leadership can be directed towards 3rd squad leader SGT Tony Yribe; despite all the respect and consideration of being so hooah and godlike in the eyes of younger soldiers, Yribe still has something that every human on this planet has…imperfections. To illustrate, Yribe was known
Responsibility- can be seen throughout the story, the men in this group have to carry out their mission and successfully complete it. Individually each of them have different set of skills and objectives, and simultaneously work together to reach a mutual goal; staying alive. The skills and responsibilities that five of the personnel had in the platoon were; Jimmy Cross-The Lieutenant also known as the leader of the platoon, his job was to give orders, he “carried a compass, maps, code books,
He helped make seatbelts in cars to keep people from hitting the seat in front of them or the windshield. A lot of people didn’t use them, but some did and were kept safe. Lesson 7: Belief and seeing are both often wrong. Mr. McNamara talks about how people often see what they want to see, not what is really there. The Gulf of Tonkin incident was also talked about and whether or not an attack actually did happen.
A young male, First Lieutenant, in the Army will unknowingly become a man as men server under him. Becoming a man with such unspeakable responsibilities at such a young age can emotionally test even the strongest man. An example, of this transformation is in the short story by Tim O’Brien called, The Things They Carried, it shows a young, First Lieutenant, in the Vietnam War named Jimmy Cross, and his journey to become a successful leader, but only after the death of one of his men. This young, First Lieutenant, will have to come to the grips that other men’s lives are his responsibility. This task of keeping his troops alive will tremendously test Lt. Cross’s heart and soul, by choosing to lose a component of his own humanity along the way. There must be order at all times when you’re in charge of men’s lives, and Lt. Cross must become capable of setting aside his own personal mind-set and align his thoughts with that of the essential standard operating procedures (SOP). Lt Cross eventually decides to follow the SOP, and he finally understands the importance of having an SOP; sadly it comes at the expense of one of his own men. The SOP has allowed Army personal to their job with no reluctance, no matter the situation, quickly being able to adapting to change, always acting in the approved manner by which they shall treat others with dignity and respect, and always having honor in their county, unit, and fellow soldiers. It doesn’t matter if someone is enlisted or
It is widely known that in the military you are assigned a great amount of responsibility at a young age and early point in your career. This amount of responsibility is far greater than a civilian would be assigned at the same age. When put in these leadership positions you rapidly acquire skills to care for, make decisions, and earn trust. On my first deployment, our Helicopter Assault Force consisted of two 47 crews decentralized from our higher command. Our senior ranking officer and Air Mission Commander was often just a Captain. Our Flight Lead was typically a W3 or W4 and was the primary decision maker when it came to mission analysis and courses of action development. It was our Captains job to ensure the risk levels were acceptable and sell our mission to higher command. With well-trained commissioned officers and extremely knowledgeable flight leads, we were able to operate with extreme efficiency from a decentralized location from higher command. Additionally the well-defined Commanders Intent and Key Tasks enabled us to meet both the ground force Commander’s goals and our higher command’s
Junior leaders found themselves fighting a counterinsurgency campaign for which they lacked the necessary expertise and equipment. Thanks to innovative and heroic leaders, the Army was able to adapt its doctrine, materiel, and operations to change the course of the Iraq war over a period of two to three years (The Profession of Arms page 9)”. As we try to adapt, NCOs as professionals and leaders must get through to the Soldiers and tell them that what we do is not just a nine to five job but a calling. We also need to look deep in ourselves and see if our alignments have changed as well. Are we here just to finish out and get our retirement?
I believe the lesson to be taken from A Message to Garcia is to do your assigned tasks without asking questions. If you are told to do something, you were specifically told because you were picked of all the other people in your vicinity. No matter the task, you are held responsible. Any task you have is Garcia and you must complete that task and carry the message to Garcia. The length of the assignment depends entirely on your individual choice. If you waste time by asking questions, you needlessly prolong the journey and the task inevitably gets difficult because of the procrastination. Garcia doesn’t want to wait for you, he’ll move around, making it harder for you if you waste time. If you get straight to work, the length will be shorter and will be easier. You should be able to
In conclusion, Major Robert Rogers was a very influential leader in his time and has remained one for generations of leaders since. He has served as an influential leader for me by showing me how to be successful in my career by constantly adapting to the situation and giving my Soldiers clear guidance to adhere to. Likewise, he also has served as an example to me that not all people are perfect and that if we cannot balance our lives, it is likely that one side will destroy the other. I have learned from his example that it is important to recognize a need for that balance, as well as to identify in ourselves and our Soldiers when that misbalance can lead to destructive behavior that undermines our successes and
The Human Resources Sergeant has to continue to strive to balance their role as a leader of the Army, and this is no easy feat. The continuous challenge for the strategic leaders of the Army since the latter decades of the 19th century when the U.S. Army was professionalized has been to keep the Army “balanced.” (p. 8). Balancing the mission, Soldier care and family along with the administrative functions of the Human Resources Sergeant is crucial. In order to keep this nation secure and our soldier’s safe the Human Resource Sergeant must ensure that the proper documents are complete, as necessary. They must also be able to sustain continuity in the mission, which in turn will free the soldier of worry while deployed. This will build the trust factor between the personnel section and the service member as well as their leadership, and allow them to focus on their sworn
It is harder to actually step down and listen to what another Marine may have to offer, especially as a “Leader”. Plenty of times you will have to step up and say, “No, this is not up to interpretation”.
The book Black Hearts opened my eyes to how leadership from a single Officer can have a grappling effect on such a wide range of soldiers from the lowest of ranks. One of the best takeaways from Black Hearts is to never do anything: illegal, unethical, or immoral. Although this is a easy statement to repeat, Black Hearts demonstrates the difficulties that lie behind these words. It has also painted a picture of how leadership can topple extremely quickly from a top down view. The Army is portrayed in a bad light throughout the book relentlessly. This is due to the concentration of poor leadership of the 1-502nd Regiment (Referred to as “First Strike”), a battalion of the 101st Airborne Division.
For an example, Lieutenant McDonough had to learn how to deal with enlisted men for the first time. His soldiers were used to a distant, unpresent platoon leader who left all the leadership to the non-commissioned officer, so when he arrived, they treated him like a the clueless officer that they had before him. McDonough had to earn trust with his men and show them that he was willing to go out on patrols with them and reprimand them if they were being insubordinate. He struggled with this balance of trust and authority especially with the new soldiers he was sent after losing some of his originals in battle. He knew he had to utilize his NCO platoon sergeant, Hernandez, but Hernandez felt usurped because, when the previous platoon leader was in charge, he had most of the command of the soldiers in battle, and Lieutenant McDonough seemed to have taken some of that from him. McDonough, although having done his job, had to make repairs to that relationship with his
Leadership, accountability, efficiency, morale, and a sense of order all depend upon your chain of command. Why it is important to follow proper instruction procedures in the military is for many reasons. As military personnel, it is our responsibility to not only follow instruction/orders, but to execute the command. Not following orders can result into consequences not only for the personnel whom committed not following instructions, but also it can put others at risk too. Like your NCO in charge of you, to your Team Leader, to your Platoon Sergeant, to your 1st Sergeant, to your Company Commander, to your Brigade Commander, and so on. Not only can your NCO in charge of you, your Team Leader, your Platoon Sergeant, your 1st Sergeant, your Company Commander, and your Brigade Commander could all get into trouble for your actions of not following direct instructions/orders. But some may lose rank in the process including the personnel whom didn’t follow the specific instructions/orders giving by a personnel higher rank than those individual personnel. Also when you are down range deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, North Korea, and other combat places we have our units fighting the war at, not only can a personnel lose rank but in fact not following directions/orders you could get a personnel fighting alongside of you in the war killed in combat but you as well. Try to explain to a spouse, or a