Personal Statement : ' First Why Then Trust ' And ' Start With Why

Six principles comprise the philosophy of mission command: (a) build cohesive teams through mutual trust; (b) create share understanding; (c) provide clear commander’s intent; (d) exercise disciplined initiative; (e) use mission orders; and (f) accept prudent risk. When combined together, these six principles assist the commander in balancing the aforementioned art of command and science of control. To understand how General Robert E. Lee’s performance at Gettysburg lacked the marks of a great mission commander necessitates a deeper understanding of the individual principles of mission command.

No matter if you stay in for one enlistment or two, the depth of the Marine Corps is unknown so knowledge will continuously flow and it is endless. All Marines get taught the basics of being a leader in entry level training, but only a few can react to help form their trait into an elite skill only for them. In order to become the elite you have to build a "Foundation of Values" (pg.31) so that respect in all aspects will become evident between the followers and their leader(s). While setting the example it does not matter what rank you are, you still show that the standards that you hold will reflect on who you are as a person and a Marine. Each Marine chooses how their standards and ways will become beneficial not only to the Marine Corps, but to themselves also. Why do ethics make conducting a moment of decision making so hard? At some point and time every Marine will come to a point in their career or life where the grey area will be the path they choose, but will not think that it is the right way. Moral and ethic dilemmas are common more and more each day. Every Marine is taught to be the toughest both physically, and mentally.

What also happens is people just lose things and have no idea until later when they need it. Marines lose things because of a few reasons. Probably the most common is when they are being hurried, which is pretty much 100% of the time. The other common reason is because a lot of junior Marines are young, irresponsible, and inexperienced. I’m pretty confident that most of the senior Marines here didn’t start at the level of responsibility or leadership that they are currently at, but have been through what the younger marines are going through and learned from their mistakes, and now trying to teach us so we don’t make them as much as we

Moreover, leaders with authority face restrictions and limitations within the boundaries of their work. Leaders without authority have more freedom. Heifetz states, “The scarcity of leadership from people in authority, however, makes it all the more critical to the adaptive success of a polity that leadership be exercised by people without authority” (183). In the chapter, Leaders Without Authority, it demonstrates how leaders who held informal positions, like Gandhi, was successful in accomplishing collective action. Some figures like Martin Luther King, who also held a formal authority in his own subgroup, can step out of his boundaries and lead without authority. Heifetz states, “But these people lead not only within the boundaries of the

When we talk about someone being in a position of authority we usually mean that they hold a certain rank or status within society or within an organisation such as the public services. There are several ways in which a person could find himself or herself in a position of authority. For example, a priest has the authority of the church while a mother or father has parental authority over children. In the uniformed public services, positions of authority come with promotion. An officer may be promoted because of certain achievements and special attributes, such as experience in the service, good character, knowledge of the job, dedication, self-discipline and the respect of one’s colleagues. If you join the uniformed public services and are placed in a position of authority, you may lawfully command team members, who recognise your authority and their duty to obey those legitimate commands. When authority is legitimate, there is no need to influence or use power. Indeed, if a senior officer were unable to gain the respect of a team member by command alone, then there would be no recognisable authority.

     Following authority is most noticed when it comes to military. Soldiers will do almost anything that their commander tells them. In a good way this is useful but when what they are doing is morally wrong there should be boundaries. But there are none and if they don’t do what they are told then they have to face the punishment. But

The Marine Corps. Demand alertness at all times. Building the Marine’s confidence and teaching them the attitudes of group loyalty and

I, have always respected authority, I believe it is always imperative to respect authority, as shortly after I entered the Marine Corps I heard a story about a NCO that told a LCPL to get over here now and he did and right after he moved the berm where he had been standing was shot right where his head would have been. I remember that story from when my gunny told it to me when I first got to the fleet it’s something I don’t think I will ever forget it is one of the things that reminds me every day that it is most important and imperative that I always listened and have instant willingness and obedience to orders. My parents both were military my father was in the Army for twenty one years and he retired as a Sergeant first class in the

Leadership goals should always contain methods of a continuous process of learning through education, training, and individual experiences that help ensure that the message will be communicated in a confident and competent manner when leading troops. Soldiers tend to follow leaders that demonstrate and live the Army values, while displaying their confidence in every decision that affects change. Leaders are not born as organizational or tactical leaders; but grown by their genetic determinism, which is inside and the characteristics they work toward; that mold is which type leader they will become. Not just anyone can lead; you must have the desire to lead, be willing to make the commitment to being a leader, and prepare yourself properly, then you have the desire to become a leader. (Fulton, 1995).

The essays that comprise Traditional Classics on Leadership present varying notions of authority and of challenging authority. This is largely due to the fact that this manuscript is comprised of essays from 31 contributors, ranging from well-known political theorists to some of the more salient voices for individuality that the world has known. Still, there are some points of commonalities in these essays that present a synthesized viewpoint of the concept of challenging authority.

What might have been the setback we previously faced in making decisive, clear or sound effective decisions? Was it a defect in how Commanders and Leaders led units or troops, or perhaps the philosophy in which we chose to command and control every aspect of the battlefield? What does it mean to recognize or comprehend the art of Command and the science of Control? The six principles of mission command are key in developing a cohesive team that will support all aspects of the mission. Asking “why” is now encouraged when it pertains to certain situations or missions. Understanding the purpose of why a course of action or desired outcome is necessary, leads to mission success and a cohesive unit with thinking leaders. Thinking clearly usually isn’t an issue for most leaders, but position an individual in a situation of extreme stress or complexity, then there might be a reason to be concerned. Through

Commanders at all levels face increasingly challenging scenarios as the operational environment changes. Some instinctively motivate and empower their subordinates to think and act independently, thereby influencing actions during combat. However, those who understand the commanders' activities of mission command will influence not only subordinates, but the outcome of the battle as well. Mission command is the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders.1 Commanders who understood the importance of mission command was Major General Horatio Gates. General Gates at the Battle of Saratoga successfully

The article, “The Authoritarian Personality,” written by Erich Fromm discusses the common and different characteristics between the two forms of an authoritarian personality. He starts to explain how one becomes a mature person. He states that to become a mature person, said person needs to have developed love and reason. He then states that an authoritarian character has not reached maturity, and therefore, has not developed love or reason. Erich Fromm continues to explain that the difference between the ruler and the ruled is how they start to feel “greater.” The way the ruled feels “greater” is by depending on their ruler for guidance and by following the ruler to become a part of the larger group. The way the ruler feels “greater” is by depending on the ruled to continue to look at them as strong and powerful. He then points out that one person can hold both the ruler and the ruled characteristics. Erich Fromm continues to explain the differences between rational and irrational authority and where these two forms of authority are found. He ends by saying that the understanding of love and reason, and developing said characteristics is the foundation to a person’s own authority and political democracy. While reading this article, it brought me back to all the times I have dealt with people who have authoritative personalities and how it affected me. As stated by Erich Fromm, all people with authority personalities contain components of both the ruler and the ruled.

Human power or authority is not the same as the king of the jungle's business. For the authority of the king of the jungle is intimidating, terrific, abusive and evil so anyone in power should use his authority wisely through an agenda that will benefit both the leadership and the people. A well-planned leadership involves an agenda of excellence; otherwise the authority will turn to notoriety, which is being famous for evil purpose.

Ever since hierarchy became a way of life for us people, there has been quite a few misconceptions and even debates about what it means to be a leader or a ruler. Most will say that they both go hand in hand as they are the same, but they couldn’t be any more different. The fact that no one will even try to distinguish the two is in itself apathetic. While it is true that these two words share similar aspects, there are things that widen the gap between what it means to be either. A leader is a person who governs with compassion, flexibility, and most of all integrity, while in contrast to these qualities, the ruler governs out of fear, adamancy, and also callousness. People normally fail to see how different they are, but when their qualities are further looked into, one can see that there is much contrast between them.