Leadership

September 2011 - Navy
By David Bradley

As Jack Nicholson said in The Shining in 1980, “I’m back” and will again attempt to explain or assist you in coping with the issues with which retirees deal daily. Each issue of Navy is orientated toward a specific subject and, this month, it is “Mentoring and Personnel Issues.” As a mentor, you should be very familiar with “Leadership,” my topic this month.

As a retiree and member of this organization, you’ve already shown your capacity for leadership. As a petty officer, chief or commissioned officer, you’ve shown leadership qualities to your commands and selection boards or you wouldn’t have retired at the rate or rank that you did. What do most consider the most desirable traits of a good leader? The five that most agree are most important are:

• Honesty
• Vision
• Competency
• Inspiration
• Intelligence

The skill and manner in which you exhibit these qualities determine the level of desire of your group to follow your lead and increase the confidence and influence you inspire.

It’s often said that you must not only “talk the talk but walk the walk.” You lead by example and must display these traits in a manner in which to bring notice. People need to see what you do, not what you don’t do.

Honesty appears first on the list as a leader, showing people that you are honest even when it means admitting to a mistake, displays a key trait that people are looking for in their leaders. By demonstrating honesty with yourself, with your organization and with outside organizations, you will increase your leadership influence.

Vision is important because people need to know that a leader has a strong vision for the future and a strong plan for going forward. You may have a clear vision, but don’t wish to share it with others, a major mistake. A leader must demonstrate the trait of being forward-looking by communicating his/her vision with the organization.

Competency doesn’t mean a leader needs to be the foremost expert on every area of the entire organization, but he/she needs to be able to demonstrate competency in a way that people notice. When people under your leadership look at some action you have taken and think, “that just goes to show why he/she is the one in charge,” you are demonstrating competency. Inspiration is usually just a matter of communicating clearly and with passion. Learning to be inspiring is not easy – particularly for individuals lacking in charisma. It can be learned. Take note of people who inspire you and analyze the way they communicate. Look for ways to express passionately your vision.

Intelligence is something that can be difficult to develop. Your prior training and education functioned merely as a foundational language for lifelong educational experiences. For the most part, people will notice if you are intelligent by observing your behavior and attitude. You can demonstrate your intelligence by gently leading people toward understanding––even when you know the answer. One of the best ways to exhibit intelligence is by asking questions. Learning from the people you lead by asking intelligent, thoughtful questions will do more to enhance your intelligence credibility than just about anything.

By making an effort to exhibit these qualities, people will be more likely to follow you. These are the most important traits that people look for in their leaders.

A call for leadership

At our recent conference in New Orleans, it became apparent that we need more individuals to step up and take leadership positions. We have open National Vice President positions for lack of a candidate. In discussions with Region Presidents, it became obvious that they have a problem finding willing volunteers for not only Chapter activities but also Region positions as well. This Association must have your participation to endure. Our mantra is “Standing the watch for your Navy and you.” We seem to have a core group that carries the load and the watch rotation is “Port & Report.” We need your help to take up the slack in the lines. Take a round turn and contact your regional President and ask how you can help. Show those leadership skills that you’ve honed.

It’s been a few years since I last held this position and there have been many changes. As before, in future columns, I’ll try to deal with disability benefits (VA and military), retired pay offset (Concurrent Retirement/ Disability Payments and Combat Related Special Compensation), death benefits, Social Security, Survivor Benefit Plan, as well as those retirement related subjects you feel important. You know how to reach me. Remember, the only dumb question is the one that didn’t get asked.