Resilience-A Leadership Perspective

     Resilient leaders can recover quickly from setbacks, shock, injuries, adversity, and stress while
maintaining their mission and organizational focus. Their resilience rests on will, the inner drive that
compels them to keep going, even when exhausted, hungry, afraid, cold, and wet. Resilience helps leaders
and their organizations to carry difficult missions to their conclusion.
     Resilience and the will to succeed are not sufficient to carry the day during adversity. Competence
and knowledge guide the energies of a strong will to pursue courses of action that lead to success and
victory in battle. The leader’s premier task is to instill resilience and a winning spirit in subordinates. That
begins with tough and realistic training.
     Resilience is essential when pursuing mission accomplishment. No matter what the working
conditions are, a strong personal attitude helps prevail over any adverse external conditions. All members
of the Army—active, reserve, or civilian—will experience situations when it would seem easier to quit
rather than finish the task. During those times, everyone needs an inner source of energy to press on to
mission completion. When things go badly, a leader must draw on inner reserves to persevere.

PROVIDING PURPOSE, MOTIVATION, AND INSPIRATION

Leaders influence others to achieve some purpose. To be successful at exerting influence Army
leaders have an end or goal in mind. Sometimes the goal will be very specific, like reducing the number of
training accidents by one-half over a period of six months. Many goals are less distinct and measurable
than this example, but are still valid and meaningful. A leader may decide that unit morale needs to be
improved and may set that as a goal for others to join to support.

Purpose provides what the leader wants done, while motivation and inspiration provide the
energizing force to see that the purpose is addressed and has the strength to mobilize and sustain effort to
get the job done. Motivation and inspiration address the needs of the individual and team. Indirect needs—
like job satisfaction, sense of accomplishment, group belonging, and pride—typically have broader
reaching effects than formal rewards and punishment, like promotions or nonjudicial actions.
march,
Besides purpose and motivation, leader influence also consists of direction. Direction deals with how
a goal, task, or mission is to be achieved. Subordinates do not need to receive guidance on the details of
execution in all situations. The skilled leader will know when to provide detailed guidance and when to
focus only on purpose, motivation, or inspiration.

Mission command conveys purpose without providing excessive, detailed direction. Mission
command is the conduct of military operations through decentralized execution based on mission orders for
effective mission accomplishment. Successful mission command rests on four elements:
Commander’s intent.
Subordinates’ initiative.
Mission orders.
Resource allocation.

Standing Orders for Rogers' Rangers-From the Ranger Handbook

STANDING ORDERS, ROGERS' RANGERS

1.  Don't forget nothing.

2.  Have your musket clean as a whistle, hatchet scoured, sixty rounds powder and ball, and be ready to march at a minute's warning.

3.  When you're on the march, act the way you would if you was sneaking up on a deer. See the enemy first.

4.  Tell the truth about what you see and what you do. There is an army depending on us for correct information. You can lie all you please when you tell other folks about the Rangers, but don't never lie to a Ranger or officer.

5.  Don't never take a chance you don't have to.

6.  When we're on the march we march single file, far enough apart so one shot can't go through two men.

7.  If we strike swamps, or soft ground, we spread out abreast, so it's hard to track us.

8.  When we march, we keep moving till dark, so as to give the enemy the least possible chance at us.

9.  When we camp, half the party stays awake while the other half sleeps.

10.If we take prisoners, we keep' em separate till we have had time to examine them, so they can't cook up a story between' em.

11.Don't ever march home the same way. Take a different route so you won't be ambushed.

12.No matter whether we travel in big parties or little ones, each party has to keep a scout 20 yards ahead, 20 yards on each flank, and 20 yards in the rear so the main body can't be surprised and wiped out.

13.Every night you'll be told where to meet if surrounded by a superior force.

14.Don't sit down to eat without posting sentries.

15.Don't sleep beyond dawn. Dawn's when the French and Indians attack.

16.Don't cross a river by a regular ford.

17.If somebody's trailing you, make a circle, come back onto your own tracks, and ambush the folks that aim to ambush you.

18.Don't stand up when the enemy's coming against you. Kneel down, lie down, hide behind a tree.

19.Let the enemy come till he's almost close enough to touch, then let him have it and jump out and finish him up with your hatchet.

--MAJOR ROBERT ROGERS, 1759

Army Civilians-Army Leadership

ARMY CIVILIAN LEADERS-Excerpt from Army Leadership

The Army civilian corps consists of experienced personnel committed to serving the Nation. Army
civilians are an integral part of the Army team and are members of the executive branch of the federal
government. They fill positions in staff and sustaining base operations that would otherwise be filled by
military personnel. They provide mission-essential capability, stability, and continuity during war and
peace in support of the Soldier. Army civilians take their support mission professionally. Army civilians
are committed to selfless service in the performance of their duties as expressed in the Army Civilian
Corps Creed.

The major roles and responsibilities of Army civilians include establishing and executing policy;
managing Army programs, projects, and systems; and operating activities and facilities for Army
equipment, support, research, and technical work. These roles are in support of the organizational Army as
well as warfighters based around the world. The main differences between military and civilian leaders are
in the provisions of their position, how they obtain their leadership skills, and career development patterns.

Army civilians’ job placement depends on their eligibility to hold the position. Their credentials
reflect the expertise with which they enter a position. Proficiency in that position is from education and
training they have obtained, prior experiences, and career-long ties to special professional fields. Unlike
military personnel, Army civilians do not carry their grade with them regardless of the job they perform.
Civilians hold the grade of the position in which they serve. Except for the Commander in Chief (the
President of the United States) and Secretary of Defense, civilians do not exercise military command;
however, they could be designated to exercise general supervision over an Army installation or activity
under the command of a military superior. Army civilians primarily exercise authority based on the
position held, not their grade.

Civilian personnel do not have career managers like their military counterparts, but there are
functional proponents for career fields that ensure provisions exist for career growth. Army civilians are
free to pursue positions and promotions as they desire. While mobility is not mandatory in all career fields,
there are some (and some grade levels) where mobility agreements are required. Personnel policies
generally state that civilians should be in positions that do not require military personnel for reasons of law,
training, security, discipline, rotation, or combat readiness. While the career civilian workforce brings a
wealth of diversity to the Army team, there is also a wealth of knowledge and experience brought to the
Army’s sustaining base when retired military join the civilian ranks.

While most civilians historically support military forces at home stations, civilians also deploy with
military forces to sustain theater operations. As evidenced by the ever-increasing demands of recent
deployments, civilians have served at every level and in every location, providing expertise and support
Leadership Roles, Leadership Levels and Leadership Teams wherever needed. Army civilians support their military counterparts and often remain for long periods within the same organization or installation, providing continuity and stability that the highly mobile personnel management system used for our military rarely allows. However, when the position or mission dictates, Army civilians may be transferred or deployed to meet the needs of the Army.

Army Leadership

The foundations of Army leadership are firmly grounded in history, loyalty to our country’s laws, acountability to authority, and evolving Army doctrine. By applying this knowledge with confidence and

dedication, leaders develop into mature, competent, and multiskilled members of the Nation’s Army. While

Army leaders are responsible for being personally and professionally competent, they are also charged with

the responsibility of developing their subordinates.

To assist leaders to become competent at all levels of leadership, the Army identifies three categories of core leader competencies: lead, develop, and achieve. These competencies and their subsets represent the roles and functions of leaders.

THE FOUNDING DOCUMENTS OF OUR NATIONWhen we assumed the Soldier, we did not lay aside the Citizen.General George Washington

Seech to the New York Legislature, 1775

 

The Army and its leadership requirements are based on the Nation’s democratic foundations, defined

values, and standards of excellence. The Army recognizes the importance of preserving the time-proven

standards of competence that have distinguished leaders throughout history. Leadership doctrine

acknowledges that societal change, evolving security threats, and technological advances require an everincreasing degree of adaptability.

 

Although America’s history and cultural traditions derive from many parts of the civilized world,

common values, goals, and beliefs are solidly established in the Declaration of Independence and the

Constitution. These documents explain the purpose of our nationhood and detail our specific freedoms and

responsibilities. Every Army Soldier and leader should be familiar with these documents.

 

On 4 July 1776, the Declaration of Independence formally sealed America’s separation from British

rule and asserted her right as an equal participant in dealings with other sovereign nations. Adopted by

Congress in March of 1787, the U.S. Constitution formally established the basic functions of our

democratic government. It clearly explains the functions, as well as the checks and balances between the

three branches of government: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. The Constitution sets the

parameters for the creation of our national defense establishment, including the legal basis for our Army.

 

Amended to the Constitution in December 1791, the Federal Bill of Rights officially recognized specific

rights for every American citizen, including freedom of religion, of speech, and of the press. At the time of

publication of FM 6-22, there have been 27 amendments to the Constitution. The amendments illustrate the

adaptability of our form of government to societal changes.