The purpose of this article is to discuss military leadership.  We will cover traits of military leaders and FM 22-100.

In the Army, we have the military leadership bible, also known as FM 22-100.  Most top military leaders emulate the lessons and traits taught in FM 22-100.  The thesis of FM 22-100 is "Be, Know, and Do."  In other words, be a leader.  Know your profession.  And, do it.  Do the right thing the right way!

During my short 16 years of military experience, I've had the opportunity to serve with several dynamic military leaders.  These leaders all possessed similar traits such as: vision, leadership, decisiveness, technical and tactical expertise, intelligence and compassion.  I've taken bits and peaces from each military leader and formed my very own leadership style.

In my opinion, there’s something quite different between military leaders and civilian leaders.  I think of military leaders like General Colin Powell, General Patton, General & President Eisenhower, General Westmoreland and more.  And, these are just the famous generals.  They are many more successful military leaders that most people have never heard of. 

What’s great about military leadership is that it is instilled upon all officers throughout their entire career.  From day one, new Second Lieutenants are thrust into positions of significant responsibility.  As a young 22-25 year old Platoon Leader, they are directly responsible for 20-50 Soldiers.  

As Army Officers progress through the ranks, they continue to develop their military leadership.  As a result, they get positions of increased responsibility and can eventually lead 5,000 to 30,000 Soldiers.  How awesome is that!

While many Army Officers utilize their military leadership to create a long, successful military career, some don’t.  In fact, many young company grade officers take their military leadership and leave the Army.  Because their military leadership skills are in such high demand, they can easily market themselves in the corporate world.

Where else would a young manager with only a few years experience have the skill-set to lead that many people?  The corporate world would rarely ever let a new college graduate supervise 50 people.  

Even worse, they reserve their leadership positions for people much older than their military counterparts.  Most corporations assign mid-level positions to people in their 40s or 50s, whereas the Army would give a 25-30 year old the same (or more) responsibility.

In my opinion, military leadership is really a mind-set.  We are all a product of our environment.  Most Officers have always had tough, demanding jobs with large amounts of responsibility.  In other words, it's all they know.  All they have ever been taught to do was lead from the front, set a strong personal example, accomplish the mission and enforce standards.

Even developmental military leadership positions such as Platoon Leader and Company Command require a great deal of personal sacrifice, hard work and significant responsibility.  These early assignments usually “mold” the officer and prepare him or her for a long successful career. 

So, what type of leadership skills will you learn as a military leader?  Here are a few:

Mission Planning – This is a basic military leadership skill.  Officers must be capable of planning missions and preparing mission orders for their Soldiers to execute.

Administration – Officers must prepare performance evaluations, submit reports and handle correspondence on a daily basis.

Personnel Accountability – At all times, an Officer should know where his or her personnel are.  Personnel Accountability is one of the basic military leadership principles.

Equipment Accountability – Officers often serve as “hand-receipt” holders which make them responsible and accountable for millions of dollars worth of equipment.

Decision Making – In combat, Officers must make decisions that might get people killed.  Officers must be decisive.

Working in High Stress Environments – Serving in combat is like no other experience.  Long hours, high stress, casualties and fatigue make this experience something few civilians could ever comprehend.

Supervisory Skills – In the civilian world, it’s a huge deal to supervise 50 or more people.  In fact, I’ve yet to ever meet a civilian that supervised 50 people.  However, in the Army it’s very common.

Counseling – Military leaders are required to develop their subordinates through effective counseling and professional development. 

Disciplinary Actions – In the military, military leaders often make tough decisions that determine the livelihood of their Soldiers.  Officers must enforce standards.  Sometimes failure to meet the standards will result in disciplinary actions such as demotions, separation from service, or pay reductions.

People Skills – Effective Officers always strive to improve their people skills.  Like any organization, promotions depend upon competence, potential and relationship building.

Military leadership is an art.  It's an art learned through mentorship and practical experience.  It's also learned by reading manuals such as FM 22-100.

Throughout history, some of the world’s best leaders were military leaders.  Unlike our civilian counterparts, Army Officers are pushed into leadership positions beginning with their first assignment.  From day one, new military leaders are given positions of significant responsibility, which enables them to develop their military leadership skills and prepare for positions of increased responsibility.   

Learn more about Military Leadership in our new Career Management Guide.