3 things to know about the Art of Military Leadership

The Great Misnomer

In my coaching and consulting practice, I describe the Tribe&Trust approach as “combining the art of military leadership with the science of human behavior.” The latter is rarely misunderstood, but when it comes to the art of military leadership, people without much exposure to the military often translate this into something along the lines of, “wow, you must be a really good yeller.”

This great misnomer is typically due to people’s knowledge of boot camp and drill instructors yelling at new recruits to “get off my bus!”…or something similar. The reality is that this is calculated and factors into the science of human behavior, not the art of military leadership.

In fact, military leaders rarely “yell” unless there is a lot of competing noise like combat or aircraft. The art of military leadership is about making sound decisions in a timely manner. It’s about taking care of your troops to ensure they’re equipped to accomplish the mission. It’s not about yelling to get your point across or to instill fear.

K.I.S.S

The art of military leadership is knowing the members of your unit. Knowing their strengths and weaknesses. Knowing their capabilities and limitations. Knowing their tendencies.

The art of military leadership is understanding that 3 of your subordinate leaders process information in 3 different ways. The art of military leadership is developing the ability to communicate so that each of those 3 receives and processes your instruction so that it’s executed to your desired outcome.

The art of military leadership can be boiled down into one word – people. Coincidentally, people are also the one common denominator in every business and organization. Whether manufacturing widgets for oil fields or packaging and distributing dog food for the family pet, every business benefits people in some way to include end-consumers and the employee who is responsible for ensuring a timely delivery.

The art is investing the necessary time, talent, and treasure in the people. The art is being a leader who is focused on the needs and well-being of all people because people deliver the profits that keep the business engine running.

Therefore, business is people.

3 Takeaways

1. Leadership is a skill set that must be taught, learned, and honed if the art is to be mastered; leaders are not born. At every level leaders are shaped, and that’s what the US military does better than every organization in America. While there are some good training programs available to individuals outside of the military, the separator is the total immersion of the military tribe into training that includes devising situations where the skills can be practically applied – this is where the real learning takes place.
2. Don’t underestimate the strength of the military leadership skill set; it’s more valuable and far-reaching than most technical skills. Organizations often look to military speakers who provide inspirational messages, but often that’s where the engagement ends. The leadership skills and lessons that are tied to these stories should be embraced and implemented by hiring veterans and/or part of a deeper engagement that educates organizations based on these fundamentals.
3. To invest in your people is to invest in your business. Simply put, people are worth it so invest the necessary time, talent, and treasure to improve them. It may sound idealistic or Utopian, but if we’re not willing to focus on and invest in one another, to what end do we exist as human beings? Are you concerned with the possibility that your people will leave after you invest in them? You should be more concerned if they stay and you don’t invest in them. Grow your people to grow your business…the investment creates loyalty.

Tribe&Trust Leadership offers consulting and coaching engagements to help shape leaders to pull the better out of their people. The objective is to increase employee engagement and reduce turnover.