LEADERSHIP QUOTES

“...I submit to you that leaders will never be more or less than their soldiers’ evaluation of them. This is the true efficiency report. From most of your troops you can expect courage to match your courage, guts to match your guts, endurance to match your endurance, motivation to match your motivation, esprit to match your esprit, a desire for achievement to match your desire for achievement. You can expect a love of God, a love of country and a love of duty and they won’t mind the heat if you sweat with them, and they won’t mind the cold if you shiver with them.” “You see, you don’t accept the troops, they were there first. They accept you And when they do, you’ll know. They won’t beat drums, wave flags, or carry you off the drill field on their shoulders, but you’ll know. You see, your orders will appoint you to command. No orders, letters, no insignia of rank can appoint you as a leader. Leadership is an intangible thing. Leadership is developed within yourselves and you’ll get stronger as you go.” ––Author Unknown

“If any of my sons are ever called upon to serve their country in time of war, I hope they will have a squad leader like I have. A true soldier, he’s tough and demanding yet always fair. He cares about his squad. He sets high standards and demands that we meet them. He tells us what we do good and encourages us to keep our stuff straight. And he tells us what’s screwed up and how to fix it. He knows as much about us and our families as is humanly possible. He truly cares. We trust him and are confident in his ability to lead us in combat. If he says ’follow me’—we will not hesitate. That’s what leadership is all about.” ––An anonymous SP4 1984

Unknown Source: “Leadership can be defined in numerous ways, but probably the simplest definition is that leadership in any unit revolves around the ability of the person in charge to move a group of people, as a team, in the direction of a common goal. All of the terminology and concepts that have been used to describe successful leaders and successful leadership are built into this definition. These include, but are not limited to: caring, cohesion, teamwork, good training, good maintenance, esprit de corps, communication, loyalty, mutual confidence and respect, good judgment, decisiveness, and the list goes no. The bottom line is that a leader, in order to be successful by any definition, needs to have the necessary skills to create an environment in which subordinates have confidence in their abilities and their equipment, mutual respect for each other and for the leader and will respond immediately, as a team, then the leader specifies a mission.” “Every soldier is a leader regardless of his rank or position. His attitude, opinions, desires and deportment mold the approach to mission taken by those above him and his subordinates. It is the summation of this leadership by ’every soldier’ that makes our Army a winner.”