The Ten Principles of Leadership

A young man planning to join our nation’s military recently emailed me asking for advice on how to be the best officer he could be. While the focus of this blog is mainly political, Leadership is an element that runs through all aspects of human society, including the political and economic. It’s a standard of learned moral behaviour which is just as important as comprehending Heuristics and Biases. What follows is my reply to him.

One thing you’re going to internalize during your time in the forces, is a document called the Ten Principles of Leadership. It’s a great list, so to start off, let me spell it out for you to give you a head start.

1. Achieve professional competence. One of the worst traits a leader can have is arrogance – acting as if they know more than they actually do. To relate to your troops, you’re going to need to be competent at whatever job they’re doing. Otherwise, you have no way of measuring their performance or guiding their activity.

2. Appreciate your own strengths and limitations and pursue self-improvement. This relates back to the last one. There’s an old riddle which asks “Who’s smarter, a platoon or their Sergeant? The platoon, because there’s thirty of them.” You need to have an accurate assessment of where you stand, and operate within those limits. Trust your NCOs, and listen to their advice – ultimately it’s your job to see the big picture and allocate resources accordingly, but they’re going to know more about their own field than you.

3. Seek and accept responsibility. The easy path is never volunteering, but an army where nobody volunteers – where nobody takes the first step – is an army of cowards. When something needs to be done, do it. Don’t waste your superior’s time asking permission when they’re just going to say yes, anyway – take action, resolve the situation, and if you fuck up take ownership of it. Demand the same behaviour out of your subordinates.

4. Lead by example. This should be self evident. What you do will have more impact than what you say. Be the type of sailor you want your sailors to be.

5. Make sure that your followers know your meaning and intent, then lead them to the accomplishment of the mission. This is a huge point, and one of the biggest fuck ups most leaders make. Remember what I said about the platoon being smarter than the Sergeant? This is where it applies. Not only will knowing the intent of the mission boost morale, it will also allow your troops to think on their feet. You don’t have the time to be micromanaging them – give them their orders, explain your orders, then trust them to fulfil them intelligently. During the Soldier Qualification phase of my Basic Training I had a Negligent Discharge. What caused it was that, although I had memorized all the rifle drills I was taught, the intent behind them was never explained to me. While unloading, I was still releasing the bolt under control, a practice which prevents micro-fractures appearing in the bolt head when the weapon’s running dry. When it’s loaded, however, doing so will prevent the chambered round from being ejected. I had followed the orders, but was never given their intent.

Ask me today, and I couldn’t quote a single weapon drill to you, not even the IAs – but I’m one of the fastest to load and fire, and I have no problems dealing with a blockage. Because I understand the principles and the intent of all the drills.

6. Know your soldiers and promote their welfare. Simply put, you take care of your soldiers, and they’ll work hard for you. They want to be there – you don’t need to trick them.

7. Develop the leadership potential of your followers. A corollary to this, is that to be a good leader you must be a good subordinate. Leadership is all about keeping the Green Machine (or in your case, the Blue Machine) oiled and working. It’s not some sort of messianic practice – Leadership is about being the best damn soldier you can be. Peons are the worst possible subordinates to have – you want thinking, intelligent, creative and responsible people under you. You want leaders.

8. Make sound and timely decisions. This is quite simple. During a combat situation, a good decision right now is better than a great decision later. You’re going to be working on inadequate data – get used to it. Make the best call you can, and make it quickly.

9. Train your soldiers as a team and employ them up to their capabilities. Once again, self evident. Know your troops – and be concerned over their welfare.

10. Keep your followers informed of the mission, the changing situation and the overall picture. This follows up on number five. Keep the lines of communication open when possible, and trust your soldiers to make better decisions than you can on limited information.

(CFP 131(1), para 405)

One last thing – I find that there’s a common trend throughout humanity, whether it be leadership, politics, or economics, a light-handed approach is usually best. Human aren’t insects, they’re creative, intelligent, independent agents. Trying to whittle down people to controllable units is a mistake, whether you’re running a company, a society, or a military. Microsoft dominated by having small, semi-autonomous teams. Places like Canada (particularly Alberta & BC), the United States, and Hong Kong have flourished under lax economic restrictions, while Europe and the Communist world have faltered. In the Chinese military the infantry are trained in ‘human wave attacks’ – they’re given no independence, and while Canadian/US soldiers prefer to initiate combat with 3-to-1 odds, the Chinese require 10-to-1. When possible, leave your people alone to do what they do best. As a senior Corporal, I was always of the opinion that the best sorts of Officers were the ones who stayed out of my way – and believe me, I treated my troops exactly the same. Embrace the minimalist role.