If at such times you "Fly off the handle," you have no business to be in charge of men. For men in anger say and do things that they almost invariably regret afterward.
An officer should never apologize to his men also, an officer should never be guilty of an act for which his sense of justice tells him he should apologize.
Another element in gaining moral ascendancy lies in the possession of enough physical vitality and endurance to with-stand the hardships to which you and your me are subjected, and a dauntless spirit that enables you not only accept them cheerfully but to minimize their gratitude.
Make light of your troubles, belittle your trials, and you will help vitally to build up within your organization an esprit whose value in time of stress cannot be measured.
Moral force is the third element in gaining moral ascendancy. To exert moral force you must live clean, you must have sufficient brainpower to see the right and the will to do right.
Be an example to your men!
An officer can be a power for good or a power for evil.
Don't preach to them that will be worse than useless. Live the kind of life you would have them, and you will be surprised to see the number that will imitate you.
A loud mouthed, profane captain who is careless of his personal appearance will have a loud mouthed, profane, dirty company. Remember, your company will be the reflection of yourself!
If you have a rotten company it will be because you are rotten captain.
Self sacrifice is essential to leadership you will give, give, all the time. You will give of yourself physically, for the longest hours, the hardest work and the greatest responsibility are the lot of the captain.
He is the first man up in the morning and the last man in at night. He works while others sleep.
You will give of yourself mentally, in sympathy and appreciation for the troubles of the men in your charge.
For every time you do that you knock a stone out of the foundation of your house your men are your foundation, and your house of leadership will tumble about our ears unless it rests securely upon them.
Finally m you will give of your own slender financial resources. You will frequently spend your own money to conserve the health and well being of your men or to assist them when in trouble. Generally you get your money back. Very frequently you must charge it off to profit and loss. Even so, it is worth the cost.
Your men are much like your children. You must see that they have shelter, food, and clothing, the best that your utmost efforts can provide. You must see that they have food to eat before you think of your own, that they have each as good a bed as can be provided before you consider where you will sleep.
You must be far more solicitous of their comfort than your own. You must look after their health. You must conserve their strength by not demanding needless exertion or useless labor.
By doing all these things you are breathing life into what would be otherwise a mere machine. You are creating a soul in your organization that will make the mass respond to you as through it were one man. And that is esprit.
And when your organization has the esprit you will wake up some morning and discover that the tables have been turned that instead of your constantly looking out for them, they have, without even a hint from you, taken up the task of looking out for you.
You will find that a detail is always there to see that your tent, if you have one, is promptly pitched, that the most and the cleanest bedding is brought to your tent, that from some mysterious source two eggs have been added to your supper when no one else has any, that an extra man is helping your men give your horse a super grooming, that your wishes are anticipated, that every man is "Johnny on the spot." And then you will have arrived!
You cannot treat all men alike!
A company commander who, for a given offense has a standard punishment that applies to all is either too indolent or too stupid to study the personalities of his men.
In his case justice is certainly blind.
Study your men as carefully as a surgeon studies a difficult case. And when you are sure of your diagnosis, apply the remedy. Remember that you apply the remedy to effect a cure, not merely to see the victim squirm.
Hand in hand with fairness in awarding punishment walks fairness in giving credit. Everybody hates a human hog.
When one of your men has accomplished an creditable piece of work, see that he gets the proper reward. Don't try to take it away from him and hog it yourself. you way do this and get away with it, but you have lost the respect and loyalty of your men.
No accurate thinker will judge another person by which the other person's enemies says about him.
An officer should never apologize to his men also, an officer should never be guilty of an act for which his sense of justice tells him he should apologize.
Another element in gaining moral ascendancy lies in the possession of enough physical vitality and endurance to with-stand the hardships to which you and your me are subjected, and a dauntless spirit that enables you not only accept them cheerfully but to minimize their gratitude.
Make light of your troubles, belittle your trials, and you will help vitally to build up within your organization an esprit whose value in time of stress cannot be measured.
Moral force is the third element in gaining moral ascendancy. To exert moral force you must live clean, you must have sufficient brainpower to see the right and the will to do right.
Be an example to your men!
An officer can be a power for good or a power for evil.
Don't preach to them that will be worse than useless. Live the kind of life you would have them, and you will be surprised to see the number that will imitate you.
A loud mouthed, profane captain who is careless of his personal appearance will have a loud mouthed, profane, dirty company. Remember, your company will be the reflection of yourself!
If you have a rotten company it will be because you are rotten captain.
Self sacrifice is essential to leadership you will give, give, all the time. You will give of yourself physically, for the longest hours, the hardest work and the greatest responsibility are the lot of the captain.
He is the first man up in the morning and the last man in at night. He works while others sleep.
You will give of yourself mentally, in sympathy and appreciation for the troubles of the men in your charge.
For every time you do that you knock a stone out of the foundation of your house your men are your foundation, and your house of leadership will tumble about our ears unless it rests securely upon them.
Finally m you will give of your own slender financial resources. You will frequently spend your own money to conserve the health and well being of your men or to assist them when in trouble. Generally you get your money back. Very frequently you must charge it off to profit and loss. Even so, it is worth the cost.
Your men are much like your children. You must see that they have shelter, food, and clothing, the best that your utmost efforts can provide. You must see that they have food to eat before you think of your own, that they have each as good a bed as can be provided before you consider where you will sleep.
You must be far more solicitous of their comfort than your own. You must look after their health. You must conserve their strength by not demanding needless exertion or useless labor.
By doing all these things you are breathing life into what would be otherwise a mere machine. You are creating a soul in your organization that will make the mass respond to you as through it were one man. And that is esprit.
And when your organization has the esprit you will wake up some morning and discover that the tables have been turned that instead of your constantly looking out for them, they have, without even a hint from you, taken up the task of looking out for you.
You will find that a detail is always there to see that your tent, if you have one, is promptly pitched, that the most and the cleanest bedding is brought to your tent, that from some mysterious source two eggs have been added to your supper when no one else has any, that an extra man is helping your men give your horse a super grooming, that your wishes are anticipated, that every man is "Johnny on the spot." And then you will have arrived!
You cannot treat all men alike!
A company commander who, for a given offense has a standard punishment that applies to all is either too indolent or too stupid to study the personalities of his men.
In his case justice is certainly blind.
Study your men as carefully as a surgeon studies a difficult case. And when you are sure of your diagnosis, apply the remedy. Remember that you apply the remedy to effect a cure, not merely to see the victim squirm.
Hand in hand with fairness in awarding punishment walks fairness in giving credit. Everybody hates a human hog.
When one of your men has accomplished an creditable piece of work, see that he gets the proper reward. Don't try to take it away from him and hog it yourself. you way do this and get away with it, but you have lost the respect and loyalty of your men.
No accurate thinker will judge another person by which the other person's enemies says about him.
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