Cadet Junior Leadership

Before a person can take their King Tut stick, stake it into the ground, and claim, "I am a leader!" there are certain qualities or characteristics that are critically essential for a leader to possess in order to lead effectively. Take note of these, and work to develop them in yourself! They are as follows:

• Confidence

• Courage

• Responsibility

• Knowledge

• Determination

• Loyalty

• Communicative

• Enthusiasm

• Honesty

• Patience

• Dependability

• Decisiveness

These qualities are not inherited: they are developed. They are not genetic: anyone can develop them! The key of this lesson will be to recognize your strong points, understand how to develop your weaker points, and develop more confidence in yourself as a true leader.

All of us will also exhibit these qualities in varying manners. As a leader, there are two things to remember about this:

1. As a leader, you must encourage the development of these qualities in your subordinates in their own unique manner.

2. As a leader, you must understand how you exhibit these qualities yourself, mould this to your superiors and your subordinates, and appreciate this uniqueness!

When given the immense responsibility of leading a diverse group of cadets, you cannot lead blindly; there are principles of leadership to keep in mind that will make a task more productive for yourself, and more so, the cadets.

1. Know Your Job -- You need to know what you are doing! Having a fancy position is one thing; understanding its responsibilities is the most crucial.

2. Know your strengths and weaknesses and seek self-improvement -- This is a major one: we can all boast about our strengths until purple penguins learn how to fly, but to recognize your weaknesses and know how to develop them for the betterment of your cadets takes a real leader.

3. Set the Example -- A leader who jumps on one foot and taps his belly will more than likely have the cadets under his charge do the same thing. Unless you're training for the Belle of the Ball, lead with a strong, open, and swift example, and all will hopefully follow suit.

4. Communicate ideas and thoughts clearly -- Always, always make sure that anything you say, order, or plan out is understood across the board. This promotes a job well done, safety, and avoids future problems down the road! Keeping cadets informed is often forgotten. Even in dire straits, at least keep your cadets on the gist of what is happening, and make sure they are informed of matters that relate to them at all times. This will earn a lot of much needed respect.

5. Know your cadets and promote their welfare -- Help them out! You are their leader; they make their choices based on your guidance, so be sure you are helping them out and prepared to lend a helping hand at all times. Promote the fact that help is perfectly healthy to ask for!

6. Develop the leadership potential of your cadets -- As a leader, you are as well grooming our future leaders. Realize the qualities of leadership that they possess, and help develop them, along with those they do not quite have a grasp on.

7. Make sound & timely decisions -- In the heat of the moment, or in the heat of a promise made, make sure that every decision you make is not only a beneficial one and a practical one, but one made in due time as well. Never make a hanging promise!

8. Train your cadets to work together as a team and employ them to their full potential -- Cadets is a group organization, and thus, is all about teamwork. Do your best to make sure everyone is involved and knows that they are equal. Have them work together on small projects, and discuss amongst those larger. It is very important to be a good judge of character, and make sure to match up cadets that will not only work well off one another, but develop off one another as well.

9. Give and receive feedback -- Cadets are a two way sponge: they will absorb what you tell them and hold it dear to them as well as let you know how they see you as a leader. Tell your cadets what's going on, and how they can improve, and make sure you get their opinions on you and your leadership as well!

Look at each of these qualities. Absorb what they mean to you. Think of past situations, and how they apply. Have a really good think about how these points will make you a better leader!

If you are to pass this course and become a fully qualified NCO, the opportunities for new and diverse positions for you to hold in the ROTTWEILER Corps will increase by the boatload! Remember that NCOs are the backbone of the Corps, and they are the work horses that hold it together. Obtaining NCO positions will take a great deal of patience and work, but first of all, you must get the job! This information should help you create a near flawless application letter for any position. Treat it as a resume; never just say, "I'm interested in the job:" back up your case with not too little or not too much, but enough to sell yourself as the NCO best qualified for the specific position!

I. Address the Job Selection Committee Properly

It is never a great strategy to offend your would be, for the lack of better word, boss! The Job selection committee could be one person or twelve, officers or NCOs, and there is a way to address all of these people at the top of each and every application letter!

For all officers it's Ma'am or Sir, and to always be on the safe side; if you're not sure on their gender, if it's a position title such as SMO and such, you can always use their rank and their last name. It is the one sure-fire way to go, especially since there are names out there that are confusing to some!

For NCOs like you and me, they may be a JNCO or an SNCO. For JNCOs, Sergeants (equiv.) and below, you are safe in just saying their rank, but it never hurts to throw in a last name either. For SNCOs, Staff Sergeants (equiv.) and above, the same rules should cover your bases. There are abbreviations you can also use for NCO ranks, and they are all over the webpage!

II. Say Which Position You Want!

You have to specify which position you want! Never helps to apply for nothingness. The officers and NCOs accepting applications are, on a good day, busy with a lot of initiatives, so they may just throw the application out the window if they read through it all and, in the end, have no idea which position you are applying for! It seems very obvious, but it is crucial. One way to get this done right away is to put the position right in the subject line of the e-mail you would be sending your application with, or mention it in the opening paragraph; better safe than unemployed!

Putting the Application Together:

The standard application letter should have the following basic format:

• Introduction Paragraph: Introduce yourself after giving the proper salutations to whom the application is being sent, the position your are seeking (posting, where you saw it, when it was dated, etc..), the points you will discuss that qualify you for the position in brief form, and how the rest of the letter will address your qualifications - why you deserve the job! This is similar to a thesis paragraph of an essay, if you have ever written one: the intro paragraph should not go too much over the length of an average paragraph.

• Body Paragraph: Strut your stuff! After leaving a solid first impression, let them know that you are the best NCO for this job since sliced bread; just don't overdo the butter. Tell of your qualifications, experience, other skills, or personality traits you possess that may be pertinent to the job. If it applies to this ROTTWEILER job, tell about it! This is your chance to shine, so long as you don't blow smoke and don't toot your horn as if you were God's answer to the common flu. There are varying lengths for this, but don't be scared to use a couple of paragraphs, if need be. You will never be denied a job on the basis of over qualification!
  NOTE: Subsections III, IV & V, below, are to be included in this paragraph.

• Closing Paragraph:Here, you will conclude everything you have said, making sure not to give any new information that belongs in the body, and leave a lasting imprint of what you discussed in the body that should stick with the officer or NCO reading the application. Make sure to indicate that you will be following up on all of their replies, wish the person or persons well, and thank them for their time!

III. Qualifications

What kind of qualifications do you warrant? In this instance, you can shed light on any medals you have earned, any qualifications you have completed and passed, any trade you may have achieved etc.! There are almost no limitations, as long as they pertain to the job at hand. Perhaps you have held other jobs in your time in the WCC that give you experience! Just make sure that any experience given is ROTTWEILER related.

IV. Why You Want the Position

If you have ever gone through a job interview of any sorts, they will always ask you this: "Why do you want this position?" People looking to hire the best woman or man for the job will always want to know your motives behind what you are doing. Mostly, they are asking you directly, "Why should I choose you over the other person?" Make sure to answer this one well and answer it precisely; it can make or break the decision in a lot of cases!

V. Can You Handle the Job?

This bit of information within the application can be huge. This is how confident you are and how dedicated you can be to the position. Can you handle the job and whatever it throws at you? Do you have the time to do it? If you want this job, you have to be prepared for the best and the worst; fortune has its cookies to give out, but life also burns a few. There is one thing you always have to remember: if you have a question or don't understand something, ask someone! Ask the person who held the job before you, or whoever is in charge of you, if you are unclear on what the job involves, the workload, of if you are qualified. Do the research! Asking others for help does not diminish your stock; it promotes your passion for great things. You have to be confident to say that you may make mistakes, but appreciative enough to say that you will correct them. Ask someone to read it over for you, ask some of your leaders for assistance, and if it is a well respected and deserving position with a drove of competition, one of the key elements in securing your strength in applying for the position is to ask your Div SNCO or an officer, someone you trust, to write you a recommendation letter for yourself, and have them send it as well!

Every cadet in the world should know these! If not, never fear: LITE is here! There are three set out styles of leadership that are recognized universally as the most effective to use.

Authoritative -- Participative -- Free Reign

Authoritative leadership is used as a sort of dictatorship, usually in a setting of authority, danger, or when a job absolutely has to be done. If an order is needed, authoritative is your ball game. This is a very important tool, but be forewarned! This is the most over abused type of leadership, and respect will go to the wayside if you are strictly authoritative. Treat this leadership like adults are encouraged to treat liquor: responsibly! Example: Drill.

Participative leadership is a little less restricted, although still quite monitored by the leader. This style of leadership involves more interaction between the leader and the cadets, and it is not as imposing as the authoritative style. The leader still directs the activity, but instead of being the one woman or man order crew, the leaders will both receive and acknowledge feedback from and to his cadets, respectively. This style encourages more development of key traits within a leader and his or her cadets, and it is a major collaboration and trusting effort! Participative has a strong focus in the Corps as it is more relevant to in the way we conduct our business. Getting the cadets engaged in a task they have a say in how it will be conducted will help them to stay interested too.Example: Teaching.

Free Reign leadership is, in a sense, the dream of every leader: to be able to use this type of leadership on their cadets is the ultimate signification of trust, respect, and development. In this style of leadership, the leader leads in a totally unique way by taking himself out of the equation from the cadets, and while still watching over, allowing the cadets to work amongst themselves, by themselves. This involves cadets with leadership skills and skills in the task at hand as well as the willingness to place a great deal of responsibility on the cadets. It is probably the most risky yet most rewarding of all leadership styles to have gone right! When used appropriately, cadets become self-motivated, self-driven, and self-reliant, which are often forgotten about qualities in the minds of leaders that are priceless for a cadet to develop. If the leader must step in, that he may, but free reign does that; it takes the reins of the leaders off the cadets, and lets them roam free to complete a task amongst themselves! Example: Allowing cadets to plan out a new feature.

Even in ROTTWEILER, these leadership styles apply, and be certain to apply the appropriate one to any leadership situation you may find yourself in! If you have to lead an Olympic team, which would you use? If cadets are out of line on your unit forums, what would you do? Always ask yourself questions, and even though you may be deemed clinically troubled, don’t be afraid to answer yourself!