Take Responsibility for Your Actions and the Actions of Your Young Marines

The leader is responsible for all his unit does or fails to do. That sounds like a big order, but take a look at the authority you have to handle that responsibility. You are expected to use that authority. Use it with judgment, tact, and initiative. Have the courage to be loyal to your unit, your troops and yourself. As long as you are being responsible, be responsible for success not failure. Be dependable.

Know Yourself and Seek Self Improvement

The leader is responsible for all his unit does or fails to do. That sounds like a big order, but take a look at the authority you have to handle that responsibility. You are expected to use that authority. Use it with judgment, tact, and initiative. Have the courage to be loyal to your unit, your troops and yourself. As long as you are being responsible, be responsible for success not failure. Be dependable.

Set the Example

As an NCO you are in an ideal spot to do this. Young Marines look to you for a pattern and a standard to follow. No amount of instruction or form of discipline will ever have the effect of your personal example. Make it a good one.

Develop Your Subordinates

Tell your people what you want done, by when, then leave it at that. If you have junior leaders leave the details up to them. This way you accomplish two things. You will have more time to devote to other jobs and your training another leader. An NCO with confidence in himself will have confidence in his subordinates. Supervise and check the results, but remember to leave the details to the Young Marine(s). After all there’s more than one way to do a job.

Ensure that a Job is Understood

This goes back to being dependable and decisive. Make up your mind on what to do, who is to do it, where it is to be done, when it is to be done, and tell your troops. Continue supervising the job until it’s better than the man who wanted it ever thought it could be.

Know Your Young Marines and Look After Their Welfare

A loyal NCO will never rest until the troops are bedded down. Always get the best you can for your troops. With judgment you’ll know which troops are capable of doing the best job in a particular assignment. Lead- ers share the problems of their troops, but, they don’t pry when a person wants privacy.

Every Young Marine Should Be Kept Informed

Make sure your people get the word. Be known as the "NCO with the straight dope." Don’t let one of your people be part of the so called "10 per cent". Let your people have the portion they need to know, but make certain they have it. Squelch rumors. Rumors create disappointment. Have the integrity, knowledge and dependability to keep your troops posted on what’s going on in the world, the country, the Young Marines nationally and your unit.

Set Goals You Can Reach

Don’t send two of your troops on a working party that calls for five. Your Young Marines may be good but don’t ask the impossible. Know the limitations of your troops and bite off only what you can chew. Conversely when troops have a reasonable goal, achieve it they become a proud lot. They’ve done something and done it well. Next time they’ll be able to tackle a little bit more. Don’t set your sights over their heads; keep them on target.

Make Sound and Timely Decisions

Knowledge and judgment are required to produce a sound decision. Include some initiative and the decision will be a timely one. Use your initiative and make your decisions in time to meet problems. If you find you’ve made a bad choice, have the courage to change it before any damage is done. But don’t change any more than you absolutely have to. Nothing confuses an outfit more than the eternal routine of "brown side out…green side out".

Know Your Job

This requires no elaboration. It does require hard work on your part. Stay abreast of changes. Read up on recent developments.

Teamwork

Train your troops as a unit. Keep unit integrity every chance you get. If a working party comes up for three men and you can do it, take your whole team. The job will be easier with an extra hand and your troops will be working as a team. If they work as a team, get ‘em to play as one. Put your people in the jobs they do best. Then rotate them from time to time. They’ll learn to appreciate each other’s task as well. That way when one member of your team is missing others can do the job. But don’t ever permit several troops to do another’s job when that individual is around. Every- one pulls his load in the Young Marine.

When you and your unit have done something well, talk it up. This builds Esprit de Corps. Every Young Marine knows enough French to tell you what that means. Esprit is something you can’t see but you can feel it. An outfit with a lot of esprit holds itself in high regard while tolerating others. There is nothing wrong with that. Every Young Marine has a right to claim his unit is the best in the entire program. After all, that Young Marine is in it!