Leadership is without a doubt a crucial skill to develop in both the military and the civilian world. It is in the very nature of humanity for us to look towards those with effective leadership skills for direction, influence, and motivation. While some individuals may be described as a “natural leader,” it begs the question of what truly makes an effective leader. Within the United States (US) Army, we have doctrine. For leadership specifically, we have Army Doctrine Reference Publication (ADRP) 6-22 which lists and explains the required attributes of an effective leader in the Army. Simon Sinek has written his book Leaders Eat Last to give examples of good leadership in a similar manner, although he chooses to use anecdotes rather than strict definitions and explanations. This essay will analyze each of the six Army leadership requirements listed in ADRP 6-22 and will then tie these requirements to examples found in Leaders Eat Last.
The first requirement located in ADRP 6-22 is the concept of character. According to ADRP 6-22, “character, comprised of a person’s moral and ethical qualities, helps determine what is right and gives a leader motivation to do what is appropriate, regardless of the circumstances or consequences.” In simpler terms, character is the ability to determine what is right, as well as the ability to do whatever needs to be done no matter what. Character is essential in the military as it promotes trust between subordinates and leadership, which, according to ADRP 1, is noted as being the bedrock of the Army profession. A common aspect of character is that of empathy. If a leader does not show empathy toward their subordinates, this leads to a toxic working environment, which can damage the efficiency of the group.
For example, in Leaders Eat Last, Sinek provides a visual of a snowmobile. In the book, he likens a person to a snowmobile in that it was made to work at maximum efficiency in a specific environment. If the snowmobile were moved to a desert, which is a similar but not identical condition, then it may still work, however it would not work as well as it would in snow (Sinek, 2017, p. 94). Sinek also uses this visual to emphasize how a leader reacts to a situation like this. Leaders will often provide incentives for the machine to work harder in a condition that is not optimum. However, if one forces the machine to work in a way that it was not truly meant to do, the risk of the machine breaking down and becoming completely ineffective dramatically increases. It is far better, for leader and subordinate alike, to empathize with one another and to do what is appropriate, despite what may be comfortable or simpler.
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The second Army leadership requirement is presence, which is defined in ADRP 6-22 as, “the sum of a leader’s outward appearance, demeanor, actions, and words.” ADRP 6-22 also discusses in depth how sharing experiences of hardship and dangers works in favor of the leader. Subordinates will respect and become inspired by leaders who experience the hardships they go through day to day. Whether it’s a seemingly meaningless detail, a physically demanding task, or having to spend time away with their family, if a leader is present to go through it with their subordinates, they will understand the mindset and show them that they care.
Towards the end of his book, Sinek touches on the importance of leaders sharing in the hardships of subordinates (Sinek, 2017, p. 277). He claims that it is difficult to truly feel hardship in an age in which there is an abundance of almost everything. While types of hardships have changed over the years, the message is still clear that in order for a leader to truly know what their subordinates are going through, they must have the presence of a leader and be willing to share in the experiences of hardship with them. Like it says in ADRP 6-22, presence does not simply mean for a leader to show up, but rather they must use their words, actions, and appearance to lead and inspire those working under them.
The third Army leadership requirement is intellect, which is defined in ADRP 6-22 as, “the mental tendencies and resources that shape conceptual abilities applied to one’s duties and responsibilities.” In layman’s terms, intellect is the requirement that a leader be confident and competent in their chosen field. If a soldier is trained as an Infantry officer, they should be the subject matter expert on tactics and weaponry, whereas a soldier trained as a Military Police officer should be an expert with detainee operations and legal authority.
While Sinek does not get too in depth with the intellect portion of leadership, it is necessary to analyze how it is important to focus on intellect in the civilian world. If a branch manager of a logistics corporation does not know how to run their company, then they will fail to meet their deadlines which will lead to angry bosses and customers alike. It also is worth mentioning that subordinates that know their leader is not knowledgeable in their field are less likely to trust that they can effectively lead them to any viable goal. This is not only true in the civilian world, but also in the military. However, it is less likely for the former to be life or death as often as it is for the latter.
The fourth Army leadership requirement is that they lead others. Now while this may seem repetitive, it is all too often that leaders forget to lead. To truly lead others, one must be able to influence their subordinates, according to ADRP 6-22. This means that a leader must give proper motivation which is attainable and reasonable, rather than striving for something that can be considered too far into the future. One common metaphor heard within the US Army is to focus on your 50-meter target first, referring to firing at closer targets, which are a more immediate threat, than ones at greater distances. For example, a soldier at Cadet Summer Training (CST) should focus on the task that is closest to them. It is important to not forget the other targets, such as later tasks and eventually graduation from CST, but it is also important to not get weighed down with focusing on too many tasks at once.
Sinek shares a fact about the group Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and how they use their Twelve Step program to prevent alcoholics from drinking again (Sinek, 2017, p. 272). The Twelfth Step of the program involves helping another alcoholic beat alcoholism. This is a tremendous step in that it uses peer leadership from someone who not only struggled with the same hardship, but also went through the same system. This type of leadership causes people to be influenced by others that went through similar circumstances, therefore creating a chain of leadership that is effective for its desired outcome.
The fifth Army leadership requirement is that leaders must be able to develop others. In ADRP 6-22, leaders not only develop their subordinates, but they also help to develop their peers and even themselves to prepare for new challenges that may arise in the future. One way to develop subordinates is for the leader to foster a positive environment that focuses on teamwork and unit cohesion. Teamwork is vital to the Army in that every piece of the machine has a crucial role, and in order for the machine to work properly, the pieces must work together effectively and efficiently.
Sinek discusses this concept at the very beginning of the book. He opens with a story about how an A10 is providing close air support for a group of special operators in the valley below (Sinek, 2017, p. 3). The pilot of the A10 makes several gun runs at the risk of losing his own life to protect these operators. He was developed by his leadership to be fit for his role, and the operators in the valley below trusted him to do his job when they needed him most. Ultimately, everyone involved, except for the enemy, escaped the situation unharmed due to the effectiveness of the parts of the machine.
The final Army leadership requirement is that a leader must achieve. Simply put by ADRP 6-22, achieving is when a leader gets results. This is a buildup of the previous requirements, as it is the “fruit” of the leader’s labor, so to speak. For instance, if a squad leader in an infantry platoon drills his squad constantly on react to contact, then when they are overseas, they will be able to effectively react to contact with minimal to no problems. Each individual will work as part of the larger team.
In the final pages of his book, Sinek brings up an interesting point. He says that we must be willing to achieve even if it means self-sacrifice so that the younger generation of leaders can continue our legacy when we have left (Sinek, 2017, p. 288). This goes to show that leadership is not just about doing whatever seems right because of the power given, but it is about being responsible with the power and using it in the best way possible to further the organization.
