U.S. Marine Guide to Leadership
From the U.S. Marine Corps - leader by definition, as members are often the first combatants in a military offensive - here's a checklist of leadership strategies:
- Make sure that each one of your people feels entitled to lead.
- Ensure that managers can never distance themselves from a subordinate's failure.
- Understand that the wider his or her perspective, the more effective the leader.
- Lead by example.
- Put the concerns of your people before any task.
- Keep them fully informed.
- Exemplify mental and physical readiness.
- Encourage and empower your people to find solutions.
- Prepare direct reports for two jobs: theirs and yours.
- Encourage questions, even in urgent situations.
- Be prepared to withhold guidance and praise occasionally.
- Avoid close personal relationships with anyone under your authority.
- Be especially motivating to people unhappy in their jobs.
- Ask for an oral or written confirmation of your instructions.
- Create a team culture of self-sacrifice.
- Use peer evaluations at all levels.
- Be a teacher, not a boss.
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