The Marine Corps' 14 Leadership Traits – DECISIVENESS
(March 26, 2011) |
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 DECISIVENESS is next up on our list of the 14 Marine Corps
leadership traits, and in this case, it means, “... you are
able to make good decisions without delay. Get all the facts
and weigh them against each other. By acting calmly and
quickly, you should arrive at a sound decision. You announce
your decisions in a clear, firm, professional manner.”
DECISIVENESS is basically the opposite of what I like to
call “squishiness” or “wishi-washyness” ... which I use to
describe people who can't make a decision and just hem and
haw.
I've been the subordinate whose leader was
indecisive, and it is definitely “no bueno” at all! Leaders
who are indecisive do not inspire confidence in their
subordinates, which can, in turn, lead to the subordinate
questioning every decision the leader makes – something that
is definitely NOT a good situation.
Over time, good
leaders develop their ability to make timely and well
thought out decisions, but it does take some experience, and
usually a few bad decisions, to pave the way.
No
matter what, once a leader makes a decision based on a set
of facts and circumstances, they need to stick to it and see
it through unless those facts and circumstances change.
Also, there's a time and a place for getting input from
those around you, and there's most definitely a time and a
place for just making what we call a “command decision”. If
one of your subordinates makes a command decision, you as a
leader need to provide sufficient feedback afterward to
ensure that subordinate grows. Part of our job as a leader
is to groom and grow our subordinates to take our place.
Decisiveness isn't just making a quick decision and
stubbornly sticking to it no matter what. The decisive
leader can quickly evaluate all the information available
and make a good decision based off that information. Then,
they communicate that decision to relevant parties clearly
and confidently. | |
USMC SSgt. Greg Thomas
Reprinted from
Marines Blog
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