Colonel Candid

As we reflect on this Memorial Day, a day to solemnly remember those who died in active military service, I’d like to share the memory of my sister-in-arms Lieutenant Colonel Jaimie E. Leonard. Sisters-in-arms, not a common phrase uttered too often outside of a small circle of women who serve but one worth highlighting and explaining. Of those serving in the Army today, approximately 14% are women. When Jaimie and I attended West Point together women made up just slightly above ten percent of the Corps of Cadets. Of those women who continued serving past our initial obligation the percentage of women serving fell into single digits and the small circle of sisters-in-arms formed an even stronger bond. Ja imie and I last spoke in 2011 when she was serving in Afghanistan. We were both military intelligence officers and we combined work efforts to ensure the success of a critical mission. In a field where time is always of the essence, we had little time to reminisce, but we caught up on...

Have you ever been around a person that has confidence in all that they do? They’re full of gumption and appear invincible? Colonel Candid here to tell you that there are lessons we can all learn from people who just have the gumption to go and get after it. I’m looking forward to the next time someone says you have gumption! First, recognize like all of us, you are afraid. Whatever that thing is that just makes you a little scared or nervous, that’s the fear in front of you. When you avoid it, you make it stronger. Instead of just avoiding it, go forward and get closer to it. I used to fear counseling this one person. They were one of my worst employees. This person was loud, abusive towards others, and kind of a bully. By my constantly putting aside providing the subordinate honest feedback, I was doing a disservice to the entire organization. I was letting my fear get the best of me. So, every day I’d write down an observation about something that needed changed or corrected...