Who is your "mentor"?

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 20:12:21 -0400

Do you have a mentor? Is he/she a peer, subordinate, or superior? What can you share about how your "mentor" has shaped you into the professional that you are?

Response by SSG Ed Mikus made Apr 9 at 2014 8:14 PM

SSG Ed Mikus — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 20:14:13 -0400

my first "quality" NCO, she taught me what it means to serve and to be a leader, 16 years later i still email her for advice or look back to working for her to and what she would have done to make decisions.

Response by CW2 Jonathan Kantor made Apr 9 at 2014 9:29 PM

CW2 Jonathan Kantor — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 21:29:52 -0400

My mentor is a CW4. I worked with him when I was a SPC-SSG and he inspired me to go Warrant.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 9 at 2014 10:07 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 22:07:58 -0400

I can say I've only been in the Army for 4 years now. I've truly have had 1 great mentor since I've been in. SSG Green was my squad leader as an E5 and I was a just PFC new to the Army. He showed me the old school way of the Army. I'm grateful that he did because now that I'm an NCO myself I've taken so much of what he taught me and have implemented it into how I want to be a leader.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 9 at 2014 10:21 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 22:21:53 -0400

I had two when I was at a BDE level as a 1LT. I had a staff SGM and a MAJ. When I PCS'd I go another MAJ before he deployed. Right now when I need assistance I have to go track down who I think knows the answer wherever they moved to.

The SGM gave it to me straight with no fluff. I liked his candor and bluntness. He allowed me to see what I did not want to see or was unable to see. The more open I was to this I feel the better Company Commander and officer I became. The MAJ allowed me to stay in check with what an officer does and what I needed to do in order to keep going with the career.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 11 at 2014 12:54 AM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 00:54:25 -0400

Stu,

I have a few that have influenced my leadership styles. The first hands down is CSM(r) Alfaro, my old 782nd MSB CSM. He allow me to run my program, allowed me to fall flat on my face, and allowed me to be me. At the end of the day, it was his passion and talks in his or my office during our counseling sessions or general talks that defined who and what I had the potential to become as a future leader. To this day, thanks to social media, we stay connected and I can go to him for advice.

Response by SGT(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 11 at 2014 1:05 AM

SGT(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 01:05:27 -0400

I have RP mentors. In your own little way, most of you offer good advice. I do have a few that have helped me in the past and I would know that I'd get sage advice from. I will not mention them, so as not to turn this into a hall of fame (though they are on there) but they know who they are, and I hope they know how inspirational they are. One no longer even wears the uniform, but is still one of the best I've ever had.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 11 at 2014 2:49 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 14:49:04 -0400

I have had a few mentors while being in the Army. Initially my mentor was SFC Cohen, my first NCOIC who took me from being a fresh from AIT paralegal and turned me into a courtroom professional. Coupled with CPT Corcoran I was given multiple opportunities to grow and challenge myself to become better at what I was already doing. Following their leave from my installation I was mentored heavily by 1SG Quinton who allowed me continue to challenge myself and grow further turning me into a strong and well sought after paralegal for cases across not only my installation but across the Army. My final mentor has been my husband, SSG Riser, who has shown me numerous times the right way and wrong way to handle situations. As a superior NCO, I have seen the ins and outs of situations that one in my position would not normally have seen. With his recent promotion notification to SFC, he has inspired me to continue to do my best and to try to reach levels I had given up on after experiencing a run in off toxic leadership. He has supported my career and has made me want to be to other Soldiers what he has been to me.

Response by LTC David S. Chang, ChFC®, CLU® made Jan 3 at 2015 6:20 PM

LTC David S. Chang, ChFC®, CLU® — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 18:20:04 -0500

I have had so many it is tough to say just one person! Each was important to me in the different stages of my life. At West Point I had some officers that really mentored me and then after graduation others that helped out.

I think the most important thing I have learned is to always look for mentors, regardless of where you are in life! A mentors hindsight can be your foresight! Never stop learning, and so much of it comes from other people.

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Jan 5 at 2015 11:55 AM

CPT Jack Durish — Mon, 05 Jan 2015 11:55:23 -0500

It would be difficult to name just one out of the continuum of mentors I have been blessed with throughout my 72 years of life. All have been equally important.

I suppose that is my message in response to this discussion: If you don't have a mentor, go find one. I was once told that there is a biblical mandate that everyone should find themselves a rabbi (teacher). Sorry, I can't remember where it's found in the Bible.

And, while you're at it, don't forget that you have a responsibility to "pass it on". As a Sea Scout leader, we expected senior crew members to teach the younger ones the skills they had learned. Such teaching is fundamental to leadership. After all, a good leader is a teacher and a good teacher is a leader.

Response by CMDCM Gene Treants made Jan 5 at 2015 4:26 PM

CMDCM Gene Treants — Mon, 05 Jan 2015 16:26:24 -0500

Picking just one mentor from the plethora that have molded me, wow, what a task. Each of my LPOs and Chiefs have changed me in some ways. The entire process of becoming a Chief and the three Chiefs on the Staff i was totally enlightening.

Picking just one I have to go with the first CO on my last Ship, Captain H.W. Howard. This man preached thinking outside of the box and also lived it. Some of the ideas he tried out have become standards in the Navy today. The main thing I learned was no idea should be discarded until examined thoroughly and completely, no matter the source.

Response by SPC Chad Kolod made May 13 at 2015 10:05 PM

SPC Chad Kolod — Wed, 13 May 2015 22:05:27 -0400

Remember to also respect people's privacy if they do not want there names on the Internet. Pseudo names are great!

Response by CW4 Private RallyPoint Member made May 13 at 2015 10:30 PM

CW4 Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 13 May 2015 22:30:15 -0400

CW4 Private RallyPoint Member is a phenomenal mentor who helped me grow as a leader and intelligence professional! He helped shape and guide me as a young intelligence analyst and is the reason I am a Warrant Officer. His innate ability to intrinsically motivate his soldiers is a quality worth emulating! Thanks Tony!

Response by Capt Mark Strobl made May 13 at 2015 10:46 PM

Capt Mark Strobl — Wed, 13 May 2015 22:46:01 -0400

My brother and my father. No better mentors in my life!

Response by COL Charles Williams made May 13 at 2015 11:38 PM

COL Charles Williams — Wed, 13 May 2015 23:38:17 -0400

I have many. I would like to shout out to 4.... SFC Ernest Young, who talked me into going to OCS.... BG Dave Phillips, for being there... and CSMs Jim Barrett and Rick Morris for keeping me on the rails.

Response by SPC Charles Brown made May 13 at 2015 11:55 PM

SPC Charles Brown — Wed, 13 May 2015 23:55:51 -0400

Mine would have to be my father. 27 years serving in the Army retired Master Sergeant. He is the reason I joined the military. I have many examples that he set before me to emulate, so bear with me while I share one.

My father served in 3 wars WWII, Korea and Vietnam. While walking through the airport in Kansas City Missouri upon his return from Vietnam he was spit upon, called names, ridiculed, and had fecal matter thrown at him. Not Once did my father acknowledge any of the anti-military individuals. He continued to walk with his head up, absorbing all of their insults and hatred, and to top it off I swear to God he was smiling the whole time.

Unfortunately of the many things I inherited from my father compassion, and stoicism were not among them.

Thank you MSG Joseph F. Brown. I hope I made you proud.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 14 at 2015 6:18 AM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 14 May 2015 06:18:29 -0400

This is some good discussion. I have a very different approach with mentors. Some of mine I have never met or have only met once. Some of them aren't even around around any more. I know what they would want done in such a situation by reading and studying them. I would say they have greatly impacted my leadership style and still are developing me.

And many others here on RP. There so too many to list.

Thomas Jefferson
CSM Don Purdy
COL Puckett

Response by SrA Edward Vong made May 14 at 2015 7:52 AM

SrA Edward Vong — Thu, 14 May 2015 07:52:48 -0400

Because my goal since the beginning was to become an officer, I asked to shadow different officers many times, and one O3 took me under his wing and mentored me, professionally of course. This was during the time I held a position where I had a chain of command, but because my job was unique to my unit, that I did not have anyone to report to. He would let me know what it means to be a leader, how being a leader affects everyone under you in more ways than you think. There are other little details but that's not important. Though I chose to not reenlist, I have brought everything I learned from him with me today.

Response by SSG Christopher Freeman made May 14 at 2015 9:24 AM

SSG Christopher Freeman — Thu, 14 May 2015 09:24:37 -0400

I have had many mentors throughout my time, but a few stand out. SSG Osorio (88M) because he was the truest definition of an NCO I have ever seen. SSG Klika (25V) and SGT MacLeod (46Q) because I had seen their photos everywhere and they were more than happy to provide advice on making my products even better. I currently have 2: MSG Rucker (acting 1SG) because his knowledge is far beyond mine and he always has an open ear to answer questions. The last one is SFC Noggle (46Z). I met him in Afghanistan and we both share the same goals: to make the PAO community the best it can be. To them and all the mentors I have ever had, I thank you. I would not be where I am today without their guidance and wisdom over the years.

Response by TSgt Christopher D. made May 14 at 2015 6:27 PM

TSgt Christopher D. — Thu, 14 May 2015 18:27:54 -0400

SPC Chad Kolod , thanks for this post, and I'm glad you have such esteem for your mentor.

I had several supervisors and colleagues I call mentors. The first was CMSgt Randy Harris. He was a SMSgt when I worked for him, but his combination of gentility, using the Socratic method, and commitment. Of all the Airmen I had the privilege of serving with, he was the embodiment of Air Force core values. In many ways, he reminded me of my dad, and I often felt he treated me like a son. He taught me to praise publicly, criticize/reprimand privately, establish and maintain standards (and more importantly, WHY we do this), and the most important lesson of all: people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.

MSgt Teresa Perdue caught me at a cross roads in my career. If I didn't make some changes, I would likely have been denied reenlistment (I ALWAYS had difficulty performing well under shoddy leadership; a personal issue that plagued me for a long while). Under her guidance I went from a guy probably on his way out the door to my flight's back-to-back nominee for squadron NCO of the Quarter (I won once) in just 6 months, and I tied for 2nd as squadron NCO of the year just 6 months later. She was incredibly patient, sharp as a tack, extremely kind, caring and PROTECTIVE of her Airmen. I'm extremely grateful to have been under her charge.

CMSgt William Couret taught me what it meant to really get down to the 'meat' of an issue, whether that be in scribing better bullet statements on performance reports, or addressing personnel issues within my flight. We weren't friends, and I don't have affection toward him like I do the other two, but CMSgt Couret (then SMSgt) not only talked the talk, he walked the walk better than most I've known in the military.

CMSgt Vanessa Smallsbryant was the Commandant of the leadership school when I attended NCO Academy. I was going through the toughest time of my life when I had to go to NCOA. A week in, I went to see her to tell her I didn't think I could continue because of all of the issues I was having at home. My marriage was on the verge of collapse. She heard me out. I broke down talking about it, and she moved to comfort me. She shared a personal story of tragedy that made what I was going through look like a picnic. She encouraged me to stay on and keep trying. She made allowances for me to get assistance from different sources (I missed a lot of class), and encouraged me without treating me differently, or otherwise casting more light on me than I wanted or needed. I love Chief Smallsbryant with all my heart for being the professional, the Chief, and the human being she is.

I tried tagging each of them, but they apparently aren't members of RP. :(

Response by SPC Chad Kolod made May 15 at 2015 6:06 PM

SPC Chad Kolod — Fri, 15 May 2015 18:06:22 -0400

It's nice to see there are so many great mentors and leaders out there!

Response by PO1 Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 20 at 2016 11:28 AM

PO1 Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 20 Jun 2016 11:28:01 -0400

CTTCS Jeremy Byrd. Coming into the command he got me grounded on my rate, helped me understand the basics and then have me develop the ideas and workings of being a CTT. He gave me tasks that were difficult but knew that I would find a way to work with them and execute them. He was a great laugh (falling out of a chair thinking he was in a rolling chair, tripping over the knee knockers), understood humility and failing at a task. He never raised his voice but tried to help junior sailors understand the purpose of reprimanding and to understand the reasoning as to why someone was assigned a task, even if it was cleaning a head. We took pieces of a pie that made things working better. It helped accomplish the mission at a more successful rate. Also he would compliment you. It helps instill confidence within the sailor to know they are doing something that is getting a positive impact. He's also willing to go out his way to make his junior sailors succeed. When I wanted to back AD, he had an idea but due to a technicality, I wasn't able to go back so quickly. He's always thinking outside of the box and tinkering with tech stuff just to either keep him busy. Also he keeps in contact with his former sailors; asking how they are doing, etc.

Senior has become like a brother to me, watching out for me and always providing a way for me to succeed.