From “Pipsqueak to Platoon Leader”: Get Smart on LEADERSHIP!

I wanted to start off with a quote about leadership. So, I did what every other individual would typically do and typed, “leadership” into Google. There were a couple million hits – awesome.! I click, scroll, and exit out. Not awesome. Why? Well, a lot of the definitions, articles and quotes had the word “confidence” so frequently imbedded. I would be a hypocrite and a fool to make you think that I was some self-esteem guru who knew the ins and outs of feeling good about yourself. Trust me, I’m not. But, based on Google, can it actually be true that leadership requires that ever-so ambiguous term, “confidence”? Well, yes.

Before I get into this whole leadership thing, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I’m a senior at Penn State University, I’m an English major and I’m involved in the Army ROTC program. ROTC is basically a way for college students to go to school and then serve in the military as a commissioned officer after graduating. In short, I’m that crazy girl who stereotypically wakes up at 5 a.m. to workout and who wears the camouflage around campus on Thursdays. I love being a part of something bigger than myself. Being involved with the Army has taught me a great deal, especially this summer when I trained at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

On my first day of training, one of the sergeants said to me, “Hey, Garino. You’re Platoon Leader today. Make it happen.” (Let’s be a little more vague…) So, I “made it happen” and led the platoon through all of that administrative nonsense that needs to be done prior to actually going out and training. The most stressful day was finally over after 20 hours and it was time to do a switcheroo and get a new Platoon Leader, right? Wrong. “Garino, we’re doing a fire drill for the barracks at 4 a.m. Make a plan and deliver it to the platoon.” Well then. I didn’t really know how to handle the situation. But, it’s a fire drill. Too easy! I gathered the 48 cadets and told them to make a horseshoe around me. I stood in front of everyone, probably looking terrible because I hadn’t showered or slept, and said, “What do you guys think we should do?” About 20 hands rapidly rose into the air, which meant that there were 20 different opinions about to be tossed around. While this happened, another cadet came up behind me and whispered into my ear, “You sure you want to do it like this?” I looked at her and then looked at everyone else and said, “Stand fast.”

Here is what was going through my mind at the time:

I’m a 5’4” female who is 21, but looks 16.
I’m in charge of 48 people who are complete strangers and 37 of these strangers are males.
I just told everyone to “Stand fast” because I don’t know how to properly plan a fire drill. Ew, who am I?

Okay, all of the above statements are true, but pathetic. What do you think of me when you read those? They make me seem like a pipsqueak who can’t do anything right. And this pipsqueak has to lead people in the Army? This pipsqueak will be in charge of the lives of America’s sons and daughters? Get real.

Well, what happened next? Everyone “stood fast” and I made an elaborate plan using leaves, canteens and sticks outside of the barracks. I established a designated meeting area, I put certain cadets in charge of accountability and we all developed a way to make our platoon to stand out among the 500 other cadets who would be roaming around the area at that godforsaken hour. It was the simplest task because I wiped away those encumbering thoughts that swarmed my insecure mind and acted like I was confident. Key words: I ACTED.

Here’s the deal: confidence is hard to come by in this world. I’m not here to preach about how to be confident because I’m still on my way to figuring it out. However, I will tell you that it is 100% possible to be confident, but it won’t happen overnight. In the meantime, if you want to be a leader, act like you’re confident (not to be confused with cocky) because leadership requires certainty. In order to be a leader, you need followers. So, who the heck is going to follow someone who thinks of himself or herself as a pipsqueak? No matter where you are or what you are doing, make a decision, stick to your decision and act like it’s the best darn decision that you’ve ever made. Trust me, people will follow you if you spray some confidence on in the morning. So, just remember…you don’t have to be completely confident to wear confidence.