Wednesday, May 30, 2007

'Presence' in Combat Leadership   [W. Thomas Smith Jr.]

There's something to say about 'presence' in combat leadership — the combined power of one's stature (physical or otherwise) and countenance; the ability to command respect and loyalty with a look, a word, the inflection in one's voice; and the obvious attributes of physical, mental, and emotional strength.

'Presence' is a dynamic that inspires, emboldens, and reassures soldiers in battle.

Of course there are other dynamics critical to success in combat leadership. But right now, I'm talking about 'presence.'

I was fortunate that nearly all of my commanders had it when I was in the Marines. In fact, I would argue the Marine Corps breeds it.

Though he served before my time, my friend U.S. Marine Col. John W. Ripley — who received the Navy Cross for single-handedly blunting the North Vietnamese Army’s Easter Offensive in 1972 when he blew up the Dong Ha Bridge — certainly had it.

Marine Maj. Douglas A. Zembiec, who was killed in Iraq (and has since been compared to a leader of Spartans), also had it.

Col. Ripley talked about Maj. Zembiec and his 'presence' earlier this month:

[Zembiec was] absolutely magnetic. ... He was a great inspiration, an absolute role model for every one of the Marines he served with. He would walk into a unit and literally stun every Marine. They would look at him and say, 'My goodness, we got this guy?' ...

He was ... a physical masterpiece — honest to goodness this guy was Michelangelo's David.

He was a perfectionist, and his real perfection lay in the endurance aspect of fitness, being able to just keep going, keep going.

We may pretend all day otherwise, but 'presence' in combat leadership counts. There's simply no way to get around it.

Editor’s note: Please see this note.

05/30 02:00 PMShare