Creed of the Noncommissioned officer - What It Means to Me?

Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer

“What does it mean to me?”

“No one is more professional than I….”, when I think about what the NCO Creed means to me the first thing that comes to mind is the first sentence of the first paragraph.  It sets the tone for the entire creed and gets me in the mindset that professionalism, while wearing these strips is very important.  Being professional in everything I do speaks volumes about the type of person I am and can be. I believe that when dealing with people on a day to day basis one has to be professional because not only are you a reflection of yourself but of the entire organization, the United States Army. Another thing that sticks out about the first paragraph is that being a noncommissioned officer I am charged with being a leader to Soldiers.  I can’t be a leader if people aren’t willing to follow me, so in order for people to want to follow me I have to set the example.  Soldiers are always looking to their leaders for guidance, it is my job to provide that guidance and direction to them.  So I have to lead by example, leaders need to lead from the

front.  If I’m not showing my Soldiers what right looks like then I have failed them.  The last sentence of the first paragraph reminds me that professionalism and leadership are valuable traits of a NCO.  It reminds me that no matter how many strips or rockers that I have on my chest, I should not and will not ever use the people around me or that I am in charge of for any personal gain whatsoever.  My duty is to the organization and my Soldier and I have to learn to place my wants and wishes to the side in order to accomplish the mission at hand.  Sometimes this is necessary because being a professional and a leader there will be times that you have to do things for the masses even though you really don’t want to do it.

The entire second paragraph of the NCO Creed is my favorite paragraph.  To me, it lays out what my job as a noncommissioned officer is supposed to be.  It tells me my role and responsibilities and provides me with a foundation to build upon.  In a sense, it continues on what was already articulated in the first paragraph. Leadership, providing leadership to my Soldiers, to all Soldiers. It is my responsibility to lead Soldiers and without me it can’t be done. I have to be a consummate professional in all that I do so that I can not only enforce the standards but set the standard as well.  I have to be the best Soldier that I can be so that Soldiers

that I am leading will want to follow in my footsteps.  Train, coach, and mentor is what I have to do so that the Soldiers coming up under me can perform and keep the organization strong long after I’m gone.  I truly believe that a great leader knows the personal that is following them.  It is important to build strong relationships Soldiers.  A leader should know as much about their Soldiers as they know about their own family because your troops are an extension of your family.  By building a strong, healthy relationship with your Soldiers it helps me to gain a better understanding of their needs and how to fulfill their needs.  As a leader I owe it to my Soldiers to provide them with a nurturing environment.  An environment that they can feel comfortable in and trust.  An environment that promotes and provides discipline, respect, and personal development each day.  I strive to teach my Soldiers to be self-sufficient; yes they need my guidance but they also need to know how to make decisions on their own because I won’t always be around to make the decision for them.  Providing them with essential information they can use to get the task at hand complete not only aids them in accomplishing the task but gives them