“What makes a good lieutenant? What’s something you wish you knew at the beginning of your career that you know now? How can I be the most effective leader?” These are a few questions I could ask some of our senior leaders during the speed mentoring session at the NGACT annual conference in March.
During the event, participants were paired up with mentors for six minutes and allowed to ask questions on any topic they chose. Once the six minutes were up, you rotated to the next mentor to pick their brain. Wearing civilian clothes made this exercise particularly user-friendly, as there was no rank wall separating the mentor and mentee, and participants could speak freely and candidly. In my rotation, I spoke with SCSM Vicinus, SGM Foster, CW4 Baldoni, CSM Savino, and BG Hedenberg. I asked them nearly identical questions, and it was amazing to see that they all offered similar, if not identical, advice. “Ask for advice from senior leaders. Active communication. Never be in a rush. Show empathy. Delegate and empower junior leaders. Continue to self-develop, both professionally and personally. Have a road map for your career, but be flexible as that plan will most certainly change.”
I have served in this organization for almost fifteen years, and this was one of the few opportunities I’ve had to sit down with Soldiers who’ve been at it way longer and get their honest, real-time feedback. This experience cemented my idea that I’m on the right path and allowed me to do some self-reflection to identify areas where I need to continue to grow as a leader. Looking towards the future, I think an event like speed mentoring would be significantly beneficial at future conferences and the local level. Giving Junior Soldiers an opportunity to speak candidly with their unit/ battalion/ brigade leadership would be invaluable for educating the force on best practices, lessons learned, and developing our force on a different level.
-Joe Colavito