Influences

In order to influence others effectively you must share a vested interested and share in the work load in order to accomplish what is needed. As a leader you must do. I would consider myself a team player that is committed to success and mission accomplishment and one who has a very strong sense of loyalty to the unit and the members that constitute that unit. I think a part of this comes from my father. He was a house painter. I grew up in a lower middle-class family. My father worked very hard in order to provide for his family. In addition to my father’s example of a strong work ethic, the NCOs that were responsible for me also made a huge impact on my life.

I believe that certain requisite qualities of a leader can be innate but that all leaders are developed and groomed. That enlisting in the Army as a 19K (tank crewman) was essential to who I am today, and what I believe. It was in these formative years in my late teens/early twenties that a foundational base of who I wanted to be was developed and formulated by my NCOs: tank commander—SGT Minich, section sergeant—SSG Fredrickson, and platoon sergeant—SFC Presley (Known affectionately as the “Big E” by his soldiers). These three NCOs might have had different leadership styles or techniques, but one thing is for certain, and that is that those NCOs looked out for my well being. They trained me properly, gave me leadership opportunities, and believed in me. These NCOs gave me direction and guidance as well as wall-to-wall counseling when I needed it. Those NCOs set me up for success. One thing that has not changed is that I still seek my NCOs’ perspective on a lot of things. Not that I will always agree with the NCOs that I work with, however, I believe that it is important to hear their viewpoints.

To copy the Army, my mantra is ‘mission first, people always.’ I would like to believe that I have only tasted the kool-aid but have not become punch-drunk by it. I guess others can only tell that for sure. I would assume that my leadership style predominately falls into the affiliative category. Not that I try to make people happy so much, but I believe in developing harmony within an organization in order to reached prescribed goals. I also think it is important to be a good communicator and that expressing ideas effectively can reap considerable benefits toward mission accomplishment.

What can subordinates expect from? Well, I’ll tell you. I will do my homework in that I will come to work prepared, and that I will contribute. I believe in realistic training in order for a unit to build camaraderie as well as to become more proficient and efficient. I treat everyone fairly and reward success. I believe strongly in developing subordinates just like I was. I believe that I am approachable. I want civilians, soldiers, NCOs, and junior officers to feel free to talk to me openly about what is good and bad and what could be better as well as anything else that is on their mind. Most importantly I think that it is essential to give guidance with clear distinct priorities on what needs to be accomplished in order to meet our objectives. I enjoy what I do. As an ever evolving leader, I understand that mission success is foremost but it is the people that get us there.

Todd Burkhardt
Major, Infantry
U.S. Army

"The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Army, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government."