In the Fall of 2017, a former Battalion Commander and current mentor of mine connected me with Colonel Eric Lopez. Col. Lopez, a War College Student and a future Brigade Commander, launched a leadership initiative through YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. Titled Lopez on Leadership, his movement connects leaders of all ranks to the type of mentorship and coaching available through senior leaders in the Army. Thanks to our mutual friend, our connection led us to take on this project we are calling #BranchSeries.
In March, Col. Lopez reached out to me with a proposal or “GIF” (Good Idea Fairy) as he called it. As a former Battalion Commander of 2-2 IN, 3rd BCT, 1st ID, Col. Lopez is passionate about developing young leaders. His idea was to connect Soldiers, NCOs, Officers, and Cadets to the collective and diverse leadership treasure trove he was experiencing while enrolled at the U.S. Army War College at Carlisle Barracks and, later, the Pre-Command Course (PCC) at Fort Leavenworth.
The Questions
Col. Lopez was conducting and collecting interviews of Colonels from 14 Branches in the Army. He asked each the same 5 questions:
1) Who is the best leader you ever worked for? What made them the best? What did you learn from them?
2) What is your #1 leadership tip? Or, if I asked your subordinates “what does COL ____________ always say,” what would they tell me?
3) If you could go back in time to when you were a cadet, what would you tell yourself?
4) What do you look for or expect in your junior leaders?
5) Every branch is special and different, what do you expect from __________ branch LTs?
Addressing the Gap
But, he saw a gap. Talented Colonels provide a wealth of experience and wisdom gained from their attentiveness over time. However, the distance in time in service, age, and rank between these leaders and the Junior Officers, Cadets, and Junior NCOs he sought to reach was a shortfall.
To address this gap, he suggested The Company Leader and Lopez on Leadership partner to bring a series of videos and articles to leaders of all ranks and branches. Over the next 2 weeks, Col. Lopez will roll out 14 interviews on his YouTube Page. The Company Leader will supplement and compliment these interviews with a series of 14 articles written by successful Officers closer to the Company Grade Level. The focus is the same, provide general perspectives and niche insights from leaders in each Branch.
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Stay tuned to Lopez on Leadership and right here on The Company Leader to participate in the #BranchSeries. The first post, on Leadership in the Infantry Branch, will drop Monday morning, May 14th!
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