As a Brigade Commander, I shared a document with my crop of company commanders here in the Ghost Brigade (1-2 SBCT) at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM). I discovered the old document, while searching for lessons learned from a previous CTC rotation, and thought it was worth sharing. The document contained my continuity notes for the next company commander of the “Deathmasters”, B Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry (SBCT) at JBLM from late 2002 and early 2003. The notes are included in the post below (with a few edits for language; I was less mature in the way I wrote).

The historical and global context for the notes was a world only recently rocked by the events of 9/11. There was an urgency to training and readiness that all Soldiers felt. I’m a much different leader now. Older, more experienced, and the recipient of many hard life lessons. I look at some of these recommendations and wonder; “Am I, as the current BCT CDR, giving the same freedom I enjoyed back to my current set of company commanders?”

Regardless of the answer, ruthless focus on fundamentals and unrelenting approach to the critical basic Soldier skills MUST be as true today as it was then. The vision for our Stryker Brigade today is grounded in the values articulated below more than 15 years earlier. Our readiness is the fighting fundamentals (PT, Marksmanship, Medical Skills, Small Unit Drills, Maintenance, and Mission Command) and there is no room for compromise.

We don’t do Brigade runs here in the Ghost Brigade, we do Brigade tactical foot-marches – to build and increase the mental toughness and teamwork that will create success on the battlefield. I believe the content below would be recognizable to any Soldier, of any time, and of any battlefield – it is up to us to ensure that we LIVE the fundamentals in the seconds and minutes of every day and create the warriors that will wade into uncertainty…and win.

Notes on Command and Continuity for the DEATHMASTERS (B Co, 1-5 IN, ~ JAN 2003)

Physical Fitness

1. PT is conducted at the squad-level, but ruthlessly supervised. This is to say that people, leaders included, will slack off; it is a natural human progression. However, the easy answer of consolidating PT at the platoon-level or higher is not the solution. Force the squad leaders to do good PT by checking their schedules and ensuring strict adherence to the PT SOP.
2. FOOT-MARCHING! Make them walk. It is not an end-state! Foot-marching is a means to the end of creating mentally and physically tough Soldiers. Nothing makes them tougher. Mainly because foot-marching sucks. This is another easy one to let go by the wayside. Don’t let it. Eliminate conditioning foot-marches from your training schedule. If they are going to walk, make them put all their stuff on. No rucking in PT uniform. The best way to get at this one is to walk in and out of the field (if it is less than 20 miles….walk). They already have all their stuff on and it validates your ability to move when the Stryker goes down. Have the Strykers move next to you or conduct their own road march to the field while the Infantry walks. LACK OF FOOT-MARCHING =  LACK OF MENTAL TOUGHNESS, no matter how you slice it; you can rationalize all you want.
3. Put your kit on and do the obstacle course and plyometrics. EVERYDAY is battle focused PT. Obstacle course with full vest on gets after most of the movements they will have to do in combat. ALWAYS finish with the rope climb in gear.

Marksmanship

1. TRAIN AS A PATH, for all weapon systems. All systems have a path; make them go through all the steps. Qualification is usually the 12th or 13th step! The most important steps (Dry Fire Drills, Magazine Change Drills, Position Practice) all come before anybody fires a round. Dry Fire must be ruthlessly supervised or it will not happen.
2. Keep BN out of your marksmanship business. If they want to resource land and ammo for marksmanship for systems above 7.62mm then great, that land is hard to get. Otherwise, you resource and run your small arms training. Battalion consolidated ranges are the worst thing to ever happen to marksmanship. Everybody makes excuses about time and resources being the reason for consolidation. Put in the extra time and train shooters, not qualifiers.
3. When forecasting, and you think that it is likely that you can do marksmanship training sometime during that month but can’t tie land to it, then forecast the ammo anyway. The land always shakes out about 6 weeks out.
4. Sergeants CAN run marksmanship ranges. Sure, they may need some help. But don’t get tied into having a Sergeant First Class or above on every range. These guys have proven that they can handle it and your ability to be flexible and continue to train depends on these junior leaders.

Medical Skills

1. Incorporate Treatment and EVAC into everything – PT, Sports Days, you name it. These guys are confident in their skills. Now when somebody goes down, nobody panics or calls higher. They treat him, give him an IV if he needs it, and keep on going. Some of them are better than medics.
2. Everybody in the company needs to know how to give an IV. Don’t listen to that crap about must be CLS qualified. Have somebody teach them the right way and then make them stick. Stick during PT, Stick during the duty day, build their confidence and it will save lives later.
3. Don’t EVAC Soldiers on foot-marches. I started out having a follow-on vehicle for our first foot marches. It got filled up 3 times over with “injured” fallouts. I then went to an on-call vehicle, which did not follow us and wasn’t called unless the injury was extremely severe. Platoons treated their heat casualties by sticking them and then carrying them the rest of the way on SKEDCOs. Over the course of the next 10 months, NO ONE was loaded on a truck. I can’t tell you the confidence this has built, the Soldiers know that their squad/platoon can and will move them to safety.

Battle Drills

1. I wish I could go back and put more emphasis on this. Everyday at 0740, right after PT, the guys should run through Battle Drill 1A and 8 before going to chow. It should just be SOP. I didn’t enforce this enough, but that daily execution would make a lot of money.
2. Test them. Use competitions. Whatever it takes, but force them to do the drills for time AND WITHOUT YELLING! If they can execute without talking, then you know you have a well trained squad.

General Training Notes

(Random Notes on Training and Training Resourcing)

1. Walk in and out of the Field. Can’t say it enough.
2. Live fire every time you go to the woods if you can. Even if it is only team-level.
3. SQD EXEVAL should focus on 3 or less Squad Collective tasks (I suggest, Battle Drill 1A, Battle Drill 8, and Battle Drill 6), it should include a 12 mile movement (at least), and last at least 36 hours.
4. Don’t forget about your plan for the specialty sections (Sniper, Mortar). Don’t leave it up to the section leader. Incorporate and EXEVAL them too. Execute this separately if you can.
5. MGS is the fourth maneuver platoon! Don’t treat them like a specialty section. Even though most of the time when you fight I think that they will be attached to the platoons (one gun to each). [This is clearly from the time when MGS was MTOE to the company.]
6. Train MGS (Mobile Gun System) to fight one gun to each rifle platoon. Develop a habitual relationship.
7. NBC Always. Plan on executing at least one maneuver LFX in MOPP4 per quarter and always incorporate NBC threat into training. Force your guys to don their mask and then take action. Make them stay masked until they can do unmasking procedures CORRECTLY!
8. SDMs (Squad Designated Marksmen) are a tremendous asset. Plan for their use at TCPs and other static positions. They are mini-snipers and can provide great precision fires and overwatch if deployed properly.
9. Senior Sniper develops SDM training plan within minimum guidelines established in BDE Marksmanship SOP, then executes. Force him to produce this plan.
10. In the summer months, don’t even plan on heading out to the range before 1300. It won’t get dark until 2200 for night fire and soldier just end up sitting around for 6 hours if you send them out at 0900. Plus, they won’t do good PT. Much better to do PT and then head out after lunch. [This is geographic – in this case, specifically relates to JBLM, WA.]
11. There is no excuse for skipping PT, not deployments, ranges, etc.. PT is sacred; stepping on it is like messing with somebody’s church time.
12. Company Exercises shouldn’t start on the first day of the week and should always end in walking in on Friday morning. There is no reason to stay out over the weekend, and starting on the first day of the week is rushing to failure. 
13. Feed at the finish line. Friday morning marches back from the field should include food back at the company area, not in the field. The double incentive of chow and walking into the barracks has led to ZERO fall-outs on foot-marches back in during my 18 months. ZERO.

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Some of these lessons require an addendum due to changes in formations and specific application to the time/location in which they were written. But, the majority are tried and true. I found that they applied when I was a Rifle Company Commander and continued to apply throughout my career. After my time as a Brigade Commander, back at the same location (JBLM, WA), I came to appreciate their universality as I watched a new generation of leaders face, innovate, and overcome similar challenges.