“That new commandah is gonna bring a fahr to this heah place,” exclaimed the First Sergeant, rubbing his hands together with a broad, toothy smile as disturbing as Jack Nicholson’s face coming through the bathroom door in The Shining.
“He’s a damn scunion bringah!”
I had no idea what a scunion bringer* was, but it didn't sound good. To a new Second Lieutenant who was lucky to find the motor pool for Wednesday afternoon motor stables, our new company commander was already intimidating enough without an added layer of ambiguity.
Broad-shouldered and thick-chested, Clem Ward never smiled as he labored through his change of command inventory. If a tool set layout wasn't executed to perfection, he simply made note of the hand receipt holder and walked away without conducting the inventory. His battle dress uniform was immaculate, perfectly pressed with crisp creases, his sleeves rolled tightly around arms that looked like they belonged on a professional wrestler. His jump boots carried a showroom shine, bright enough to reflect the Kentucky summer sun.
His recruiting poster appearance was impressive enough, but the “take no prisoners” attitude that he brought to the inventory signaled a sea change in leadership style. In the wake of his change of command, gone were the “good old days” we had known under his predecessor.
Lieutenants were charged for lost or missing property. Leaders who failed to perform were shown the door to the company headquarters.
There was a new sheriff in town, and Clem Ward was laying the scunion on anyone who couldn’t toe the line.
In time, he would ease us all back from the edge, and I would learn that he was more coach than poster boy, more teacher than disciplinarian, more mentor than scunion bringer. From him, I would learn many lessons, many of which remain with me today. We couldn't have been more different men, and as a young officer I often found myself struggling to come to terms with his decisions. But in Clem Ward I found the model leader that would guide my professional development through the formative years of my career, and the wisdom and patience to be a better husband, father, and human being.
The scunion bringer proved to be more philosopher than Hell on wheels. He didn't always say a lot, but when he did, he'd share a piece of himself that hung in the air for a moment, then was gone. To some, they may have seemed too cliché to capture. But to me, they made all the sense in the world.
You only get one chance to set a first impression. Whether you're walking into a new unit for the first time or interviewing for a job, put your best foot forward in everything you do. It only takes seconds to set an impression. Make every one of them count.
If you're going to do a job, do it right. Take pride in your work. When assigned a task, put the effort into it to produce the very best outcome possible. If you own it, make it yours, and do it right.
There is no substitute for tough, realistic training. The best way to prepare your troops for the uncertainties they will face is to make their training as difficult and challenging as possible. The tougher and more realistic you design peacetime training, the easier it will be for them to make the transition to war.
Set the example in everything you do. If you set the bar, everyone else will strive to follow your lead. Give your troops someone to look up to, someone they can trust to follow. Give your peers someone they can look to with respect. And give your superiors someone they can rely on no matter what the situation.
What you leave behind is the greatest measure of your success.Whatever you are assigned to do, leave it better than when you received it. Never be content to “tread water” in a job, push to leave a positive legacy for those who follow after you.
Parenthood doesn't come with do-overs. You only get one chance to be a father or mother to your children. Take time for them, even if it means coming back to work after they are in bed.
Always pay attention to the little things. The Devil’s in the details. From how you account for property to how well you care for your equipment and your people, the little things matter. Put in the extra time to ensure you get them right.
Never mess with the voodoo, man. That shit is real. To this day, I have no idea what he meant by this, but I never forgot it.
Take the time to gather the facts. Never rush to judgment. There are two sides to every story. Before you take disciplinary action, make sure you have all the relevant facts. It matters.
Lead, follow, or get out of the way. Patton may bear the attribution for this quote, but Clem Ward exemplified it. We're leaders, first and foremost. When in charge, take charge, and don't look back.
*scunion [skuhn-yuhn]: A term used in the late 1960s during the Vietnam War to signal inflicting distress, injury, or destruction, as in bring scunion. “Those gunships brought scunion on that ‘ville!”
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