As a commander, I had some team members who were super easy to work with, and some who had to be dragged along. Regardless of who did great work, I learned to stay impartial and avoid playing favorites. But that wasn’t enough – even when I knew I wasn’t playing favorites, I also considered the way my actions looked to others. I stayed hyper-aware to avoid the perception of favoritism.
But this isn’t a post about leading others.
PAOs: you have desperately got to stay out of the spotlight. The mission is not about you. The operation is not about you. Your relationships are not about you. Your access is not about you. The organization – including its successes, failures, reputation and flaws – is not about you.
Do you feel like you get this? You think you’re a mission-focused person doing mission-focused things?
Great. But what about others’ perceptions? Could a reasonable person draw very different conclusions?
What does your Twitter account say about you? Are you posting under a personal account* to lend accountability to your statements, or do you like to see your name out there? Do your tweets help protect America, or are you just acting like an ass?
What does it feel like in your office? Who’s the main character? Do others change their plans to suit your whims or moods? Or are you establishing priorities and predictability as best you can?
What about your relationships with the media? Do you get sucked into the access, and feeling of importance? Are you talking because you want them coming back for more information, or because your leaders want them coming back for more information? Are you speaking on the record, again, because attribution is a difference-maker, or because you want your parents, colleagues, and high school girlfriend to see your name in print? Are you aligned with your commander and mission?
If you’re a PAO, a lot of people are going to think you’re a spotlight kind of guy. Do nothing about this, and people will go on thinking this about you. Instead, frequently audit your actions and the way others perceive them.
Actively seize each opportunity to prove to others that this job is not about you and your ego.
*I recently started posting and Tweeting under my full name, because I want be held accountable for the things I write. I do hope three years of under-the-radar writing proves MaxDisclosure is about our professional responsibility, not personal recognition.
(Photo by Senior Chief Petty Officer Adam Grimm, DVIDS)
