Topic: Leadership
The "BIG 12"
Leadership Lessons at Division Command Level - 2004; by Walter F. Ulmer, Jr., Michael D. Shaler, R. Craig Bullis, Diane F. DiClemente, T. Owen Jacobs; A report prepared under the direction of the United States Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, 5 November 2004
A compilation of survey and interview data led to the formulation of a list of critical behaviors for Division Commanders (and other leaders) that would best assure creation of "A Command climate that supports operational excellence ["Operating"] and also motivates competent people to continue their military service ["Improving".] They are taken from the Leader Behavior Preference (LBP) items and provide a convenient description of critical behaviors as seen by study participants. They are described as "The BIG 12":
The "BIG 12"
At the top of the list:
- Keeps cool under pressure.
- Clearly explains missions, standards, and priorities.
- Sees the big picture; provides context and perspective.
- Can make tough, sound decisions on time.
Also particularly significant:
- Adapts quickly to new situations and requirements.
- Sets high standards without a "zero defects" mentality.
- Can handle "bad news."
- Coaches and gives useful feedback to subordinates.
- Sets a high ethical tone; demands honest reporting.
- Knows how to delegate and not "micromanage."
- Builds and supports teamwork within staff and among units.
- Is positive, encouraging, and realistically optimistic.
From the 
A Guide to Riflemen of 
The jungle-covered limestone ridges [of the Dak To] took a physical toll even with-out the lung-busting effort of combat. A load for an American soldier on the move might weigh as much as fifty pounds all told. Typically, he lugged at least five hundred rounds for his M-16, loaded eighteen or nineteen to a magazine. He was issued belt pouches to carry his magazines, but he often packed some of them in canteen covers or in a cloth claymore mine bag for easier access.
Officers' orderlies are of very ancient origin. It would appear that 
In early 2012, 
Inside the Regiment; The Officers and Men of the 30th Regiment During the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, Carole Divall, 2011
Finally, there was the question of pay, a shilling a day for the first seven years of service, rising to l/1d after seven years, and 1/2d after fourteen years. This needs to be compared with civilian rates. For example, agricultural labourers earned an average of 2/- a day, while skilled textile workers might earn as much as 4/- a day. In addition, the soldier received a penny a day as beer money, and sixpence for subsistence when on the march, twopence of which remained his after fourpence had been paid to the innkeeper who fed him. Since food, clothing and accommodation were all provided, he might well feel satisfied with his lot — were it not for the deductions the army demanded. Stoppages for necessaries, as we have seen, could amount to 1/6d a week maximum, while a further 4/7d maximum might he taken for messing expenses, including the supply of vegetables. If the full amounts were exacted, the soldier would be left with 1/6d a week, hardly a princely sum. And yet some men managed to leave a considerable sum upon their death, anything between five and ten pounds not being unusual. 
An army today is a self-contained community; it contains everything its members need for war, from bullets to blood banks. I will always remember Churchill's anger when he heard of several dentist's chairs being landed over the beaches in Normandy! But we have learnt since the 1914-18 war that by caring for a man's teeth, we keep him in the battle. The good general must not only win his battles; he must win them with a minimum of casualties and loss of life. I learnt during the 1939-45 war that four things contributed to the saving of life:
Common principles of military operations stated in chapter 4 of this doctrine, fully apply to combat operations too, for which the following principles are specific: 
Follow 