“Example is leadership”, Albert Schweitzer
Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV., United States Army, Commander of NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to spend the day at some of our different training centers across Afghanistan. It is always refreshing to see the significant progress that has been achieved in our mission up close and personal. Although statistics and data clearly show progress in both quantity and quality of the Afghan National Security Force, it is especially gratifying to witness progress demonstrated firsthand by listening to the words of our trainers and seeing the actions of our Afghan partners as they assume greater leadership of the training mission of their security forces.
Our visit was especially heartening as I saw the impact of leadership by example and the outcome of that leadership on the entire training effort at the Police Regional Training Center in Laghman Province. As we arrived, you could see a dramatic difference from the last time we had traveled to this training site. Police training was ongoing even in the midst of Ramadan.
Training that included: simulated vehicle searches and disarming of suspected insurgents, police baton employment and combatives, personal security protection and even literacy instruction. All of the training was executed with precision and with purpose.
What I saw was extremely encouraging: trainers showing a young police recruit how to hold the baton properly and to use body leverage to disarm a suspected criminal; trainers showing an aspiring police candidate how to properly search a vehicle and where to look for a possible improvised explosive device; and trainers demonstrating the correct means to protect a government official when attacked and how to rapidly move the leader to safety.
However, what struck me most was not the training itself, but it was who was leading the training. It was Afghans! From Afghan police sergeants to a young Afghan police lieutenant, the Afghans were firmly in the lead for their training. As equally impressive was the professionalism of the Jordanian trainers, who patiently observed the Afghan trainers as they conducted all of the day’s training.
Remarkably, I had been in this same training site just a few months prior and the Jordanian trainers were doing the bulk of the training. Now the Jordanians were serving in a much different capacity and the Afghans had fully assumed and embraced the responsibility as the primary trainers and instructors of their future police professionals.
When I asked the Jordanians and the US advisors at the site what had made such a dramatic difference, they told me it was leadership. They resoundingly agreed the leadership under the training center commander; Colonel Mir, had made the difference in what we witnessed.
When I had the opportunity to speak privately with the colonel, he shared his thoughts on what had made him a better leader. It was leadership by example that had given him a new perspective on his assignment as the commander. Because of what he had observed, it opened his eyes to the proper way to lead his men.
He shared three powerful lessons he learned from his previous advisors.
Lesson 1: Colonel Mir had witnessed his first advisor, a US Army field grade officer, working single-handedly to unload equipment from a shipping container and move it into a new storage facility. As the colonel and his men curiously watched this officer tirelessly move heavy equipment and boxes, the Afghan leader noticed the advisor’s hands were bleeding.
Colonel Mir was so impressed by the willingness of an officer to work until his hands were bloodied that it inspired he and his men to join the US officer in the work. The Afghan colonel said “when we saw that this man was willing to do this kind of work and bleed for our country, we learned a very valuable lesson.” It was a lesson in leadership by example reinforced by sweat and blood. He learned leaders take action no matter how menial the task may seem.
Lesson 2: During an insurgent attack on the training center, a combat-seasoned senior non-commissioned officer, stood courageously in the middle of the compound directing supporting fires and positioning the fearful Afghan cadre and recruits where they could defend against the attack. After the attack, the NCO challenged the enemy to come back again because the recruits would be even more prepared the next time.
This NCO’s courage under the most dangerous conditions and outward show of support for the Afghan police leaders and recruits made such a significant impression on Colonel Mir that he recounts this story whenever he is asked about leadership. He learned a leader’s actions and loyalty to his followers in the face of adversity are more powerful than a thousand words and serve to inspire others for a lifetime.
Lesson 3: The last of the stories recounted by the commander was his recollection of a young US Air Force lieutenant. In spite of his inexperience as a policeman and as an officer, the lieutenant taught the much more experienced Afghan leader of the value of planning. Because of his persistence and patience with the colonel and his staff, the training center was able to accurately forecast its budget, order supplies, manage facilities and adequately resource the training of the new courses.
The colonel recounted his respect for the young officer and still retains the lessons he learned on the importance of planning. He also learned that leaders listen to wise counsel no matter the rank or position of an individual.
Three powerful lessons that impacted the leadership and life of one Afghanistan’s most important police officers; a man who is entrusted with training thousands of future Afghan police; a man who learned the value of leading by example from three separate advisors; and a man who is educating, equipping, and empowering the next generation of Afghan police professionals one lesson at a time.
Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV., United States Army, has served as the commander of NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan since November 2009.
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