Hi, need to submit a 1000 words paper on the topic Defining Leadership. It is therefore important to explore the topic of leadership within platoons in order to get the soldiers’ views. Leadership from a platoon’s leader’s perspective is different from that in business organizations (Laurence and Matthews 47). This is because being a soldier calls for commitment and preparedness at all times unlike in business environment. Being a platoon leader is a huge challenge since one has to make decisions that are in the country’s best interest and disregard all other personal problems or circumstances that may affect soldiers. Decisions made by platoon leaders are never clouded by emotional judgment and they are aimed at benefiting the highest number of people (Laurence and Matthews 52). This concept is known as utilitarianism and states actions undertaken by an individual should be for the greater good even if they may put a minority group at risk. This means that at times, soldiers have to carry out ruthless actions against one individual as long as it saves lives or will lead to restoration of peace in the region. Additionally, soldiers are advised to avoid any emotional distraction from home as this can affect one’s mental status thereby impacting on their concentration in war. The platoon leaders caution soldiers against personal establishing personal relations with Iraqi people as this can be termed as conflict of interest. Example: Lieutenant Matt Martinez This example shows that a decision to serve in the army is not affected by emotional factors. Lieutenant Matt Martinez had to abandon his newlywed wife when duty called. He received a call from his commander while he was on vacation summoning him to abandon his plans and go to the war zone. Although it had been earlier indicated that he would not be going to field, things had changed and within the next two weeks he was on his flight to Iraq (Platoon Leaders 13). Leadership of a platoon requires one to be understanding of other people’s culture (Laurence and Matthews 56). Working in Iraq has posed many language and cultural barriers to soldiers. They often rely on interpreters to communicate with the locals and this has been difficult. The Iraqi people are widely Muslim and their religion is strict on various issues. American soldiers should respect culture and religion of Iraqi citizens as they carry out their duties. Platoons are composed of soldiers from different social, economic and ethnic backgrounds. Leaders should be able to embrace this diversity and use it to establish strong working relationships among team members. However, it is important to note the cases of discrimination among platoons have been minimal over the years. Soldiers have been trained to work as a team in service of their nation. Example: Lieutenant Brian Lebiednik During his first ever house search in Iraq he faced a communication barrier as he used as translator to pass his message across to members of the family. There were some instances of misunderstanding especially when he discovered that there were firearms in the house (Platoon Leaders 21). Iraq claimed that the weapon was for personal protection and stated that ‘it’s not a weapon’. Leaders in platoons are firm in their decisions and stick to their decisions to the end. Leaders are answerable for any mistakes that are committed by their teams.
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