Loyalty

oyalty is a required trait to be a successful leader. General George S. Patton was quoted "I prefer a loyal staff officer to a brilliant one". Properly directed loyalty promotes a healthy working environment and helps to maintain good order and discipline. Loyalty comes in many faucets, as a sailor we are not only expected, but demanded to demonstrate loyalty to the Navy, our command, the mission, our seniors, our peers as well as our subordinates.

As effective leaders we should be demonstrating loyalty to our subordinates on a constant basis. Our job is to develop junior sailors and our sailors trust us to do what is right by them. Show our subordinates loyalty by providing mentorship and guidance in our sailor's professional and personal life.

For us to be a strong group of leaders we must be loyal to our peers. Don't shy away from giving a shipmate a hand or a different perspective when needed. Along those lines we must also have the courage to police one another if a shipmate is wrong.

Keeping our seniors informed is a key component of showing loyalty. As an enlisted leader we must have the backbone to raise the flag when it is needed. It is important that if something doesn't seem right we ask the question.

We demonstrate loyalty to the mission, the command, and ultimately to the Navy by making sacrifices in our daily life to do what's for the greater good. Sometimes the sacrifices can be small as working a couple hours late or taking an extra watch, sometimes the sacrifices can be by going on deployment or an IA tour.

Ultimately loyalty falls back to the Navy's core values of Honor, Courage and Commitment. Displaying loyalty by not allowing our senior to make a misinformed decision is honorable. A show of loyalty by reporting a fraternization incident is courageous and showing loyalty by mentoring of sailors takes commitment. To ensure the continued success of our Navy, loyalty must be given up and down the chain of command. Loyalty starts from the top with our commander in chief. We trust that his loyalties lie in the best interest of our country. Than loyalty falls all the way down to the newest recruit, in that we all trust that he will be loyal to our Navy and do the right thing.

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