Billy Mitchell Leadership Exam Review

Professional

Someone who is paid for their work

Professionalism

The act of fulfilling these three pillars of a professional, in addition to leading by example

Standard

An established requirements, a principle by which something can be judged

Creed

A formal system of belief intended to guide someone's actions

Military bearing

How those in uniform carry themselves; includes physical posture, mental attitude, and how faithfully customs and courtesies are rendered

First-Line Supervisor

A leader who oversees entry-level people; the lowest ranking member of a leadership staff

Technical readiness

The technical know-how to lead others

Physical readiness

Maintaining physical health by exercising regularly and meeting fitness standards

Mental readiness

Effectively managing stress, being alert for science of alcohol or drug use, and promoting the wingman concepts

Servant leadership

When the leader sees himself or herself, primarily as a servant of the team

Servant

One who chooses to help and give to others

Servile

to be treated like a slave

Coaching

The process through which leaders try to solve performance problems and develop their people

To supervise

Observe and direct people and fulfillment of the mission

Punishment

A negative consequence

Constructive discipline

A learning process of provides an opportunity for positive growth

Motivation

The reason for an action; gives purpose and direction to a behavior

Intrinsic rewards

Motivators at work within you

Extrinsic Rewards

Motivators at work outside of you

Strategic Arena

Highest level of leadership; those who have responsibility for large organizations and set long-term goals

Operational Arena

Middle level of leadership; involves organizing and directing tactical-level leaders

Professionals must _________, ______, and ________.

Have a habit of putting the community's interest above their own, have special skills, hold themselves and their peers to an ethical code.

What is the most important standard of all?

The leader's example

Leaders must ________.

make standards without allowing them to become so inflexible as to be impractical.

What do USAF NCOs epitomize?

The Core Values

What does transitioning from a cadet airman to cadet NCO involve?

Going from one who was cared for to one who cares for others.

Epitomize the Core Values
Guide, Instruct, and Mentor
Support the Leader
Reward People
Correct People
Career Counsel
Keep Learning

What are the seven major responsibilities of the NCO?

Leadership is not about ______, but ____.

controlling people, serving them

Why should leaders be servants first and leaders second?

Leaders should serve first because of a natural inclination. Then, their will brings them to lead.

Pulling rank is often seen as a ____, ________, and ________________ way to lead.

lazy, immature, counterproductive

What does coaching require?

A bond of trust

When is coaching needed?

Anytime a leader identifies a need to help someone reach a higher level of effectiveness

Dialogue - Coaching is marked by dialogue, a two-way conversation between the coach and the trainees
Empowerment - Empowerment occurs when the person who has all the answers resists the urge to jump in and "fix" someone's problem for them.
Action - The dialogue between coach and coachee must produce something.
Improvement - Ultimately, the goal of coaching is to help the coachee react a higher level of effectiveness

What are the 4 key elements of successful coaching?

How does one "epitomize the core values"?

By demonstrating superb military bearing, respect for authority, and the highest standards of dress and appearance.

What does "guiding, instructing, and mentoring" entail?

Acting as a first-line supervisor for newer cadets.

How would one "support the leader"?

Enthusiastically support, explain, and promote leader's decisions.

How can a leader "reward people"?

By recognizing the hard work of people on the team.

How does a leader "correct people"?

By protecting the airmen and taking their safety very seriously.

How does a leader act as "career counsel"?

By telling the airmen what opportunities are available in the Air Force or CAP.

How does a leader "keep learning"?

By continuously trying to learn in and out of CAP

Observation

The first part of coaching; involves leaders watching how their people perform

Purpose

Rather than shooting from the hip, the coach should enter the dialogue having a plan

Dialogue

Center of coaching, involves painting a picture of coach's perspective, asking open-ended questions, actively listening, giving validations, addressing fears, finding the "bottom lone", and providing direct feedback.

Follow-Up

Used to monitor trainee's performance in relation to what has been discussed. Coaches should give praise for hard work and work with them if they struggle.

Supervision

To observe and direct people in fulfillment of the mission

What are the cornerstones of supervision?

Trust and fairness

What does punishment teach?

What behaviors to avoid

Constructive Discipline

A learning process that provides an opportunity for positive growth

Leaders who understand _________ are apt to get them to fulfill the team's goals

what motivates their people

What is the key to motivation?

Communicating as strong sense of shared purpose. With this, leaders know exactly how to structure the team in a way that both satisfies the members and accomplishes the mission.

What do volunteers have less of?

Extrinsic rewards

Tactical Arena

Lowest level of leadership; involves immediate & small in scale tasks

Personal Leadership

Involves oneself and leading others

Team Leadership

Involves leading large teams by directing other leaders

Command Intent

The leader's expression of purpose

Initiative

The ability to make sound judgments and act independently

Dissent

To express an opinion that differs from the official view

What core value does dissent show?

Excellence

Completed Staff Work
Updates and Advice

How can leaders support their boss?

Completed Staff Work

One should never complain about a problem without offering a solution; they must coordinate with their other stakeholders.

Updates and Advice

One of a leader's duties as a follower is to keep their superior informed of any issues he or she would need to know about.

Common Goals
Leadership
Involvement of All Members
Good Morale
Open Communication
Mutual Respect
Fair Way to Resolve Conflicts

What are the seven needs of teams?

Morale

The level of confidence, enthusiasm, and discipline of a person or group at a particular time

Espirit de corps

A sense of team pride, fellowship, and loyalty

What is Tuckman's Model?

Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing

Forming

The chaos that comes when a group is made

Storming

Individuals' personalities begin to show themselves

Norming

The team is coming into its own & members gain acceptance of standards

Performing

The team's best; the members are entirely focused on the team's goal

Lead with a clear purpose, empower to participate, aim for consensus, direct the team

What is the L.E.A.D. model?

What are some pitfalls of teams?

Teams can be unwieldy
Teams pressure individuals to conform
Free riders
Groupthink
Lack of Accountability

Free Riders

People who receive the fruits of the team's labor without doing their fair share of work

Groupthink

When team members seek unanimous agreement in spite of facts pointing to another conclusion

A leader's critical thinking skills have a direct influence on his or her ________.

effectiveness

Critical Thinking

Self-guided, self-disciplined thinking which attempts to reason at the highest level of quality in a fair-minded way.

Clarity
Accuracy
Precision
Relevance
Depth
Breadth
Logic

What are the 7 Universal Intellectual Standards?

Developing the skill to think critically is a _______, a _______ process.

lifelong endeavor, never-ending

Clarity

Expressing ideas in a way for others to understand

Accuracy

Critical thinkers should back up their claims and have others verify them

Precision

Meaning what you say and saying what you mean

Relevance

All supporting claims should advance the argument and have some relevance to what is being stated.

Depth

The willingness to examine every imaginable complexity or factor bearing on an issue.

Breadth

How far each side is willing to look when considering an issue.

Logic

When one point supports the next and the conclusions flow naturally

Reasoning has a purpose
Reasoning is an attempt to figure something out
Reasoning is based on assumptions or beliefs you take for granted
Reasoning has a point of view
Reasoning is based on data, information, and evidence
Reasoning is expressed through and shaped by concepts and ideas
Reasoning contains inferences by which we draw conclusions
Reasoning leads somewhere and has consequences

What are the 8 Elements of Thought?

Big Picture Thinking
Focused Thinking
Realistic Thinking
Shared Thinking

What are the 4 Modes of Thinking?

Big Picture Thinking

The practice of stepping back from an issue or problem so as to take more of it in

Focused Thinking

The practice of intensely studying an issue, trying to see it clearly, and not becoming distracted by other issues that are somewhat related to, but different from, the specific question at hand.

Realistic Thinking

An approach where the leader tries to see the world for what it is, not how we might wish it to be.

Shared Thinking

Involves valuing the thoughts and ideas of others

Synergy

The belief that a team is greater than the sum of its parts

Logical Fallacy

An error of reasoning

Fallacy

A mistake in logic; bad reasoning that corrupts a line of thought.

Ad Hominem

Attacks the opponent rather than focusing on the logic of the opposing argument

Appeal to Authority

Tries to prove a claim by asserting that some smart person believes the claim to be true and therefore must be true

Post Hoc Fallacy

Illustrates the difference between correlation and causation

Appeal to Tradition

Makes the assumption that older ideas are better and that the leader's job is to prevent change

Red Herring

While a given line of thought may indeed be true, it is a red herring if not relevant to the issue at hand

Weak Analogy

No matter how similar two things are, they are never exactly alike

Straw Man Fallacy

Misrepresents the opposing position instead of attacking the opposition head-on