Chosen Soldier - Dick Couch [137]
Midway through the phase, the officers of 912 are scheduled for their midcourse review. Major James and Master Sergeant Rameres spend an hour or more with each of them discussing their performance—where they are strong, and where they are weak. I sit in on a few of these sessions, and they are candid, honest assessments of each individual. The individual evaluation covers professional disciplines such as mission planning, briefing, and fieldcraft, but the focus is on demonstrated interpersonal skills and the candidate’s decision-making abilities. At the beginning of Phase III, all of the officers took The Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS) inventory. Most of the midcourse review focuses on the individual performance during the Volkmann Exercise and how that performance correlates to the TAIS results. Typically, Major James begins these interviews with open-ended questions.
“How would you rate your performance so far?”
“Tell me, because you’ve never stated it in so many words and I didn’t pick it up in your autobiography: Why do you want to be in Special Forces?”
“Where do you think you’re weak?”
“During the Volkmann encounters, you came across a little harsh and strident. Even during your debriefings, you were a little defensive. Do you think this is accurate?”
After challenging the candidate in areas where his performance may have been lacking and weak, Major James and Master Sergeant Rameres move on to positive areas and what the individual candidate might do to work on his deficiencies.
“From what I’ve seen, your performance in the Volkmann Exercise and field exercises is consistent with the comments from your TAIS. You are quiet, and that’s OK, but that often makes you seem arrogant and above others. You need to be aware of how you come across to others.”
“Your TAIS suggests that you have a high opinion of yourself and that you hold yourself to a very high standard. This tendency to be the best and to achieve excellence often prevents you from taking advantage of the opinions of others or of changes in the environment.”
“You’re doing well, but you need to work to improve your situational awareness and your negotiating skills—your interpersonal skills. Intellectually, you like the challenge and have a do-it-myself attitude. This can limit you. Learn to ask questions and take advice from others—to weigh others’ opinions.”
“You seem to attach your identity to your achievement. People like you are prone to put the job ahead of their families—way ahead—and that’s a trap all of us have to work on and try to avoid.”
“Your TAIS rated you as overanalytical and perhaps slow to come to a decision because you thought too much about it—made it too complicated. I saw that a little bit during the field training at A. P. Hill. Then when you make a decision, you defend it, even if new data questions that decision.”
Most of these counseling sessions end with some recommendations to work on weaknesses.
“Since you seem to overanalyze, try to be brief and concise and go quickly to the bottom line. Find a peer buddy in the class, someone you trust. Tell your peer buddy this is an area you’re trying to work on, and seek his feedback.”
“In every situation that calls for a decision, ask the opinion of someone else on the team. If you don’t understand how they came up with that decision or position, ask them to explain it. This will allow you to make a change or to validate your original position.”
After the midcourse review, and prior to the next block of instruction, 912 and the other 18 Alpha candidates take two days off for sustainment training. They have an equipment jump one day, and spend another on the firing ranges with combat shooting. A day of airborne operations and a day of shooting are scheduled for the Charlies, Deltas, and Echos during their Phase III as well. The Bravos, the weapons sergeants, need only to make the jump.
Nine-one-two moves on to the foreign-internal-defense planning exercise. FID is an important tasking of Special Forces, both historically and as it relates in the current