5 Rules for Supporting Special Operations Forces

[Marauder06]

5 rules for supporting SOF. Go.

Ones I came up with so far:

-Understand your role in the organization.

-Strive to Be Good at Your Job, Not Theirs.

-Don’t go to a SOF organization that doesn’t have a screening process for its enablers.

-If They Don’t Respect What You Bring to the Table, Go Somewhere Else.

edited word usage- role for roll... unless we change your name to Kaiser or buttermilk...

 

[AWP]

5 rules for supporting SOF. Go.

Ones I came up with so far:

-Understand your roll in the organization.

-Strive to Be Good at Your Job, Not Theirs.

-Don’t go to a SOF organization that doesn’t have a screening process for its enablers.

-If They Don’t Respect What You Bring to the Table, Go Somewhere Else.

First, my "roll" in the organization, how many sides are on that die?

I disagree with 3 and 4 above because I think they only apply to someone who is already experienced in supporting a SOF organization; new guys will lack the proper context to make those decisions. #4 in particular, WHY wouldn't it respect what you provide? Some new guy can't answer that question and may in fact have created that position through his/ her actions.

Of course, I did something like this in the SF forum and it ruffled some feathers...

 

[TLDR20]

Don't represent yourself as something you are not.

 

[Viper1]

- If they don't understand what you bring to the table, educate them.

 

[x SF med]

Accept the fact that those with the special quals are going to be treated differently.

Treat the people around you - other support guys and the guys you support - with the same respect and professionalism as you would like to be treated with.

 

[RackMaster]

Be ready to be more flexible than a yogi and independent to the point beyond loneliness.

 

[LimaOscarSierraTango]

Maintain the same standards for yourself that the long tabbers maintain for themselves (proficiency in your job, physical standards, can do/won't quit mentality).

Prove your worthiness every day.

Be as proactive as possible in your responsibilities.

 

[Marauder06]

Thanks for everyone's inut, I incorporated almost all of it, including some stuff Freefalling pointed me towards via PM. This is what I came up with:

 

[Brill]

Speak softly and carry a big MOS.

 

[Marauder06]

finished product:

http://www.havokjournal.com/military/4-rules-for-supporting-special-operations

 

[Il Duce]

@Marauder06 - thought it was a great article. It got me thinking - what should you do differently as a support person in a SOF unit that you wouldn't do in a conventional one? Reading the article I thought - these are actually good tips for success in a conventional unit as well.

 

[LongTabSigO]

Thanks for everyone's input, I incorporated almost all of it, including some stuff Freefalling pointed me towards via PM. This is what I came up with:

Concur with your reworked compilation. I think those four capture the really important points.

 

[LongTabSigO]

On this bit about " Don’t go to a SOF organization that doesn’t have a screening process for its enablers..."

I understand the sentiment however it is inaccurate. There are a lot of enablers that are assigned by detailers without a "screening" process. There may be some vetting but often it is still at the whim of the personnel system that talent arrives.

I also have a quibble that support personnel who are screened are not treated with some manner of contempt. It is not axiomatic either way. There are plenty of folks who respect support talent and an equal number that hold it in contempt - regardless of the manner of getting into place. The rightness/wrongness of that is irrelevant. Some people are just a certain way.

But, that all said, i take the point you are trying to present.

 

[busdriver]

This is a flawed concept, only because it should apply for everyone: Explain your capabilities, be able to do what you say you can do, do it in the timeline you said you could do it in, be excellent at the basics. If you can't do that, you're not a professional; end of story.

 

[Marauder06]

On this bit about " Don’t go to a SOF organization that doesn’t have a screening process for its enablers..."

I understand the sentiment however it is inaccurate. There are a lot of enablers that are assigned by detailers without a "screening" process. There may be some vetting but often it is still at the whim of the personnel system that talent arrives.

I also have a quibble that support personnel who are screened are not treated with some manner of contempt. It is not axiomatic either way. There are plenty of folks who respect support talent and an equal number that hold it in contempt - regardless of the manner of getting into place. The rightness/wrongness of that is irrelevant. Some people are just a certain way.

But, that all said, i take the point you are trying to present.

Whether the screening takes place prior to or after arrival at the unit is irrelevant, the important thing is whether or not it happens. Have you served in many SOF units where the support troops had to try out?

 

[LongTabSigO]

Whether the screening takes place prior to or after arrival at the unit is irrelevant, the important thing is whether or not it happens. Have you served in many SOF units where the support troops had to try out?

Well if you include "after" then i guess i have. By my understanding of "screening" not really. At least not a screening where support personnel had to cross certain "gates" before assignment. Certain units have the ability/luxury of being able to select their support personnel through a vetting process before assignment. I've certainly worked with such units.

 

[Mad boomer]

Results matter, not excuses.
Stay in your lane!

 

[Viper1]

- Never turn down an opportunity to train with the SOF unit you are supporting. If may be the first and only time in your military career you get to fire more rounds, learn to blow demo, and conduct harder training than anything you've ever done before.