Hearing I was a British Army officer in Afghanistan, people often say: “wow, you were so brave!” I appreciate the sentiment, but I beg to differ. I wasn’t brave. I was well-trained, motivated by a clear mission, and supported to achieve it. You can reduce stress in your organisation by becoming a better leader…
(Caveat: I didn’t suffer physical or mental trauma in my service. My soldiers came home in one piece. I’m aware not all Armed Forces personnel are so fortunate. This is based on my experience alone.)
The first time I was shot at, I didn’t realise. I thought the wind was whipping up the sand, until my gunner told me. The enemy was a kilometre away. A smudge on a rooftop taking potshots with a rifle. Too far to positively identify, per our rules of engagement. Too far to return fire, without endangering civilians.
But I was well protected, standing in the turret of an armoured vehicle. And I had a job to do, which involved keeping a lookout. So I focused on the mission, as the bullets occasionally landed in the sand. Sometimes far, sometimes near. Eventually it was time to drive away and move on to the next task.
And I felt no stress, no anxiety, none. I’ve honestly been more stressed in job interviews since. What’s my point, you ask? My point is, without 2 years of training, a clear mission, an empathic boss, and loyal colleagues by my side, I would have been stressed. And I wouldn’t have performed as well.
Training, in my view, is far more important than natural ability. Don’t assume soldiers are born fearless warriors. Typically that’s far from the truth. When I turned up at Sandhurst, I was soft and naive. But the British Army gave me world class training, based on centuries of experience. That’s what made the difference.
The military also provides a shared mission, a higher sense of purpose. You look out for each other, not competing but supporting. You know your role and what’s expected of you. “Brothers-in-arms”, people say, because it feels like family. It’s not a perfect culture, but it’s effective at controlling stress.
Conversely, I can recall countless times in business when I’ve been stressed out of my mind. Critical tasks assigned to me with zero training or documentation. Senior managers going ballistic because I failed to achieve poorly defined outcomes. Launching projects, knowing I wouldn’t get the resources needed to deliver them.
If a team fails to achieve something, leaders should ask themselves: why? Did I train them well enough? Did I give them a clear mission and measurable goals? Did I support them when they needed it? Because without that your people may work hard, but they will be stressed. And you won’t get the results you want.