Wish I could give you words of encouragement.

BUT I CAN'T -

What I would have done was to take the little t*t t*rds to the Boson's Locker and carried out a little attitude realignment.

I know you can't do that but it usually has a positive outcome especially if you have a dogging wrench in your hand.

The only thing you can do is take it up with your 'Senior' officers.

Wish you luck with your problem.

Wish I could give you words of encouragement.

BUT I CAN'T -

What I would have done was to take the little t*t t*rds to the Boson's Locker and carried out a little attitude realignment.

I know you can't do that but it usually has a positive outcome especially if you have a dogging wrench in your hand.

The only thing you can do is take it up with your 'Senior' officers.

Wish you luck with your problem.

Showing the Tank Telephone as we call it here in Oz. It does work.

As for any advice for the young cadets. You can't learn to be a leader through a bit of advice. You just gotta do it.

the tank telephone?

just remember that they are still kids and kids above all things want to have fun and they have short attention spans. thier participation in a program is going to be suspect as most kids can't be as serious as you need them to be all the time

what will you do for them that will earn thier respect?

Originally Posted by C/2Lt Henderson

now we can only give essays...IT SUCKS!!!!!!

I'm sorry to laugh, but that really is lame. We've got the odd whining recruit in my teams - but we just get "repeats" - i.e. if something is not right - you do it again. It's VERY easy to find something very small that is wrong - and then it's not punishment - it's just doing it right.

First off dont disrespect them. From my ranks to yours you should really listen to what Im trying to say. The first thing you need to do is speak personally with your cadets who are showing any sign of disrespect towards you. If it continues call the group to attention and leave them there give them a lengthy lecture about when one person messes up you all pay for it, eventually they'll get tired of the standing rountine and try not to disrespect you( Use the attention sequence for as long as you need).Your last option should be to report it to your instructors. BUT dont over step your boundarys, what I mean by that is dont try to challenge any one who is higher rank than you because they do have the athority to strip you from your position and lower your rank. ONE question how did a sergeant get put in carge of the group.

Always remember that while you are in charge, your effectiveness is, in part, based on what they think of you. Sit down with them, ask them how you can be better. If they'll talk to you, great. If they cuss you out, well, you may want to rethink your methods or get out of that situation altogether.

First, I am sorry I didn't read anything, so I don't mean to repeat stuff, but if I do- sorry. Good things are worth repeating anyways...

So first off- If you talk to your cadets like suggested you need to make sure there's also a senior member present and any other cadet staff that would be in the cadets chain of command (like the cadet commander and first sgt)

From what I read it sounds like there’s certain cadets that aren't respectful, so with that I would talk to those cadets on the side with the other staff. Don't yell or create an environment like interrogation, just sit with them one on one and ask them whats up. Maybe even "if you were in my shoes what would you do differently" if they really don't like the way you lead. Whatever it is you decide to do you need to make sure you get your chain of command involved! Do not make them the last resort! That is the worst thing a leader can do, you need to know you have others who have been in similar situations. You are a cadet, so with that means you are still learning, so let people help. I know that it is possible to still learn through this by yourself, but save yourself some the time and worry. One of the things my Sq does is the DCC and cadet commander talk one on one with the flight commanders and sgt every week, and all they do is talk about the flight; how they are, whats going well/wrong, etc. It's not to be nosy, but to have accountability with each other. The same should go for the element leaders, flight sgt and commander. They need to communicate.
If it's the group as a whole that is still not respecting you then do the same, but instead of talking to the individual talk to them as a flight. I used to do open discussions, and then go from there.
I know that there will be cadets that just won’t work with you and if it is very obvious and potentially a bad thing you can also talk to the parents. They are after all their altimate authority, and they should be aware of anything that could potentially get them in trouble. With something like that I would be careful though, and you would defiantly want more them 1 SM with you.

It's a bumpy ride being a new leader, but we all go through it. I know I still have trouble gaining respect. Some don't like a girl over them, others think I'm too demanding, or maybe not demanding enough. Either way I have learned that it's best to just keep in check with my leadership. Every now and then I just ask them honestly how they think I am as a leader. I wish I had done that earlier on, it could have helped me clue into what was happening and what people thought of me. Also, not to say that you are prideful, but also keep that in check. Sometimes we don’t always go for help cuse we think it will make us look weak, but in reality it shows that we understand our own limitations. It can also prevent us from going down to the level of those under us, which should never be the case. We all start some where, and we should never forget that. We all are human after all.
So, as long as that was you can sum in up into a few words. Integrity, communication, and accountability.

And um, not to be rude...but why is there an all female flight? Not that it's a horrible thing and should never be done, but it just seems odd. Girls can be very emotional, and as a group it just seems to get worse (I can say this, I'm a girl lol)

Originally Posted by major Krause

ONE question how did a sergeant get put in charge of the group.

It sounds like he is a flight sgt, if not it is still not that uncommon for a NCO to be in charge of as flight.

What is it you want them to do, apart from giving you their "respect"? If you are walking around with a Napoleon complex they are going to jump all over you and test you at every turn.

Figure out what you want to accomplish, give direction and guidance, take suggestions, then hold them accountable. You can do that without push-ups. That's just a silly crutch used by the unimaginative anyway. Enlist your friends to help you. If any are cute ask them out and promise them promotion.

I had a similar problem when I was put in charge of all males and they were all higher rank which made it all the more fun. Now Im a Commanding Officer. What you do is show respect if after doing that you still don't get respect from them than ignore there friendliness in CAP and give them the cold shoulder to show then whos boss. If nothing else works talk to your superiors and report them for insubordination. If all that doesn't work you will never have there respect and will just have to keep trying.

Originally Posted by Insight

If any are cute ask them out and promise them promotion.

I hope that’s a joke.

As for cold shoulder, you have to be careful with that because you can make them disrespect you even more. It isn't a thing of "showing them who's boss", I have seen too many NCOs walk in and out of this program with that mentality. The only people who really gave them respect were people just like them, and then others just feared them. Yes, I know, we should let them know whose boss, but there’s better ways at doing that. They should fear you in the sense that they know if you say "I will take this to my Commander", then they know you will do it. But at the same time they need to know that you are a human as well, and that you care. I made the mistake of yelling at my cadets, telling them who’s boss, and being just plain rude, but it didn't work. Half of them are on staff- but they still don't like me. The other half quit, and when someone talks about me to them they just remember that girl who bossed them around.
You should always show your cadets a level of respect (or anyone for that matter). Some people just won’t behave or listen to you which is a fact of life. So gain the respect of the cadets that do follow you and maybe peer pressure will get the others to follow. If not maybe they need to be in another flight.
I don't mean be the best friend, but don't blow them off. Be sturn, don't make idol threats, get ride of the word "please" in your vocablary, and stand your ground.
And once again, don't make you chain of command the last resort. The key to any group is communication at all levels.