Sergeant Major of the Army (Retired) Daniel Dailey sat down for an interview during his visit to White Sands Missile Range Dec. 13, where he served as the guest speaker for the monthly Leadership TEA Talk.
Dailey, who is the Vice President for the Association of the United States Army, talked about the importance of communicating the value of military service to the next generation.
“We have incredible Soldiers, Family members and civilians that are passionate about serving this great Army and this great Nation. I can see it in their eyes, I can feel it,” Dailey said. “(But) I think that we have to do a better job in America communicating to the next generation the value of service in our military.”
Dailey said that Army’s don’t build Army’s, Nations do.
“We as a Nation have to get invested into the preservation of our military services. If not, we’ll fail,” Dailey said. “The Army’s job is to fight and win our Nation’s wars. It has a responsibility to recruit and train. But we as influencers, the adults in America, are the ones that have to translate the value of service to these young men and women and have that conversation.”
He said parents need to have that tough conversation about the value of military service with their children.
“I know that we are a regeneration service. Meaning that most people joining the military service today are the children of or the cousins and nephews of somebody who served in the military because they understand and know the value and benefit of service,” Dailey said.
“I think there would be a lot more youth who would be willing to serve if they just knew the truth about what goes on in the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, Marines, and the incredible capabilities that they have. And not only that, but the opportunities they present for America’s youth today,” he said.
Dailey used himself as an example of a young man who benefited from military service. He said he was just a poor young kid from northeastern Pennsylvania and there were no jobs when he graduated from high school, but the Army gave him incredible opportunities.
Thanks to his military service he was able to give his son opportunities that he never had.
“I was able to send my son to college with my G.I. Bill and he is now a rocket scientist in Huntsville, Alabama helping the Department of Defense and NASA accomplish their goals.”
Dailey said he is very proud to see that today’s Soldiers are smart, intelligent, physically fit, and healthy.
“I am incredibly proud and humbled that I get to be around them even after I took off the uniform,” Dailey said. “It goes to show that knowledge of service is the reason why most of them choose to serve. They are aware of the benefits and the sacrifices, but they are also aware of the value of service.”
He said the adult influencers in a young man or woman’s life, such as coaches, teachers, and counselors, have gotten away from talking about the value of service to our Nation.
“I tell Service Members that they are the best story tellers. They are walking billboards and they must go out there and tell their story and communicate the value of service to the next generation.”
Change
Although he is retired, Dailey said he is not too far removed from the Army.
“I talk to the Chief of Staff of the Army, the Secretary of the Army, the Sergeant Major of the Army, and all the senior leaders regularly. We host all the large forums for the Army throughout the year,” Dailey said. “I am very much in touch. I also have the privilege to be able to travel around to the installations and talk to the Soldiers.”
Dailey said he thinks it is a good thing that the Army is always in some state of change.
“I always used to say that the Army is in constant repair mode. It may sound like instability, but it is not. It is good because we have to be (changing) especially with the situations that you see around the world today, the instability.”
He said that if the Army doesn’t adapt and change then it will become stale and outdated.
Dailey said the key to change is leadership.
“You must lead through it. You have to explain, be very clear, communicate, both up and down, and allow feedback from below. Ultimately, the workforce is the one that is going to experience the effects of change on a day-to-day basis.”
He said the Army is always in a state of change and the Army Modernization Program is driving a lot of change in the Army.
“The situation around the world, the instability in some foreign countries. What you are seeing in Russia and Ukraine right now is driving change in the U.S. Army. We are learning about capabilities and adapting our systems to be able to potentially if we need to, hopefully we never have to, but, if need be, to be able to meet or exceed those capabilities.”
Work-Life Balance
Dailey said work-life balance happens to be the number one question that he gets and not just from Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines, but from leaders too.
“Obviously in the military it is tough to get that balance because the mission really drives that, not you as an individual. I used to tell the Soldiers all the time – the one thing you are going to have to be prepared to do is sacrifice.”
Dailey said that in his presentation on work-life balance he uses a quote that basically states there is no such thing as work-life balance. There are work-life choices.
“When you are home make it quality time. Plan for the things you can, be at those things.”
He said you must make choices, such as what is the level of importance to go watch a football game with your kid?
“What is your decision threshold to be able to let your Soldiers or civilians go do those things. What about major training exercises? What about a deployment and what about war? Obviously, the conditions are different for each one of those instances.”
“As leaders sometimes we think that we need all our people all the time. And that is simply not true. So, from the individual managing expectations and the leader managing the organization and balancing the work-life balance, I think you can achieve that. In the military you are not going to have the normal civilian work-life balance. It is not going to be a 9 to 5 situation, but you can get a whole lot better. You have to individually manage expectations. You are in the military. So, when you decide that this is your life, you are going to be a lot happier. It’s about quality, not quantity.”
Takeaway
Dailey said the one thing he would like people to take away from his presentation is that the ultimate fix for any situation is leadership.
“In times when we are not directly engaged in combat, preparing for the next fight or investing in our new technology and training our platforms, that is an opportunity to get better at the core responsibilities that we have of being the best leaders we can.”
“Don’t sit back and rest on your laurels. (Using myself as an example) I spent five tours in combat and that makes me no better than the leader that has not served in combat. Leadership is not achieved, it is sustained. In order to do that you have to continue to invest in yourself and in leader development.”
“That is why I think it is great that WSMR Commander Brig. Gen. Eric Little and Command Sgt. Maj. Jose Melendez had me come out here. It is because they are invested in continuing education,” Dailey said. “It is an honor and privilege to be out here today and to see that our Army is continuing to invest in our people.”
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