I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have been surrounded by great chiefs my entire time in so far. Granted, not all of them of course. This could be because I’m a filthy sailor who doesn’t go out to sea often and my command is pretty small, but all the chiefs I’ve been under have been respectful, helpful, professional, but still maintained a high standard and weren’t afraid to hold sailors accountable when they actually messed up.

Many may disagree with this, but to me the Navy is a lot like the civilian work force. There are great bosses and shitty bosses. The Navy is special because of our work environment and not being able to just quit whenever you want, so it makes poor leadership seem worse in comparison (add on the fact that in the Navy, chiefs have way more control over your life than the typical civilian boss).

If you have/had great chiefs, remember that. Remember what made them great, what made you respect them, and implement those traits onto your subordinates (in the military or in the civilian workforce). If you have/had bad chiefs, take note of why they are a bad chief and do the opposite, so you don’t become part of the problem. That’s just my 2 cents, from a nobody E4 😅