The Leadership Principle, in my opinion, that is most intertwined with Bearing. I once read "Knowledge and Judgment are required to produce a sound decision". Bearing is a visible personal characteristic, it pertains to a person's behavior as it reveals such distinctive personal qualities as his or her individual or upbringing. Bearing applies to both physical posture and general conduct. As a Drill Instructor the phrase "loss of bearing" was frequently used. It wasn't until I was a Senior Drill Instructor that I realized the words you harp on, if you don't live by them they will come back to haunt you. As a Senior Drill Instructor, one of my many responsibilities was "putting out fires" between my platoon and Drill Instructors. In a private counseling session with a recruit, one question I loved to ask was, "Which Drill Instructor did you learned the most/least from and name some things you learned". I taught myself the true meaning of Bearing when the Recruit told me of an incident at Drill, she claimed that she turned her head in the wrong direction on a Drill command. The Drill Instructor grabbed her bun (hair) and jerked it to turn her head in the correct direction. She went on to say that she knew turning her head in the wrong direction was a "loss of bearing" but the Drill Instructor had not taught her anything by losing her bearing and pulling the Recruit's hair. At that time I had to exercise both bearing and integrity to resolve the issue. I explained to the Recruit that turning her head in the wrong direction was a mistake, her actions or reaction after the mistake depends solely on bearing.
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5. I believe that bearing is to endure something with tolerance and patience. Each individual is unique, when one's endurance to tolerate certain things shrink is when frustration starts. In the nine months I have been at Fort Leonard Wood, I can honestly say that the first seven months is when my tolerance level dropped and the frustration level escalated.
