AFVOA Newletters of Year 2010

Page 24 of 50 23. DON’T slip a fiver in your pocket from your “Outfit Allowance”. The Services HQ are not philanthropic institutions and you may be sure the allowance is only just enough. 24. DON’T obtain your uniform from ‘any old tailor’. Be correctly dressed by one familiar with the precise details appertaining to your Service. There is such a thing as “Sealed pattern” and there are also “Dress Regulations” which are exacting in their demands for uniformity. Ask for advice rather than have to replace what you have purchased. 25. DON’T omit, when in uniform out of doors, to be correct in all essentials of your dress. There are such things as gloves and gas masks, without which you are improperly dressed and “letting your Service down” in the eyes of those whose judgment matters. 26. DON’T smoke a pipe in uniform when in public places such as streets of a town etc., it isn’t done. 27. DON’T neglect your personal appearance. Be smart. Your subordinates will soon spot whether your boots and buttons are as clean as theirs. Yours should be cleaner, even in war time. 28. DON’T lounge about. Cultivate an erect carriage and always move about smartly. 29. DON’T omit to wear your headdress on all occasions out of doors. It is slovenly not to do so. How to Use Your Authority 30. DON’T be sarcastic with subordinates or hold them up to ridicule. Learn to “tell off” those deserving it, quietly, strongly and to the point. Fools must be suffered gladly sometimes. 31. DON’T ever lose your temper. It will only result in ridicule and indignity. 32. DON’T be pompous, adopt a bullying attitude or shout when there is no occasion to do so. Orders can equally well be given in a quiet but firm manner. 33. DON’T curse subordinates. It is cowardly. They cannot curse back. This includes mess servants, as they cannot stand up for themselves without danger of dismissal. Make your complaint to the Mess Secretary, who will take proper steps to deal with it. 34. DON’T be guilty of “nagging”. Cultivate the art of a short, sharp reproof should the occasion demand it. 35. DON’T find fault unnecessarily, or omit to find fault when the occasion demands it. 36. DON’T reprimand an NCO in the presence or hearing of those in the ranks. You will undermine his authority if you do. 37. DON’T fail to correct your subordinates if you hear them speaking disrespectfully of superior officers, but do it tactfully. 38. DON’T interfere unnecessarily with subordinates in the streets or other public places. The golden rule is: if your authority as an officer is necessary for disciplinary reasons, and is likely to carry weight, use it; if not, pass on. 39. DON’T exclude common sense when interpreting the regulations. 40. DON’T give slovenly orders. They must be clear and lucid, both oral and written. Say what you mean, and mean what you say. The power of clear, unambiguous expression is not such a common gift as is usually imagined. Try to acquire it. 41. DON’T leave drunken Service personnel to their own devices if they are behaving in such a manner as to bring discredit on the Service, injury to themselves