Tough one to narrow down. A good leader to one person is a bad leader to another. I'll use an example of a CO I was unfortunetly privy to not so long ago. The JO's loved him. Why? He never did anything, never put any pressure on them, got in their britches, nothing. What else didn't he do? He didn't lead, ever. He never spoke at safety stand downs or barely said a word after award ceremony's. When he did talk at AOM's, he would often end sentences with "I don't know"...such as lets be the best we can be..I don't know. It was some sort of nervous tick. He rarely flew and told OPS not to schedule him with nuggets at the boat. He certainly had favorites and shielded them while throwing out anyone who wasn't a favorite. He sat in his office all day long, answering emails, pretty much staying invisible. So from my perspective, he was an absolute horrible CO and leader. From a JO's perspective, he was awesome being he never bothered them.
I had an old CO who was without a doubt, the hardest man I've worked for. He used to scream, yell and call me names all the time. Not just me, everyone who worked for him. I did his change of command and it was painful. He also was not a good communicator in front of large groups. However, he was a man of his word and if you worked hard, he took care of you. He didn't lie or bullshit. The man could fly as well, had 5000+ flight hours in the E-2/C-2 and C-12.
Another Skipper was a brilliant communicator. The man could use words to inspire. Made the sailors feel good and when the time came, such as a Captains Mast, it would get rough for the sailor standing in front of the podium. However, behind closed doors, he did nothing but talk shit about all his officers to other officers. I witnessed it, others witnessed it. He was not a man of his word. He, IMO, was not a honorable man or a man with integrity.
Had tyrant for a CO as well. I'd compare him to God in the First Testament. An angry, vengeful, could do no wrong CO and would fuck your career in a heartbeat. He too couldn't lead children to the bathroom. He was the ultimate politician though. He could play the game and my guess is, he will put a star on one day.
The very best leader I've know, was an O-5 who didn't screen. This individual could fly an airplane; an excellent orator; said what he meant and meant what he said; was a shit screen from the tyrant mentioned above; took care of his people; kept his word; etc. Type of guy who I would have followed to hell knowing I wasn't coming back. Of course he didn't select for command, go figure.
