ok_ag95 said:I've seen this done several times.......have him keep revising if you don't like it. This will make him take a hard look in the mirror.IrishTxAggie said:
Tell him to write it and you'll sign it. Win-win.
There's no upside to this situation. He's a former soldier because he apparently wasn't much good at it, but might well be a good student.PanzerAggie06 said:
Anyone have any experience with saying "no" to a person that has requested a letter of recommendation?
A former Soldier of mine has asked for a LOR for his grad school application. The problem is that while he was a good guy personality wise and was intelligent I found him to be somewhat lazy, unmotivated, and an overall poor Soldier. Part of me just says write the damn letter...its just grad school. However, my "it's the principle of the matter" gene has kicked in and I'm having a hard time convincing myself to do it.
Anyone ever told someone to pound sand when they asked for a LOR? Looking for diplomatic ways out of this.
Caveat: I'm not, never was military, and I'm not management.CastleRock said:
Sounds like you may (validly) still be holding on to some resentment for his conduct under your supervision. However, a true leader would examine his own shortcomings.
CastleRock said:
Sounds like you may (validly) still be holding on to some resentment for his conduct under your supervision. However, a true leader would examine his own shortcomings.
OP appears to be class of '06. That would likely be a Major or whatever corresponding O-4.PoohAh97 said:Caveat: I'm not, never was military, and I'm not management.CastleRock said:
Sounds like you may (validly) still be holding on to some resentment for his conduct under your supervision. However, a true leader would examine his own shortcomings.
That part is a cop out. Even in the civilian world, superiors can only spend so much time trying to get *adults* to do better work. Yeah, our OP (I'm guessing Colonel or higher?) could probably get this adult (I'm guessing 1Lt?) to be a better soldier. Tell him what additional steps he could take to improve, maybe drop by and give him some encouragement, that little bit of extra attention.
But he's probably got a few dozen other people that are already that motivated, or at least motivated enough so as not to cause him extra work. If I had to guess, guys like this come through every couple of years, do the minimum, and pop out. Why invest?
Damn, A legit, thoughtful answer on GB.Bismarck said:
He sounds motivated to go to Grad school. Perhaps the military just wasn't for him. As for being lazy, he'll still have to do the work if he's accepted to a program. He'll either sink or swim. If he saddles himself with a lot of debt and fails, that's on him. You aren't recommending him for a job.
maybe he was lazy because he was not challenged. He didn't know how to work hard because he didn't have to and now he might be challenged and be a value.PanzerAggie06 said:
As I said.....the dude is pretty damn smart. He is actually applying to some of the big name MBA programs. And I imagine he'll get in. He has an undergrad from Yale. It's shocking to think the could be graduating from one of the top 5 MBA programs in a few years and start pulling in offers starting in the 150K-175K range.
