What Reservists Bring Back From War |
Alongside a group of reserve soldiers, and on behalf of “SOS Israel: Support Our Soldiers,” I had the privilege of discussing with Prime Minister Netanyahu the challenges facing reserve soldiers coming back from reserve duty. We shared with the Prime Minister a simple proposition, that when reservists return from war, their employers, family and friends should understand that the person coming home may not be the same person who left. They may return with new leadership skills, greater confidence and an extraordinary capacity to operate under pressure, but also carrying experiences and stresses that colleagues cannot see.
We have spent the past three years in awe of what reservists have given the country. Perhaps it is time to ask what they bring back with them.
Soldiers returning from reserve duty have gained life-changing experience, planning, managing and carrying out both short, intense missions and lengthy, complex operations.
The soldiers carrying out these missions have given more than even the reservists themselves may have thought possible before October 7. After October 7, the reservists have demonstrated that when needed and when given the opportunity, they could leverage their experience from civilian life to plan, lead and carry out complex operations. The reservists adapted their skills faster, and pushed themselves further than any project in their civilian lives would have demanded.
This experience can be leveraged to improve planning and project performance in the organizations where reservists work in civilian life. But returning to civilian life can also have a strange disconnect: after months of intense, mission-oriented responsibility, day-to-day work........