Recently promoted to cadet commander of my squadron.

[Eclipse]

This the exact question I have. We also have no senior members who were former cadets and we don't have a senior member with a specialty track as of now.

Relevance?

Cadet history or no, your senior members should always be fully invested, informed, and knowledgeable about the cadet program from end to end.
They are supposed to be training you, and the seniors will always be the thread of continuity in a unit, since they stay and cadets move up and on.

There's nothing a senior members needs to run a CP that isn't clearly spelled out in the texts, sounds like you have some that need to understand this better.

[SamFranklin]

this cadet (the OP) came here for advice on how to do his best.  Let's not dog-pile about a decision made above his paygrade, by someone else, who's not here to explain or defend it and rather focus on giving our best practical and useful advice to this well-meaning cadet with obvious initiative (to seek advice and to seek self-improvement).

Very well said.

So, Cadet Thomas, congratulations on being recognized as an up and coming leader!

You might check out the Cadet Staff Handbook, as someone mentioned, and the Cadet Command chapter in Learn to Lead volume 3. Chapter 11.
http://capmembers.com/cadet_programs/library/learn_to_lead.cfm

Lead by example, do your best, have fun.  Good luck!

[Eclipse]

So...

This comes up all the time - someone comes here, other forums, or in-person and asks a question as how to implement
a bad idea.

Is not incumbent on those of us with experience and relevant knowledge to try and correct the situation?

In a lot of cases, units like this have no guidance, and the only safety valve is when things like this see the
light of day online, or at a larger activity.

Just because something has already happened doesn't make it a good idea or uncorrectable.

[SamFranklin]

We can do both, and we have by talking about what the doctrine teaches and by giving some practical guidance to a cadet. No need to think in terms of either/or.

[Cjthom1728]

Can you guys define what you mean by planning?

[Pylon]

Can you guys define what you mean by planning?

In what context?  What types of planning should a Cadet Commander be doing, you mean?

[Eclipse]

Thinking ahead 13+ weeks to insure you have a full schedule and everyone knows what they are supposed to be doing.

It's an ongoing process and needs to be flexible to accommodate challenges and opportunities.

That means a calendar everyone has access to ((*coughGooglecough*), insuring the resources to execute those meetings
and activities are in place well in advance, tracking progress, and adjusting when things go asunder.

You should have scheduled, routinely occurring CDI, PT, leadership, AE, and hopefully ES training nights.

[Майор Хаткевич]

And make sure that the required contact hours in each are met.

[Pylon]

Plan for time to meet with your cadet staff (when they're not busy executing the cadet program), to hear about their concerns and positive feedback, to give them your feedback and mentoring, and to assist with your own planning process.  Your eyes and ears "in the field" (aka: flight staff) can better tell you what kinds of training needs they're seeing, what they need assistance with, what they need more time or training for, what all the cadets are pretty solid on and don't need more training, etc.   You can then incorporate their feedback into your own planning process.

[Cjthom1728]

Thank you to everyone that has commented. This has really pushed to think about my personal beliefs and how my actions will effect everyone else. I am considering asking my commander about changing positions, but I am not quite sure that's what I want to do. Perhaps, this is my first challenge of being a cadet commander.

[Cool Mace]

Thank you to everyone that has commented. This has really pushed to think about my personal beliefs and how my actions will effect everyone else. I am considering asking my commander about changing positions, but I am not quite sure that's what I want to do. Perhaps, this is my first challenge of being a cadet commander.

Knowing your limits is a great leadership trait many people do not have. Declining a job because you don't think you are ready shows maturity, and a willingness to learn.

I'm not saying to decline. But I'm not saying to accept. Eclipse and Aux have already covered that main points you need to look at.

Good luck with whatever the outcome is!