Navy Core Values

The Navy Core Values are: "To be honorable in your dealings with others, to have the

courage to do what must be done, and the commitment to your obligations and responsibilities".

The ideals of honor, courage and commitment all boil down to integrity- the quality of adhering

to a high moral standard. These core values that are instilled in each personnel's life the instant

the oath of enlistment is pledged.

Honor: To bear true faith and allegiance...; implies integrity, honesty and fairness. An

honorable person would never steal, lie, or do less than their best. Behaving honorably in the

Navy means putting out honest effort, being willing to learn, treating others with respect, taking

responsibility for one's actions and handling oneself in an ethical manner at all times. Being

honorable means being truthful and fulfilling one's duties not out of necessity but out of personal

pride and a true sense of right and wrong.

Courage: I will support and defend...; doesn't simply mean being brave in extreme

circumstances. Courage means having the personal and moral fortitude to do what is right, even

when it's difficult. As a Navy serviceman, courage refers to defending American citizens, soil

and property at any cost. It also refers to performing whatever tasks are required to support Navy

missions and objectives. Courage also means handling military property with integrity and

honesty, despite the temptation to do otherwise. Courage means staying the course, un-swayed

by fear, pain or temptations, ensuring that jobs are performed as they were meant to be.

Commitment: I will obey the orders ...; refer to obligations and loyalties. To Navy service

men and women, commitment refers to their willingness to obey orders, their dedication to the

welfare and well-being of American citizens and their loyalty to performing their duties in the

best way possible. Commitment also encompasses a vow to maintain the integrity and

respectability of the Navy by showing respect to all persons, regardless of religion, race or

gender. The Navy requires a commitment to personal improvement, good moral character and

technical expertise in the performance of one's duties.

Integrity is the rigid adherence to a code of behavior, in order for someone to possess

honor, courage and commitment they must first master Integrity. However, once mastered these

core values form the cornerstone of military bearing.

In the United States Navy, military bearing is the root in which every service member

practices in order to carry out good discipline and ethics throughout ones military career. The

Eleven General Orders of a Sentry, The Articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice

(UCMJ), as well as our own Sailors Creed illustrates how a military service member should

conduct him or herself on a daily basis. Dependability, punctuality and communication are also

major aspects of military bearing. Without dependability, one can neither perform properly in the

workspace nor be depended upon by their coworkers, or chain of command to carry out their

orders adequately. A military member is required to be punctual, and reliable, therefore lack of

this quality in a the member not only hinders the mission of the command but of the entire Navy.

Punctuality is the characteristic of being able to complete a required task or fulfill a moral

duty before or at a previously designated time; it also shows your chain of command that you are

serious about your position and are ready and motivated to do the job to the best of your ability.

Punctuality falls under the category of two intertwining definitions: accountability and

responsibility. According to the United States Department of Defense (DOD), accountability is

defined as "the obligation imposed by law or lawful order or regulation