[July 15, 2020] Good news; junior leaders are given a high quality, respectable identity, and significant freedom provided by society. There will be no other time in the life for such a leader to have this much opportunity. Today, we all have full access to the most celebrated thinkers civilization has ever assembled, perhaps even beyond human comprehension.… Read More »
[July 14, 2020] The best thing that ever happened during my military training was to experience immediate feedback on whatever I did. At the beginning of my career, I was first insulted, then shocked, and then mad that someone would tell me how wrong I was. Later, I changed. I came to welcome the clarity of instant feedback,… Read More »
[July 13, 2020] One thing that sets the best leaders apart from others is that they read, study, and discuss ideas. Long ago, when I was a staff officer as a U.S. Army Infantry Captain, a small group of junior officers was joking one day about the 1991 Disney movie Beauty and the Beast. Why did it pique… Read More »
[July 12, 2020] Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States, has some sage advice for young people. Today, I’m introducing his 10 rules for success. Evan Carmichael compiled these from a series of speech’s Obama has given over the past few years.1 Readers of this leadership blog will see the commonality of these rules with my regular… Read More »
[July 9, 2020] Amazingly, several idioms from World War II are still with us 75 years after the end of that great conflict.1 If you’re taking flak, you’re over the target is an old, WWII Army Air Force phrase. It means to take criticism (flak) from a position on a controversial topic (the target). Leaders are first to… Read More »
[July 7, 2020] A good leader is someone who can show another how to reach their potential. A great leader helps that person discover their potential for themselves. That is what Robert Woodson is all about. Controversial, tough-minded, creative, and patriot; these words describe the man, but who is he? Former civil rights leader Bob Woodson is a… Read More »
[July 6, 2020] There are no words in the English language that is worse than being called a coward. Growing up in a culture steeped in military customs and populated by veterans, I feared being called a coward or, worse yet, a yellow-bellied snake. The rhetorical references are explicit; if you are a coward, then there is nothing… Read More »
[July 5, 2020] I first saw the men of 111th Sapper Company on the outskirts of Baghdad back in late 2003. What these Soldiers did was hard work. They had just returned from a grueling mission of finding and destroying roadside bombs and were getting their baseballs and gloves out for another fun game. Their commander, a red-haired… Read More »
[July 2, 2020] It’s familiar practice for senior military leaders to provide a day for junior enlisted men or women to step into the Commanders’ role. Being “Commander for a Day” is an opportunity to open one’s eyes to leadership responsibilities, hard work, and effort necessary to shoulder such a position.1 It also allows a Commander to walk… Read More »
[July 1, 2020] KP duty, cleaning toilets with a toothbrush, and painting rocks were the first jobs I had in the U.S. Army. I didn’t like any of them but especially didn’t like painting rocks because I saw no value in it. It was a mindless waste of time, “busy work.” But I did learn something from the… Read More »