[August 28, 2015] An incident occurred during a military training exercise early in my career that taught me an important lesson – small things matter. After relocating my platoon to a new defensive position I set our machinegun foxhole in what I thought was an okay spot. My commander ordered me to change it and later during a… Read More »
[August 27, 2015] Texas A&M University is the first academic organization I’ve featured here under core values. The reason has everything to do with the fact that college-level organizations rarely have their core values advertised, if they have them at all. None that I attended had core values at the time and no one I know could recall… Read More »
[August 26, 2015] Game 7 of the Baseball World Series was the first ball game I ever watched on television. My family did not own a television set at the time so I watched the October 1962 game from the home of a good friend. It was something new for me but what I remember most about the… Read More »
[August 25, 2015] An old custom in the U.S. military is for newly commissioned Second Lieutenants to receive their first salute by a person of their choice. The new officer gives a U.S. silver dollar as a token of appreciation and in my case I received a salute from Sergeant First Class J. Benjamin Sessions … a great… Read More »
[August 24, 2015] In 1974 after joining the U.S. Army, I quickly discovered that I was completely unprepared. I’m sure the Drill Sergeants got a good laugh at my awkwardness and weak physical condition. For those interested in joining any of the military services, a few hard lessons learned from those who served honorably are listed here to… Read More »
[August 23, 2015] Military officers, CEOs, managers, and leaders of all types are constantly on the lookout for those who show a certain set of traits that help their organizations be successful. Of course, there has much written on this topic and many good characteristics have been identified but no one has managed to condense it to the… Read More »
[August 22, 2015] The sad fact is that many senior leaders do, in fact, promote divisiveness by their choice of words and inaction to promote basic standards of good behavior. Whether purposefully or by accident, some national leaders also encourage divisiveness and they are not good leaders in the sense that they portray the requisite traits of excellence. … Read More »
[August 21, 2015] A few days ago the North Korean army fired a rocket into South Korean territory.1 Many Western experts contend this was just business as usual and nothing will come of it. However, if war were to break out on the Korean peninsula the level of death and destruction would exceed anything experienced in the world… Read More »
[August 20, 2015] Who makes worst soldiers in the U.S. Army is rarely discussed outside the confines of senior leader gatherings. There has been a politically correct attitude about this issue that unfortunately protects us from that analyst. Anyone who undertakes the task to identify trends will have accusations of bias and prejudice leveled against them. In an… Read More »
[August 19, 2015] U.S. Army senior leadership has always been hesitant to say who among the general population makes the best soldiers. While such a politically correct stance is not unexpected, there are many who have served and studied patterns that help us predict who will be the best soldiers. Although these attributes and experiences of those in… Read More »