[July 15, 2018] As noted previously, I began a new blog thread to give a brief summary of leadership topics I like but could not get into sufficient detail. The clearing the spindle post today focuses on this being the year of insults. Good leaders don’t insult others … mostly. The primary job of any leader is to… Read More »
[June 3, 2018] A friend of mine from New York City conveyed a story to me that framed a problem leaders often encounter when they rally people to a cause. He was at a political townhall to discuss public issues of concern to the residents. People jumped right in to complain to their elected officials but failed to… Read More »
[November 30, 2017] This morning I was flipping through a favorite book that I’d bought in 1983 just after being commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. The book, the 42nd Edition of The Army Officer’s Guide, is probably one of the best overall books providing countless lessons for the junior leader. Those lessons from 40 years… Read More »
[May 15, 2017] Our staff headquarters was going through a Transition of Authority (ToA) whereby an incoming military unit takes over the combat duties from an outgoing unit. When I arrived in July of that year, the violence in Iraq was the highest it had ever been. To complicate my transition into Engineer Staff operations, I had to… Read More »
[August 11, 2016] Summer with its oppressive heat and humidity is upon us here in the Northeast in full force. American inventor Willis Carrier is given credit for large-scale electrical air conditioning and I am very grateful. With my wife and I reconditioning our home in Brooklyn plus the heat of summer has taken some intellectual energy out… Read More »
[July 25, 2016] A good friend of mine at my commissioning ceremony as a new U.S. Army Second Lieutenant said that his best advice for me to succeed would be to respect soldiers regardless of rank, however pander to none of them. In his own way, he was speaking about respect. But respect is specifically missing from most… Read More »
[February 17, 2016] After 9/11 when terrorists struck the United States homeland, there were many people who emerged as heroes. Among them were firefighters, police officers, sanitation workers, and yes even ordinary people who were all involved to save people and engaged in the dangerous cleanup effort in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Pennsylvania.1 In… Read More »
[January 16, 2016] While in the U.S. Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, all new second lieutenants learn about Grazing Fire and to watch out for it when in the attack against a determined enemy. It’s the type of combat technique that will quickly cut an attacking force to pieces. Leaders will experience grazing fire, symbolically anyway, whenever… Read More »
[September 2, 2015] I wrote about immigration into the United States, both legal and illegal, over a year ago (see links below) and how it has become one of the hottest topics in the U.S. presidential campaign. However, immigration as a political topic goes much further than the Americas, extending into Europe and parts of Asia and that… 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 »