“There is something in you that you have to offer other people that is refreshing to them because it represents something that they don’t have. Finding your confidence in that is much more valuable than trying to compensate by pretending to be efficient in areas that you are not.
-Steven Furtick
I find that observing the challenges of my children offers some very good insights into relationships and leadership. Recently, I discussed circumstances with my children that relate to expectations and how to play a leadership role. That led me to reflect on the Leadership Experience. Is the leadership experience something to be chased, or something to create on your own?… Read the rest
“Fail often so you can succeed sooner.”
“Be enthusiastic as a leader. You can’t light a fire with a wet match.”
“The single most important element of success in war is leadership.”
Standing on the platform in front of troops and family for the fourth time to take command, this time of a Mission Support Group, I was following a popular and successful commander. I’d be leading a very talented unit of 2,600 Airmen, civil service personnel, and contractors. They had a tremendous reputation for excellence.
“The key to leading today is influence, not authority.”
“A man has integrity if his interest in the good of the service is at all times greater than his personal pride, and when he holds himself to the same line of duty when unobserved as he would follow if his superiors were present”
The colonel looked at four squadron commanders and said, “The general will be inspecting the facility tomorrow, everything needs to be perfect.” Three of the assembled commanders looked at their feet, while the fourth simply smiled and said, “Sir, I got this. Leave it to us and we’ll take care of it.” In this particular case, it wasn’t even in that squadron commander’s assigned mission set, but as he said later, “It’s no sweat, Sir.… 
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing”
The squadron was broken and the commander was the reason. He empowered no one, made all the decisions himself, and insisted on controlling even the most minute details in everything we did. By any measure, the commander was what we call a “single point of failure.”
There may be situations in military leadership where the leader must keep the team in the dark–but in 27 years service and commanding five units I’ve never found one. On the contrary, the question asked most often by military leaders and those they lead is, “
Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions.
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