“Self-Reflection is the school of wisdom.”
Baltasar Gracian
As the year 2016 just ended, and we engage our planning and thinking towards the new year, many leaders are being reflective to determine if they accomplished their goals and objectives for the year. I always enjoyed this time of year when I was actively leading as it allowed me to relax and to look backwards across my previous year, experiences, and most-importantly, my professional relationships.
There is great value in being reflective about your leadership; looking backwards can really help you going forward. Sadly, in our hustle-bustle 21st century world, and more specifically in our dynamic and challenging leadership roles, there is a scarcity of time for this.… Read the rest
“Good tactics can save even the worst strategy. Bad tactics will destroy even the best strategy.” -Gen George Patton
Standing in front of the assembled group of more than 150 staff to tell them they were being reorganized–again–was a little daunting to say the least. Everyone was clearly nervous about the change, but the leadership team assured them we would seize this latest change as an opportunity. However, embracing the change and looking for opportunities to make that change work for us was key to turning a potential disaster into success. Using a three step process we turned the reorg into an opportunity to chart our own future.… 
“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 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, “
From Our Early Files:
“Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.”
“In any moment of decisions, 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.”
“Neither a wise man nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.
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