The Army taught me a phrase early, and it shaped everything I have done since. Be the Standard. Know the task and the duties of your profession. Then do them, every day. You represent what right looks like. Be, Know, Do. Three words, and the order matters. Being comes first. Before you know anything technical and … Read more
A plan tells people what to do. Intent tells them what you’re trying to accomplish — so they can adapt when the plan meets reality. Years ago, commanding in a war exercise, I made a decision I have never forgotten. I attacked the enemy’s strength instead of his weakness. It was the wrong call, and … Read more
The most hopeful level is also the most frustrating. Here’s why. When I interviewed Andrew Sewnauth, President and CEO of CDS Life Transitions, for The Power of Being All In, he said something that stopped me cold. “Companies that don’t take time to invest in their employees pay an even greater price.” He wasn’t speaking theoretically. … Read more
In July of 1970, I found myself standing on the parade field at West Point alongside hundreds of other young men. Seventeen years old, two weeks out of high school, and a long way from Georgia. Several months earlier, two Army football coaches had shown up at my home in Atlanta one evening, and not … Read more
It’s more organized than Level 1. It’s also more rigid. In We’re All In, I described what I witnessed as a young officer in the U.S. Army in West Germany in the mid-1970s. It was, looking back, a perfect example of a Follower culture at scale. The Army was in crisis. The clash of a … Read more
Early in my career as a Major in the U.S. Army, I had the privilege of serving as aide-de-camp to General Crosbie Saint, then the Commander in Chief of U.S. Army Europe. We spent most of our time together in helicopters and jets, moving constantly across Western Europe and back across the Atlantic for meetings … Read more
