Author Archives: Douglas R. Satterfield
[October 11, 2016] In early September 2001 a conference was held at the Pentagon by the U.S. military joint staff on the “decline of leadership” within our ranks. The issues were a belief that many of our youngest and brightest lacked certain societal values and this was seen as a harbinger of things to come. Anytime over the… Read More »
[October 10, 2016] At the beginning of World War II, the outlook for the survival of Great Britain was bleak. The immense German military juggernaut had the English isle in its sights and Hitler was advancing his forces to destroy it. Thanks to its great leaders such as Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the immense sacrifices of its… Read More »
[October 9, 2016] Personal study and reflection is a crucial part of the growth of a professional. Each one of us work through our days with busy schedules but finding time to read and think is an ongoing challenge. In the military we are taught that to train our bodies, but like our bodies we must also train… Read More »
[October 8, 2016] We need heroes … we need them because of a deep need to realize personal excellence; our heroes are symbols for those qualities we would like to possess and the ambitions we would like to gratify. Looking to what Tom Brokaw called, “the Greatest Generation,” there can be found Joe Foss, one of the leading… Read More »
[October 7, 2016] It was a beautiful fall day in October nearly 30 years ago when I was walking along the main drag at Penn State University when I came upon Joe Paterno for the first time. “JoePa” as he is more affectionately known, was talking to a small group of students about how to be successful at… Read More »
[October 6, 2016] … and that’s how they get things done! The expectations and hopes of any organization (or society) depends upon the quality and experience of its leaders. Regardless of position – junior manager, mid-grade officer, or senior leader – the commitment of a leader to get their hands dirty is intimately connected to how well that… Read More »
[October 5, 2016] One of the great legends out of the Old West in America came about in the late 1800s when the infamous Dalton Gang terrorized the state of Oklahoma robbing and killing. Much has been written and movies made about the gang and their exploits but little on the townspeople who helped bring their activity to… Read More »
[October 4, 2016] One of my close friends confided in me the other day that during his travels he had been asking people who their heroes were and has done so for over 30 years. The results are a bit surprising but more on that later. What he discovered for himself – and now sharing with me –… Read More »
[October 3, 2016] There has been some talk recently about retired General David Petraeus’ comments on the causes of the formation of the terrorist organization known as the Islamic State (aka, ISIS or ISIL). Senior leaders with experience and a deep appreciation for solving wide-ranging and serious problems will say that it is not the defeat of the… Read More »
[October 2, 2016] It seemed so simple and yet so obviously necessary, yet no one had thought of it. South Korean President Park Geun-hye said, in a speech earlier this week, that she knows about the “gruesome realities” that North Koreans face daily and appealed to them to “Please come to the bosom of freedom in the South.”1 … Read More »