[May 24, 2020] An Army Colonel once told me that his path to success had a lot to do with him stealing good ideas from others. Initially, I was shocked. But I realized that we all steal ideas all the time; we call this learning. We take the ideas of others, make them our own, and integrate them… Read More »
[May 22, 2020] There are times in our lives when we are trying something new and innovative that the old methods simply don’t work. In the military, when we are on the attack, one method of flushing out the enemy to force him into unexpected actions is reconnaissance by fire. Such a risky technique is what we’ve all… Read More »
[May 17, 2020] The seriousness of the current COVID-19 pandemic cannot be overlooked. However, there is a small but building counter-argument that the lockdowns established and enforced by state and local governments may have been an overreach. Today, I’ll be listing a few observations on the pandemic that are trending from medical, political, and legal organizations. “The most… Read More »
[May 13, 2020] Watching the news on television and reading local newspapers, I have become saturated with health professionals, politicians, and pundits that are encouraging fear. It matters not where I go for information or about what is happening anywhere in the world; there is a steady drumbeat of dire predictions that the world is about to come… Read More »
[May 12, 2020] One of the most challenging questions asked of me was what defines “evil.” Evil, and what it means and does not mean, has been a subject of human thinking since the beginning of our species. Today, I’ll address who I believe is the cruelest leader in the twentieth century, and in doing so, incorporate my… Read More »
[May 10, 2020] In the late 1960s, my friend Wilson and I watched an adventure television episode of The Rat Patrol. This television series loosely based on the actual World War II exploits of the allied Australian, New Zealander, and British defenders of Tobruk, Libya. The Siege of Tobruk by German forces in 1941, commanded by Field Marshall… Read More »
[May 6, 2020] I’ll be right upfront. Until last week, I’d never heard of the Flower Wars. The bias in my study of war has been colored by the classic predisposition to learn from European and Asian-centric warfare. Today, I’ll make up for this a bit by introducing Aztec warriors into my leadership blog. From the reconstruction of… Read More »
[May 3, 2020] For hundreds of thousands of years, flightless Dodo birds lived on the volcanic island of Mauritius. Without the threat of predators, the main competition for food was other Dodo birds. They thrived in that environment until Dutch sailors arrived in 1598. Within 80 years, these birds were extinct. The Dodo’s problem was isolation from the… Read More »
[April 30, 2020] “Boogie down” and “10-4, good buddy” are slang from the 70s and 80s. It sure is hard to forget them. There were four classic Vietnam War noir films from that era that also helped shape our culture, understanding of the war, and the American way of life. Drenched with atmosphere, suspense, and horror, these four… Read More »
[April 29, 2020] Senior leaders are experienced in resolving vague, uncertain, complex problems. Solving such issues will inevitably get supported or disagreement on its effectiveness, reliability, and appropriateness. When problems are highly complex, and there is time available, one way to overcome resistance is by socializing the new idea. One of the most significant decisions in the Iraq… Read More »