[October 23, 2020] The first commander I had after my commissioning as an Army Officer was a man who was a big talker. He would talk for hours about our unit, how he had grand plans for being the best in the army, and how much we would enjoy doing our jobs. I wrote about this commander before, and regular readers will recognize him in this article. At the time, our Executive Officer told me that this commander was all talk and no action, so “don’t get too enthralled with his words.”
My memories at the time are clear. I didn’t trust this commander. After listening to him make promises and give us hope about the future and then fail to follow up, it was disappointing. More than disappointing, it made many unit members angry and frustrated. Morale began to drop, voluntary transfers out increased, and many senior NCOs put in their retirement paperwork.
Last night I listened to the U.S. Presidential debates between President Donald Trump and past. Vice President Joe Biden. It was an interesting format for a “debate,” but that is for another time and article. I found it interesting that Trump accused Biden of being nothing but a “typical politician [who was] all talk and no action.”
I point this out because the average person does not like leaders who talk but don’t fulfill their promises or carry out their duties. Joe Biden has been accused of this before by Trump. Regardless of our political stance on this issue, we all know that Trump’s particular line of attack is very effective. It’s most useful when another politician doesn’t have a robust political record.
Action is what we desire. Making things happen. Going the extra mile. These things matter a great deal to us all. No one is interested in the process leading up to the action; it is the ACTION itself that we most crave, and a leader’s INTENT is less relevant. My commander was full of good intentions, but getting from the thinking part to the action was missing.
A more recent example many readers may be familiar with is corporate social responsibility (CSR). It’s a burgeoning business model. Large companies adopting social-responsible policies and practices, creating planning committees, and advertising their CSR goals have been big businesses. It makes us all feel good. But what we are more likely to see is that there is no change in behavior.1
I saw a cartoon recently that pictured a dog “listening” to his owner. The man was saying, “Rover, good doggie, good boy, I’m your master, I’m good to you. I love you.” What the dog heard was “Rover, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah …” This cartoon reminded me of my commander; a failed leader.
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Joe Biden is the perfect example of someone who is all talk and no action. Closely tied to this idea is people lying. Just look at Biden who lied about his college degrees, his past associations, and his current scandal with taking money for favors as VP of the US.
So true. I’m amazed anyone with any sense could consider voting for such a man. He is also cognitively impaired. Just listen to him. If you deny this, you are lying to yourself.
Fun story, thank you Gen. Satterfield for showing us that even the best leaders sometimes talk more when they should be more involved in the ‘action.’
Newsweek
Ivanka Trump Calls Joe Biden ‘All Talk, No Action’, Says Father Ran Because of Politicians Like Him
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ivanka-trump-calls-joe-biden-all-talk-no-action-says-father-ran-because-of-politicians-like-him/ar-BB1ajEkT?ocid=uxbndlbing
Soooooo right!!!! Classic politician, all promises and gets nothing done and then blames the other political party for blocking them. In reality, they don’t want to make any changes.
This is the kind of article I come to https://www.theleadermaker.com to read. 👍
Me too…. worth it every time.
Pres Trump To Biden: “You Had 8 Years…You’re All Talk & No Action”
Just watch the video on YouTube and see it for yourself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BUno-0qlMQ
Hey thanks Otto for the research. I watched it a couple of times. Look at Joe Biden’s face. He looks like Trump hit him with a Mack truck.
Yeah, good one. Thanks Otto.
Wasn’t it great to see the expression on Joe BIden’s face. Now, you don’t have to like or hate him but you can see how effective the charge of all talk no action. Biden knows it’s a weakness he cannot overcome so he just denies it. Like his son Hunter (drug addict, womanizer, boozer …), Joe Biden is covering up one of the biggest scandals in US political history.
Great blog post today, Gen. Satterfield.
I guess that I will admit that I didn’t watch the debates last night but I did watch some media analysts go over it pretty thoroughly. You are right Gen. S. that Trump was hitting Biden hard for 47 years of “do nothing” politics. Very effective. But if you are ideologically a socialist, actions don’t matter anyway.
Best always to see it yourself. You cannot trust the media to give you a real look at what happened. They are in the tank for Biden and the Democrats.
Yes, don’t trust the media….they lie and they lie all the time.
Wow, and I was just thinking of last night’s debate too as soon as I read the title. 👍👍👍👍👍
LOL, thought your comment on the dog cartoon was great. I have a dog – actually named Rove – who makes me happy. I think he understands every word I say but in reality I know he does not. He mostly understands a few good words like “treat” “come” “fetch” “dinner” and “want to go out.” Ha Ha Ha Ha. Thank u for making my day. Now my Rover is sitting at my feet looking at me with doe eyes because he wants a treat.
That is the best kind of dog.
Loved the article, thanks Gen. Satterfield. I too watched the debates. I think Joe Biden did give Trump a run for his money (so to speak) but of course, Biden spent 5 days getting ready and I’m sure they gave Biden the questions in advance.
Probably so. The media in America cannot be trusted either. 😊
Yep, and I don’t see any change soon. They had better get a grip if they want my support.
Trust must be built upon real accomplishments not upon promises or good intentions.
Who hasn’t had a boss like that. All talk, no action. Wow, I mean that Gen. Satterfield surely hit the nail on the head with this posting today. Well done. Made me think back to my days working in retail where many of the managers are just teenagers who’ve been there a couple of months longer than you.
Ha Ha, great article. Reminds me of my team leader when I first went to work in a local manufacturing plant. I got out of there and went to school and got a better job. He was always making promises and never following thur. I hate that kind of boss.
Yeah, I know what you mean. Somehow they are breaking the basic bond among people by lying (not really lying but in effect lying).
We all had those kinds of “leaders.” They aren’t really leaders but just cardboard cutouts.