Extreme Ownership
Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
Ineffective leaders do neither of those things.
Leaders are not driven by personal agendas or ego, they thrive on winning as a team.
Principle: Ownership rests with the leader and one else. If anything goes wrong there is no one to blame.
There no bad teams, only bad leaders. Leadership is the single greatest factor in any team’s success.
Extreme ownership is not allowing sub-standard performance, setting high expectations. It’s not what you preach, it’s what you tolerate.
Principle: In order to convince others to follow orders and head into battle, a leader must be a true believer of the mission.
Principle: Ego clouds and disrupts everything. Cover and move = as a leader you need to look out for the team, but not your immediate team, the entire team. The whole of the organization in business.
Principle: Combat, like anything in life, has inherent levels of difficulty. Simplicity is crucial to success. Otherwise, orders get miscommunicated.
Relax, look around, and make a call. Focus on the highest priority task and form a game plan to complete that task.
Decentralized command. One leader should really only be in charge of 4 to 6 subordinates maximum. Anymore and then you’ll have to add an additional leader.
“Those who do not take risks cannot win.” – John Paul Jones, the founder of the modern United States Navy.
One of the keys of plans in leadership is to allow your subordinates to plan the details while you see the bigger picture. Give them the ability to plan the minutiae so that you can focus on the bigger vision.
One of the most important jobs of any leader is to support your own boss. Leadership doesn’t go just down the chain, it goes up the chain as well.
Make the efforts and go to the lengths to educate your boss on how you intend to make decisions thereby making it easier for them to trust your decision-making skills and respect you.
Your first test in the morning should be in setting your alarm clocks. Navy SEALs set three alarms clocks; one battery-powered, one electric, and one wind up. The question is “When that alarm goes off do you hit the snooze button?” If you do, you failed mentally and you are mentally weak.
The best Navy Seals that the authors worked with were those that woke up every morning early in the morning in order to get their jobs done. They were the best shots, in the best shape, and the best overall because they had extra free time to put in the work.
Principle: Leaders walk a thin line. Confident but never cocky. Emotional sometimes, not emotionless. Aggressive but not over-aggressive. Humble but not passive. Nothing to prove but everything to lose.