CategoryLeadership

Decisions – Leadership Lessons from D-Day

3 Min read

D-day arrived on June 6, 1944 and the cross channel assault, part of Operation Overlord, began and changed the course of World War II. Because no operation ever goes as planned, the leaders that day were faced with a barrage of unimaginable decisions in order reduce the loss of life yet protect the goals of the operation.

20140606-201602-72962546.jpg

During his address to the House of Commons that same day, Winston Churchill expressed his confidence in the Supreme Commander’s abilities. Addressing the weather and other unpredictable aspects of both the airborne and amphibious landing operations he said:

General Eisenhower’s courage is equal to all the necessary decisions that have to be taken in these extremely difficult and uncontrollable matters.

These decision amid extremes were likely what General Eisenhower had in the forefront of his mind when he proclaimed that

When you come right down to it, leadership is, of course, being exerted all of the time in the capacity of boosting morale, confidence, and all that, but leadership is most noticeable when tough decisions have to be made…. But making decisions is the essence of leadership; that is, handling large problems whether at war or peace. (As recorded in a personal interview by Edgar P. Puryear, May 2, 1962)

These decisions are the unglamorous part of being a leader the public rarely sees. Even though they may become routine, even in rough situations, decisions are rarely made between two clear choices.

The choice of timing the invasion is a good example of huge decisions made on unclear information. The allied forces had just a few days each month when all of the tide and moonlight conditions were optimal for the landings. However, when the first dates arrived the weather was poor. With assurances but not guarantees the conditions would improve General Eisenhower made the decision to commence operations, setting D-day to the 6th of June. Had he decided to delay (a very safe decision) the next window of opportunity was two weeks away (the weather was worse on those days). To accentuate how unclear the weather predictions were, the Germans believed the weather was too poor for operations making allied attack improbable. So most leaders were gone and many troops were given leave.

The leadership lessons from D-day:
1. Leadership is difficult work.
2. Decisions making is the essence of leadership
3. Decisions are never clear
4. Leaders are lonely – ultimately only one person decides

Read later

Leadership is hard

1 Min read

I learned that leadership is hard.  Leadership sounds easy in the books, but it is quite difficult in real life.  I learned that leadership is difficult because it is a human interaction and nothing, nothing is more daunting, more frustrating more complex than trying to lead men and women in tough times.

I learned that you won’t get a lot of thanks in return.  I learned that you shouldn’t expect it.

I learned that the great leaders know how to fail.  If you can’t stomach failure, then you will never be a great leader.

Admiral William Harry McRaven, US Special Operations Command, in a speech at the United States Military Academy, January 18, 2014

 

Read later

The Army Leader is a Teaching Leader

3 Min read

Over a decade of war has changed the fabric of the U.S. armed forces.  Short mobilization cycles and changing theater tactics necessitated the development of a learning culture within the organizations.  This learning culture, however, is fundamentally NOT the culture that has sustained our premier forces throughout our history.  As the armed forces move into a garrison environment and resources diminish, it is time for the culture to shift back to what we fundamentally are…a teaching culture.

General Colin Powell, in his autobiography It Worked for Me: In Life and Leadership, explains that he has been a professional speaker, trainer, and teacher his entire adult career.  He explains

From my first day in my unit as an Army officer, I had to speak to and teach troops.

General Powell built his success on the enduring Army culture where leaders teach troops and other leaders.  They not only learn they pass knowledge on.  Instilling the desire to improve and learn is the important part of any the learning culture; A teaching organization further infuses learning with the culture of passing it on to others.  Noel Tichy, author of the Leadership Engine puts it this way:

(Organizations) that consistently outperform competitors (have) moved beyond being learning organizations to become teaching organizations….That’s because teaching organizations are more agile, come up with better strategies, and are able to implement them more effectively…. Teaching organizations do share with learning organizations the goal that everyone continually acquire new knowledge and skills. But to do that, they add the more critical goal that everyone pass their learning on to others…. In a teaching organization, leaders benefit just by preparing to teach others. Because the teachers are people with hands-on experience within the organization—rather than outside consultants—the people being taught learn relevant, immediately useful concepts and skills. Teaching organizations are better able to achieve success and maintain it because their constant focus is on developing people to become leaders.

In short, leaders train leaders. (more…)

Read later

On Hard Work

1 Min read

I decided long ago . . . to define my own destiny and refuse to have it defined for me. I fully understand that trying hard doesn’t always guarantee success. Success is often a fluky thing, dependent as much on luck and favor as on hard work. But while hard work may not guarantee success, not working hard almost always guarantees failure.

Trying hard and working hard is its own reward. It feeds the soul. It affirms your will and your power. And it radiates from you, lighting the way for all those who see you.

Charles M. Blow, American journalist and columnist for the New York Times

Read later

Honored to serve

1 Min read

“I didn’t join to be honored, I was just honored to serve” Staff Sergeant Clint Rutherford, two time Purple Heart recipient speaking at his retirement

Read later

Leadership Definition: LTG(r) Russel Honoré

1 Min read

The art and science of influencing others to willingly follow you.

20130725-095954.jpg

Leadership is more than influence. Influence without will leads to things being partially completed or poorly complete leading to even more problems. The real challenge of a leader is to inspire people to want to accomplish goals.

Inspire.

Read later

Ultimate Powers of Society

1 Min read

I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise that control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them but inform their discretion. Thomas Jefferson (quoted in The Making of The Atomic Bomb – Richard Rhoades)

Read later

Leadership: Balancing Influence and Control

1 Min read

In the exercise of leadership, leaders must skillfully balance the art of influence and the science of control to accomplish targeted goals.  Too much control and subordinates become task driven, lose the will to exercise initiative, and constantly look to the leader for further instructions.  On the other hand, influence without control builds highly motivated teams that lack cohesive focus towards a common goal.  Balancing these two extremes challenges every leader’s ability to direct subordinates while allowing disciplines initiative.  Successful leaders build focused and adaptive teams through:

  1. Vision
  2. Trust
  3. Understanding
  4. Initiative
  5. Communication
  6. Prudent Risk
Read later

Sleep to be an Effective Leader

3 Min read

20130117-200134.jpgI’m writing in the Washington National Airport early in the morning after a routine pre-flight night of restless sleep (about 2 hours worth). I’m tired and not very interested in doing much of anything. The culture in which I work places an informal value on early mornings, long work days, and late nights. It a badge of honor to say you’ve been awake for numbers of hours. My formal leadership training taught me to believe that a leader only needs four hours of sleep to be effective, a mantra I use to motivate myself late at night. Turns out, that’s all wrong.

Nicholas Hughes’ Good piece on How I Made Sleep a Priority – and Got More Productive opened my eyes (sorry for the pun) to what I had suspected was true, sleep matters…a lot. Its especially important to manage sleep as we age and deep sleep becomes more difficult. Hughes’ article as well as the 2006 Harvard Business Review article he references left me with some points to consider for my personal and corporate sleep management:

1. Sufficient, effective sleep makes helps you be more productive.

2. Insufficient sleep is hazardous to your health. The tragedies associated with driving while sleep impaired are well known. But we tend to thing we aren’t the ones at risk. However, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that each year drowsy driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities anyway. Not only may the effects of sleep deprivation be irreversible, but chronic deprivation may lead to long-term health issues:

Many people gain weight as they age, too. Interestingly, chronic sleep restriction increases levels of appetite and stress hormones; it also reduces one’s ability to metabolize glucose and increases the production of the hormone ghrelin, which makes people crave carbohydrates and sugars, so they get heavier, which in turn raises the risk of sleep apnea, creating a vicious cycle. Harvard Business Review

3. Personal sleep management is deliberate. Instead of a catch-as-catch-can sleep plan, leaders should adhere to a strict sleep plan that is compatible with your work schedule and personal preferences. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the National Sleep Foundation recommend these tips on hacking effective sleep:
– maintain a regular sleep schedule
– establish a pre-sleep routine that prepares you for deep sleep
– create an environment that is comfortable and conducive to sleep
– exercise regularly but avoid vigorous exercise within a few hours of bedtime.

4. Corporate sleep management is deliberate. HBR recommends that companies formalize the importance of sleep and make productive sleep a part of the culture. Leaders can implement (and enforce) policies that contribute to the culture:
– limit hours worked to 12 per day and 60 per week. Only exceptionally allow 16 hour days
– require one day off per week, two is better
– avoid extreme flight schedules such as red-eye flights, single day trips, or complicated connections.
– allow a day of rest after an international flight

Sleep well!

Read later

Calendar

January 2025
S M T W T F S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031