“I must study politics and war, that my sons may have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy…in order to give their children the right to study painting, poetry, and music.”
John Adams
“I offer neither pay, nor quarters, nor food; I offer only hunger, thirst, forced marches, battles, and death. Let him who loves his country with his heart, and not merely with his lips, follow me.”
Giuseppe Garibaldi
“I have seen competent leaders who stood in front of a platoon and all they saw was a platoon. But great leaders stand in front of a platoon and see it as forty-four individuals, each of whom has aspirations, each of whom wants to live, each of whom wants to do good.”
General Norman Schwarzkopf
While there are no perfect men, there are those who become relatively perfect leaders of men because something in their makeup brings out in strength the highest virtues of all who follow them. That is the way of human nature. Minor shortcomings do not impair the loyalty or growth of the follower who has found someone whose strengths he deems worth emulating. On the other hand, to recognize merit, you must yourself have it. The act of recognizing the worthwhile traits in another person is both the test and the making of character.
General S.L.A. Marshall
It’s improper for one person to take credit when it takes so many people to build a successful organization.
The importance of terrain is so incredibly simple that leaders often overlook its decisiveness. Once we progress out of the Platoon Leader days of land navigation, we think we have the terrain thing figured out.
Yet, history proves time and again that there is no other factor of war that can so quickly and destructively turn the tide of battle. As such, when reading this quote (again and again), leaders would do well to keep in mind the following:
You’ll need to read this General George C. Marshall quote several times to absorb all the lessons hidden within it.
When you are commanding, leading [soldiers] under conditions where physical exhaustion and privations must be ignored, where the lives of [soldiers] may be sacrificed, then, the efficiency of your leadership will depend only to a minor degree on your tactical ability. It will primarily be determined by your character, your reputation, not much for courage—which will be accepted as a matter of course—but by the previous reputation you have established for fairness, for that high-minded patriotic purpose, that quality of unswerving determination to carry through any military task assigned to you.
General George C. Marshall, Speaking to officer candidates in September 1941
Here are a few of the takeaways:
Be an example to your men, in your duty and in private life. Never spare yourself and let your troops see that you don’t in your endurance of fatigue and privation. Always be tactful and well-mannered. Avoid excessive sharpness or harshness of voice, which usually indicates the man who has shortcomings of his own to hide.
German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
Great leaders always seem to embody two seemingly disparate qualities. They are both highly visionary and highly practical. Their vision enables them to see beyond the immediate. They can envision what’s coming and what must be done. Leaders possess and understanding of how:
- Mission provides purpose – answering the question, Why?
- Vision provides a picture – answering the question, What?
- Strategy provides a plan – answering the question, How?
– John C. Maxwell in the The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership