Leadership 101: Are leaders born or made?
By W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Are leaders born or made? Should we even be asking the question?
We often talk about natural or “born leaders.” And there are persons with innate leadership traits to be sure. But no leader worth his or her salt exists without training and conditioning. And no leader will ever grow without experience and, yes, refining in the furnace of challenge and crisis.
So let’s get to the question, or – if you will – the debate. Perhaps there are variables that suggest some leaders are born to lead. But according to at least one expert, the born-vs.-made debate is fraught with problems for both those who will be led and the organization as a whole; and we’ll address those problems in a bit.
THE SO-CALLED BORN LEADER
We first begin to recognize leaders among our contemporaries as children in the schoolyard. Always there are one or two kids who immediately “assume command.” For them, leadership seems so effortless. That’s because children who lead are indeed born-leaders for lack of a better term. At the schoolyard level, that’s all they really can be. But the child-leader is born-to-lead only in a primal and frequently very temporary sense.
In: Articles · Tagged with: Leadership 101, W. Thomas Smith Jr.
‘War on Terror is over’ quote draws parallels to Orwell
In the world of George Orwell’s dystopian novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, three world powers – Oceania, Eastasia, and Eurasia – were in a continual state of conflict:
At this moment, for example, in 1984 (if it was 1984), Oceania was at war with Eurasia and in alliance with Eastasia. In no public or private utterance was it ever admitted that the three powers had at any time been grouped along different lines. Actually, as Winston well knew, it was only four years since Oceania had been at war with Eastasia and in alliance with Eurasia. But that was merely a piece of furtive knowledge, which he happened to possess because his memory was not satisfactorily under control. Officially the change of partners had never happened. Oceania was at war with Eurasia: therefore, Oceania had always been at war with Eurasia.
Just as Oceania did in the book, the U.S. has fought prolonged conflicts with unclear objectives.
Now, the U.S. draws another parallel from Orwell’s classic: a sudden, unexplained shift in the status of the conflict and our enemy. Last week, a State Department member had this to say to The National Journal:
“The War on Terror is over. Now that we have killed most of al Qaeda, now that people have come to see legitimate means of expression, people who once might have gone into al Qaeda see an opportunity for legitimate Islamism.”
It seems that our politicians have decided that the war is no longer politically expedient and that some of our enemies (enemies by their own declaration) can legitimately pursue their objectives.
The State Department official must feel our memories are sufficiently “under control.” It unfortunately appears as if they are partially correct, at least with a large enough portion of the population to make the case stick.
But how is the War on Terror over? We didn’t officially declare the war and we can’t decide when the actual struggle will end. So how do we, by a simple declaration, make it go away? We tried this once before in 1973 with Vietnam. That war did eventually halt – two years later. The communists won.
Leadership 101: Procrastination and Presence
By W. Thomas Smith Jr.
British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, arguably one of the greatest leaders in recorded history, valued time more than any other resource available to him. Churchill embraced time, never wasting an hour – often to the detriment of his health – and he refused to tolerate procrastination in any form, at any level, from any of his subordinates. He knew full-well procrastination meant failure and death; particularly in the time in history in which he was operating.
At some point in 1941, during the second year of Britain’s direct-involvement in World War II, Churchill began forwarding documents, dispatches, and memoranda affixed with a red sticker (similar to our modern day sticky notes) on which he had written three simple words, “ACTION THIS DAY.” This he did for the remainder of the war.
Time in war – just as time is in all high-stakes endeavors – is frequently that which decides the fate of nations. Sounds a bit dramatic, but it’s true. All truly great commanders and other leaders factor in the variable of time with the related variables of space, terrain, economy, chance, opportunity, risk, surprise, destiny and others. And time is always the most important variable.
When we look at the principles of war (which we will examine in greater detail in a forthcoming lesson) – depending on what nation’s principles – we see that time is either a principle, a sub-principle, or it is an unwritten absolute always factoring into a principle.
TIME IS the phantom cost
Napoleon, at the height of a battle in 1803, purportedly said to a courier (just before sending that courier off with a message for one of his subordinate commanders), “Go, sir, gallop, and don’t forget the world was made in six days. You may ask me for anything you like except time.”
In: Articles · Tagged with: Leadership 101, W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Random baseball knowledge
Fernando Tatis as a Cardinal
On Apr. 23, 1999, Cardinals third baseman Fernando Tatis hit two grand slams against the Dodgers… in the same inning! Tatis is the only baseball player in major league history to ever do that. Every time my dad and I went to a game, Tatis somehow always came through with an incredible performance.
And this from Twitter for all you Albert Pujols fans: the Angels have paid Pujols $1,377,049 for no homers & 4 RBIs. Although he’s no longer a Cardinal, he is still the best player in the game and a great guy. Glad he’s getting a new start with the Angels. I just hope he goes into the Hall of Fame as a Cardinal.
Former congressional candidate slams troops
Did you know that members of the military are individuals of lesser “resources, breeding, or ambition”? Mande Wilkes, a former candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives thinks so, publishing this at FITSNEWS.COM on Sunday:
It used to be that everybody who was anybody enlisted in the military. Nowadays, everybody who’s nobody serves – a natural consequence of incentivizing service with signing bonuses, comped education, and plush pensions. Not to mention that for those in the U.S. illegally, the incentives are that much more attractive – a respectable way to root into jobs that wouldn’t otherwise be accessible.
So, what used to be a military made up of statesmen has devolved into a force comprised of men who have few alternatives but to enlist. Rather than the symbol of nobility it once was, military service has become almost a scarlet letter of sorts – signifying an individual of lesser resources, breeding, or ambition.
Wilkes’ platform: ” Individual liberty. Personal responsibility. Independence.” And labeling our troops a inferior mongrel breed of humans. I know the Islamists say we are descendants of apes and pigs, but it doesn’t have that same folksy charm coming from a Republican.
And plush pensions? Let’s break out the soldier effigies!
What Ms. Wilkes – and so many others who continue to dishonor our troops – miss is how rarely our troops commit atrocities. Well over 1 million Americans have served in Iraq and Afghanistan (many serving multiple tours) over the last 10-plus years, and how many actual events have there been? The fact that we have to define atrocity down to “things done in poor taste” – like posing with dead insurgents – shows how honorable the men and women of our Armed Forces actually are.
Take two 18-year-old high school graduates: One joins the military and becomes a crew chief for a tens-of-millions-of-dollars helicopter after a few weeks of “basic” training. The other goes to college for the better part of a decade, staying on mom’s health insurance until the age 26, before collecting unemployment because the $100,000 white-collar non-profit jobs are all spoken for. The only “occupying” he is likely to do involves drum circles and smearing feces on cop cars.
All military officers have college degrees. And most enlisted personnel obtain a degree while they are serving. Many more get a degree after leaving the service. Who has more “resources” or ambition”?
Plus, the Department of Justice’s own crime statistics show that a veteran is 82% less likely to commit a crime than a civilian.
Wilkes’ message of calling those who have sacrificed so much in this war a bunch of mongrel nobodies would be better suited for a cave complex in Waziristan. Or in Chicago’s Hyde Park, if Bill Ayers was hosting. But it is downright disturbing when a self-proclaimed “conservative” from South Carolina is bashing our troops.
And if anyone deserves the “scarlet letter,” it’s the politicians, not the troops.
Apr. 22 in US Military History
1863: Union Col. Benjamin Grierson begins a two-week raid through Mississippi cutting the state’s telegraph lines, destroying two trainloads of Confederate ammunition, destroying 50 miles of railroad, killing 100 and capturing 500 Confederates – at the cost of three wounded, seven wounded, and 14 missing.
1898: President William McKinley orders a naval blockade of Cuba.
1915: German forces introduce poison gas when they fire over 150 tons of chlorine gas, devastating the French line at Ypres, Belgium.
1944: American soldiers land in New Guinea for Operations RECKLESS and PERSECUTION, beginning a three month battle that would claim the lives of 12,811 of the original 15,000 Japanese troops, compared to only 527 Americans.
1945: Adolf Hitler confides to his aides in his underground bunker that the war is lost and suicide is his only option. He will kill himself in eight days.
1987: The U.S. Navy is ordered to provide assistance to neutral vessels under Iranian attack.
2004: Pat Tillman, who left a multi-million dollar career in professional football to join the Army Rangers, is killed while on patrol in eastern Afghanistan.
Adapted (and abridged) in part from “This Week in US Military History” by W. Thomas Smith Jr. at Human Events.
In: Military History · Tagged with: W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Col. Harry S. Truman, USA
Capt. Truman, circa 1918 (Source: The Truman Library)
Did you know that President Harry S. Truman fought during World War I?
Truman joined the Missouri National Guard in 1905. When the U.S. entered World War I in 1917, Capt. Truman commanded Battery D, 129th Field Artillery, part of the 35th Infantry Division. From “The Soldier from Independence: Harry S. Truman and the Great War”:
Truman’s battery was frequently employed well forward. He was detailed to provide fire support for George S. Patton’s tank brigade during the Meuse-Argonne offensive, engaged German field guns and was credited with either wiping out or forcing the permanent abandonment of two complete batteries. When firing on these and other targets, he disobeyed orders and fired “out of sector” against threats to his division’s open flank. Truman’s 35th Division, a National Guard formation made up of units from Missouri and Kansas, suffered grievously in that battle, and the battery of the man who would later order the dropping of the atomic bombs was sited approximately 150 yards forward of where Patton was wounded in an area referred to by one artilleryman as “a cemetery of unburied dead.”
The more I find out about Harry Truman, the more I like him. Truman remained an officer in the Field Artillery Reserve until retiring as a colonel in 1953.
In: Military History · Tagged with: George S. Patton, Harry S. Truman, World War I
Apr. 21 in US Military History
1777: British Army forces led by Gen. William Tyon attempt to destroy the village of Danbury, Conn. Much of the town is burned before Continental forces can arrive several days later.
1836: Described as “one of the biggest military upsets in the [western] hemisphere,” Texas Army forces under the command of Gen. Sam Houston decisively defeat Mexican forces under Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna in the bloody Battle of San Jacinto. The fighting is grim – much of it hand-to-hand – but it is over in less than 20 minutes. Houston is wounded. Santa Anna, hiding and dressed in a common soldier’s uniform, will be captured the following day.
The Mexican Army is finished. Texas independence is secured.
1898: America declares war on Spain. The following day, U.S. Navy warships begin blockading Cuba, and USS Nashville (one of five so-named American warships, including two Confederate vessels of the same name) fires the first official shots of the war.
1918: German flying ace Manfred von Richtofen, known as the “Red Baron,” is shot down and killed near Vaux-sur-Somme, France. Richtofen’s 80 kills were the most by any pilot during World War I.
1951: Marine pilots from the USS Bataan splash three Yak fighters and damage another in the first aerial clash with the North Korean Air Force.
Adapted (and abridged) in part from “This Week in US Military History” by W. Thomas Smith Jr. at Human Events.
In: Military History · Tagged with: W. Thomas Smith Jr.
West Side Park, the Cubs’ old stadium
The Cubs haven’t won a title since moving to their “new” stadium 99 years ago. In fact, the last time they won the World Series was in 1908 – they also won in 1907. In fact, from 1906-1910 the Cubs went to the series four out of five years, winning twice. But that was a long time ago. A very long time ago.
But enough Cub-bashing – I came across an old panoramic photo of the Cubs’ last stadium, West Side Park, a wooden ballpark which stood just west of Little Italy. The photo’s caption reads “City Championship Series” – Oct. 10, 1909. Cap Anson was long gone and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson wasn’t playing yet, but it would have been something to watch Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers, and Frank Chance (of the famous Tinkers – to Evers – to Chance double play combination) in action.
Panoramic photo of Chicago's West Side Park in 1909. Click on the photo to see the high-resolution version. (Source: Library of Congress)
Apr. 20 in US Military History
1861: A reluctant Col. Robert E. Lee – forced to choose between the United States and his home state Virginia – resigns his commission in the U.S. Army. In three days, Lee will accept command of Virginia state forces. He is destined to become general-in-chief of Confederate forces.
1861: Norfolk Navy Yard is abandoned and burned by Union forces.
1945: As Adolf Hitler celebrates his 56th birthday, the U.S. flag is raised over Nuremberg Stadium – site of the Nazi party rallies. Following five days of heavy fighting, 7th Army forces have captured Nuremberg.
1947: U.S. Navy Capt. L.O. Fox, supported by 80 Marines, accepts the surrender of Lt. Yamaguchi and 26 Japanese soldiers and sailors on the island of Peleliu, nearly 20 months after the end of World War II.
In: Military History
