Some principles I admire from my military service

       A.  A commander is responsible for everything his unit does, or fails to do.

            B.  A commander must know about his unit, including knowing what is going on. Said another way, he or she must know it all. Not knowing is not an acceptable excuse.

            C.  Mission first. Said another way, getting the job done trumps all.

            D.  Sometimes you have to fire people, like ruin their lives.

            E.  Everyone knows personalities come into play. But the mission is always first.

            F.  Leadership by example is a big deal.

            G.  Never mix business with pleasure. Said another way, avoid situations where conflicts of interest can occur.

            H.  Keep people informed.

            I. Inspire trust, faith, and confidence by word, faith, and deed.

            J. Respect and promote Sunday hours. Most people need some mental and religious down time to improve their overall performance.

            K. Be honest all the time. Said another way, nobody wants to hear good news followed by a dead connection because the other end has been run over.

            M.  Said another way, provide honest reports so the decision makers can make good decisions.

            N.  Reinforce success, not failure.

            O.  The expression "this dog won't hunt" says a lot.

            P.  Recover our dead, as best we can. Fight to help people in distress, as best we can, too.

            Q.  Last consider the push-pull idea. Often it is called recon push and recon pull. Basically,  recon push means exploiting gaps developed by recon, and recon pull means exploiting gaps developed by recon, too, just in a different way. The concept works just fine, though often in the end we often have to fight for what we believe.

            R.  Going in harm's way is part of the job.

            S.  What do I know?  Who needs to know?  And have I told him?