Jim Staviridis’ gift to bookavores everywhere, The Leader’s Bookshelf is a difficult one on which to provide notes because it is so packed with great and essential material. What Stavridis and former Navy PAO R. Ancell have done is put together a Top 50 reading list for military leaders--they accomplished this feat by surveying hundreds of senior military leaders. The final list, though, only took into account the inputs of the more than 200 4-star officers surveyed. The authors then compiled the most frequently cited titles and ranked them by frequency of citation.I’ve only read about 12 of the 50 which lean a little too heavily toward the Civil War (5 of the 50, not including three on Lincoln). Each of the 50 books includes a prelude on its importance written by one of the surveyed 4 star officers.
The distribution of preludes by service follows:
6 Air Force
16 Navy
9 Marine Corps
18 Army
1 Coast Guard
He also devotes a chapter to an unofficial survey of junior officers and provides a short summaries of the titles that are most often listed. One of the strengths of this book is that it provides a framework to analyze future books. The author’s systematic approach to reading provides a useful framework for anyone desiring to better digest and use what they read. In particular, Stavridis notes the Marine Corps methodology in setting the standard in creating tiered reading lists.
As a FAO, I enjoyed Staviridis’ analyses that repeatedly noted the need for regional expertise (across the spectrum of history and literature) to better inform national strategic decision-making.
Key Quotes:
- “To be a good soldier you must love the army. To be a good commander, you must be willing to order the death of the thing you love.” -Robert E. Lee (16)
- There are certain wicked people in the world that you can’t deal with except by force.” -John Keegan (39)
- “The Americans have all the watches, but we have all the time.” -Taliban saying (45)
- “Military operations alone cannot defeat an insurgency because only economic development and political action can address most sources of disaffection.” -H.R. McMaster (48)
- “What constitutes defeats? The conquest of his whole territory is not always necessary, and total occupation of his territory may not be enough.” -Carl von Clausewitz (52)
- “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” -Dwight D. Eisenhower (67)
- “In the military services...the main rewards go to him who can make other men feel toughened as well as elevated.” -S.L.A. Marshall (71)
- “Politics is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year. And to have the ability to explain why it didn’t happen.” -Winston Churchill (78)
- “The buck stops here.” -Plaque on President Truman’s Oval Office desk (81)
- “In a man-to-man fight, the winner is he who has one more round in his magazine.” -Erwin Rommel (83)
- “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” -Stephen R. Covey (86)
- “Let no officer keep to himself or his brother officers, but circulate daylong among his men.” -King Leonidas of Sparta (109)
- If there is no work, make it up...action, on the other hand, produces the appetite for more action.” -King Leonidas of Sparta (109)
- “A king does not expend his substance to enslave men, but by his conduct and example makes them free.” -King Leonidas of Sparta (111)
- “The opposite of fear is not courage--it is love [of a fellow soldier].” -King Leonidas of Sparta (111)
- “Molon labe”--”Come and take them.” -King Leonidas in response to Xerxes call to lay down his arms (111).
- “My concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” -Abraham Lincoln (113)
- “My best friend is a person who will give me a book I have not read.” -Abraham Lincoln (116)
- “Be with a leader when he is right, stay with him when he is still right, but leave him when he is wrong.” -Abraham Lincoln (116)
- “Every man’s happiness is his own responsibility.” -Abraham Lincoln (116)
- “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” -Abraham Lincoln (117)
- “The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend.” -Abraham Lincoln (117)
- “The best to predict your future is to create it.” -Abraham Lincoln (117)
- “Preparation equals performance.” -Admiral James Loy, USCG Commandant
- “Outside solutions unanchored by an understanding of a given regional system are almost always doomed to fail.” -Admiral Jim Stavridis, commenting on A Peace to End all Peace.
- “In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him. I think it’s impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves. And then, in that very moment when I love them...I destroy them.” -Ender Wiggins in Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game (174).
- “[Matterhorn] is a novel about a young man learning compassion in the middle of a war.” -LtCol Ralph Peters (176).
- “Matterhorn... is the first great [novel about the Vietnam War] and I doubt it will ever be surpassed.” - Mark Bowdren, author of Blackhawk Down (177).
- Attack rapidly, ruthlessly, viciously, without rest, however tired and hungry you may be. The enemy will be most tired, and more hungry. Keep punching.” -Patton (182)
- “No good decision was ever made in a swivel chair.” -Patton (182)
Key Takeaways:
- The best leaders are forged through practice--both heredity and environment matters (1)
- Central value to reading lies in one’s ability to live vicariously through others’ experiences and evaluate ourselves and how we would react to their challenges (3).
- In reading about our heroes we are able to ID their leadership traits and replicate them (4).
- A carefully crafted daily routine is a key enabler to productivity. Stavridis recounts his as he runs through what he reads and does over his first two cups of coffee everyday. You’ll find the power of a routine centrally cited by productivity gurus from Tim Ferris to Cal Newport (you can read more about Newport’s amazing Deep Work
here) (8)
- Nimitz’ transformative belief in second chances is especially relevant today in a zero-defect military promotion system (59).
- Rommel: Leaders are good observers first (85).
- Repeat back what you hear to make sure you understand (87).
- Creative solution-making and cultural understanding are inexorably linked (Key FAO Trait) (93).
- Mark Twain: Leaders duty to challenge “tradition”...what are the ancient and incorrect traditions today in the Navy and FAO community? (135).
- Leaders bring order from chaos (155).
- “[Matterhorn
] is a novel about a young man learning compassion in the middle of a war.” -LtCol Ralph Peters (176).
- I combined all the leadership principles and lessons from the various noted books below:
- Give offense to no one
- Take personal responsibility
- Develop real human relationships
- Know when to delegate
- Keep your enemy off balance
- Intelligence is vital
- Keys to victory
- Confidence as force multiplier
- Simplicity matters when plans are assembled
- Lead as servant and protector
- Dream
- Good leaders can never rest of their laurels
- Leaders reach for the stars
- Delegation is crucial
- Focus on the objective
- Leaders must be determined
- Be proactive
- Begin with the end in mind
- Put first things first
- Think win/win
- Seek first to understand
- Synergize--getting the mix right
- Sharpen the saw--constant improvement
- Do the Right Thing (integrity)
- Master the Situation (action)
- Serve the greater good (selflessness)
- Speak your mind (principle of candor)
- Lay the Groundwork (be prepared)
- Share knowledge (share to make others better)
- Choose and reward the right people (principle of fairness)
- Focus on the big picture (delegate at the next level, i.e., operational or tactical)
- Support the troops (principle of caring)
- Carve out time to read
- Find the time to think after you read
- Speak and write with simplicity and precision
- Be humble and use humor often
- Focus and prioritize
- Stay physically fit
- Be your own spokesperson
- Spend the most time on personnel matters
- Have a relaxing weekend routine
- Don’t lunge at the ball
- Details matter but think big thoughts
- Understand the process (before you criticize it)
- Look at the law or regulation for yourself
- Organize yourself
- Make mentorship a priority
- Avoid refusing to delegate
- Avoid losing patience with people
- Avoid obsessing over little things that don’t matter in the long run
- Avoid working to exhaustion
- Give the right people second chances
- Act with honor, hope and generosity
- Listen first, then speak
- You have a duty to challenge “tradition”
- Beirut known as the “Paris of the East” (91)
- Stoic Greek philosophers (97)
- Marshall Biography (125)
- Middle East good book combo: Beirut to Jerusalem and (140)
- Balkan Ghosts: book to read for Albania and Croatia (149)
- LeMay a 4-star at 44 years old! (165)
- Patton and past lives--very weird (181)
- Good book to read: Commander in Chief: FDR (203)
- Tiered FAO Reading List (211-16)
- U.S. Naval Institute “Young Leaders” Group led or started by now RADM Fred Kacher (226)
- Generalship, Its Diseases and Their cures
(243)
- Scipio Africanus: Greater Than Napoleon
(246-7)
- Question for Mattis: What are the great American West books that you have read (249)
- Sailing to Ithaca Poem (264)
8 Incorporate daily reading of Le Figaro into my routine: http://www.lefigaro.fr/
10 Stavridis as avid consumer of poetry and Proceedings
11 Becoming a better leader requires reading books
25 Leaders must act with honor, hope and generosity--apart from circumstances
34 Lincoln’s 4 Principles:
- Give offense to no one
- Take personal responsibility
- Develop real human relationships
- Know when to delegate
- Keep your enemy off balance
- Intelligence is vital
- Keys to victory
- Confidence as force multiplier
- Simplicity matters when plans are assembled
- Lead as servant and protector
- Dream
51 Leaders must cultivate the shared sense of a common objective
56-7 Clausewitz’s 5 lessons:
- Good leaders can never rest of their laurels
- Leaders reach for the stars
- Delegation is crucial
- Focus on the objective
- Leaders must be determined
60 Japan made three mistakes at Pearl Harbor:
- Attacking on Sunday morning when most sailors were ashore on leave
- Not destroying dry docks that we used for ship repair
- Not attacking fuel storage tanks located five miles away
66 Grant’s keys: Determination to succeed, delegate, and humility
70 Eisenhower: Good leaders build teams
74 Small unit leadership is the heart of all leadership
81 Truman: Leaders don’t please everyone
81 Truman: Role of pragmatism in leadership
83 Rommel: importance of reconnaissance and boldness in war
85 Rommel: Leaders are good observers first
87-88 7 habits:
- Be proactive
- Begin with the end in mind
- Put first things first
- Think win/win
- Seek first to understand
- Synergize--getting the mix right
- Sharpen the saw--constant improvement
89 “trust account”--built up through cooperation and bridges
89 Listen first--then speak
93 Creative solution-making and cultural understanding are inexorably linked--FAO
103 Logistics lost the battle at Dien Bien Phu
108 Lee: Build depth, don’t depend on any one subordinate too much--this was part
of Lee’s downfall
115 Lincoln used MWBA--management by wandering around (75% of time spent
meeting with people)
120 Lincoln’s excellence was in team building: “harnessing” brilliant people
127-8 Marshall: 9 principles
- Do the Right Thing (integrity)
- Master the Situation (action)
- Serve the greater good (selflessness)
- Speak your mind (principle of candor)
- Lay the Groundwork (be prepared)
- Share knowledge (share to make others better)
- Choose and reward the right people (principle of fairness)
- Focus on the big picture (delegate at the next level, i.e., operational or tactical)
- Support the troops (principle of caring)
143 Bottom up solutions are the best
148 Wicked problems--sometimes requires more than just a military OR a civil-military
solution
151 study past but don’t be imprisoned by it
155 Leaders bring order from chaos
157 Focus on 1 key objective and hammer at it relentlessly
158 360 degree relationship management
245 Every one of Mattis’ boss had a reading list for his subordinates
250 Stavridis' key lessons for senior leaders
- Carve out time to read
- Find the time to think after you read
- Speak and write with simplicity and precision
- Be humble and use humor often
- Focus and prioritize
- Stay physically fit
- Be your own spokesperson
- Spend the most time on personnel matters
- Have a relaxing weekend routine
- Don’t lunge at the ball
- Details matter but think big thoughts
- Understand the process (before you criticize it)
- Look at the law or regulation for yourself
- Organize yourself
- Make mentorship a priority
- Avoid refusing to delegate
- Avoid losing patience with people
- Avoid obsessing over little things that don’t matter in the long run
- Avoid working to exhaustion
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