• I talk about what it means to be human and what it means to be kind to others.
  • There’s a demand for my work, and that means we don’t run across a lot of people who do these things.
  • I met a guy from the US Air Force, and in August 2002 he was flying above Afghanistan. They hear a call saying, “troops in contact.”

  • He sees fire coming from both sides of the valley. All he has is an old Russian map. He counts out loud to avoid hitting the mountain.
  • That night, 22 Americans went home without any casualties. This pilot is really down to earth. He’s just doing his job. He’s not asking for anything.
  • When asked why he did it, he says, “Because they would have done it for me.”

 

  • These people are willing to sacrifice their lives for people they sometimes don’t even like.
  • It’s the environment. We all have the capacity to do this. We are social animals.
  • Our behavior is based on our environment. We’re capable of great things and horrible things. Leaders set the tone.

 

  • By ourselves, we’re useless. In groups, we are remarkable.
  • A team of believers is behind every good leader.
  • Why should anyone sacrifice for you?

 

  • The circle of safety. Everything is uncertain. We can only control the environment inside the organization.
  • It’s like parenting. Your instinct would be to throw yourself on top of your child to save them in danger. It’s the leader’s instinct to sacrifice your people to save them.
  • Mass layoffs in order to balance the books is a relatively new phenomenon. What about the people who kept their jobs? Does that feel safe?

 

  • We react to the environment we’re in. We become paranoid.
  • If you have to send a ‘CYA’ email, you don’t work in a trusting environment.
  • Bob believed in heart counts not head counts. Everyone would have to take 4 weeks of unpaid vacation rather than making everyone suffer a lot. Morale went up.

 

  • Those who could afford it more would give their time to those who could afford it less.
  • The leader goes first. That’s why we call them that.
  • Only one characteristic of a leader, and it’s courage. Leadership is a risk. It’s hard work.

 

  • Leadership is taking care of others.
  • Officers eat last in the Marine Corps. Most junior person eats first. It’s not in any rule book though. Leadership is a responsibility and not a rank.
  • When we’re willing to eat last, our team will give and sacrifice for us. The officer will never go hungry.

 

  • If we don’t see the benefit on a daily basis, we are disappointed and give up.
  • It’s easier to see it over time, a year later, five years later.
  • We’re social, we respond to the environment we’re in. We have a choice to be leaders. Authority doesn’t mean they are leaders. Many people are at the bottom of the organization, and they may be leaders. They’re looking after the people at the left and right of them.

 

  • Help people feel like their lives have value.
  • If you trust your leader and don’t fear your leader, you’ll be empowered. You won’t be trying to protect yourself from ‘them.’
  • Congress is a mirror to us. We won’t listen. We are close minded. We can’t get along.

 

  • It’s us. We have to set the example.
  • It starts with the truth.
  • Not taking responsibility for actions…we can’t put that type of person in a leadership position.

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