Category: Business
-
The Real Reason High Performers Stay Consistent
Most leaders know what they want. More focus.Better execution.More discipline.Less chaos. But the problem isn’t ambition. The problem is that most teams try to operate on the most unreliable fuel source in the world: motivation. Motivation is a feeling. It’s unpredictable. And it disappears the second you get tired, distracted, stressed, or overwhelmed. And that’s…
-
Why You’re Always Putting Out Fires at Work — and How Real Leaders Fix It
If you feel like all you or your team does is put out fires all day, you’re not alone.But if firefighting has become the norm in your organization, you have a serious leadership problem — and it’s one that can’t be ignored. In combat, putting out fires all day means one thing: mission failure.And mission…
-
Navy SEAL Drown-Proofing Secrets Every Entrepreneur Needs to Conquer Fear and Uncertainty
What is Drown-Proofing? Drown-proofing is a technique designed to help Navy SEALs survive under extreme water conditions. During Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training, SEAL candidates are tied up—hands behind their backs, feet together—and must swim 50 meters, bounce in deep water for 10 minutes, and float without moving. It sounds impossible, right? The key to…
-
Money and Free Speech
I sometimes get asked what drove me to sacrifice so intensely for our country. My answer may appear to be cliché, but it is honest and real: “Because I love this country and what it stands for. It never felt like a sacrifice for me; it felt like an honor.” What exactly do I love…
-
On Leadership: Do Something Different To Get Out Of Your Rut
We identified an overseas al-Qaida associated bombmaker with family in the United States. I was the lead case agent, and I was struggling to make movement on the case. I had tried all of the standard investigative techniques to determine if the family was providing any type of support to the bombmaker. Money, supplies, information,…
-
How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything: SEAL Leadership in Practice
On leadership: You play how you practice. You’ve probably heard it before. You may have heard it so much you are beginning to consider it a cliché, something to not even concern yourself with anymore. Here’s the funny thing about clichés: They started out as true wisdom. I’m not sure if this saying has become…
-
Finding Your Edge
Two hundred young men were gathered and ready to start the journey of a lifetime, Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, aka “BUD/S,” in Coronado, California. Six months of training boasting a 70% attrition rate. You read that correctly. Seven out of 10 who attempt the training quit. Even with the competitive nature of military units in…
-
Quietly Leading the Way
“Errol, I pay a guy with a quarter of your credentials a boat load of money to get his thoughts on leadership,” said a friend of mine when I told him I had become frustrated with the FBI’s culture but felt I couldn’t leave because it was too late to start a new career at…