Steven Leonard ( of Strategy Strikes Back)

Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper's Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich by David Kenyon Webster	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
If you ask me what I remember most about reading David Webster's book, 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺, it's the tedium of combat. Webster, a veteran of the famous 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), U.S. Army, jumped into Normandy on D ...more
May 22, 2026 07:03AM · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Raising the Bar: The School of Advanced Military Studies and the Introduction of Operational Art into U.S. Army Doctrine, 1983–1994 by Kevin C.M. Benson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
When I stepped into the hallways of the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) in the summer of 2000, it was impossible not to feel the tinge of imposter syndrome. How would I stack up against the best and brightest in uniform? Was I ca ...more
May 13, 2026 09:00AM · 2 likes · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing King of Kings: The Iranian Revolution—A Story of Hubris, Delusion and Catastrophic Miscalculation by Scott Anderson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
With everything going on in the Middle East today – and to be fair, for pretty much the past 50 years – you can never read enough about Iran and the history that helped shape our present experience. I recently picked up a copy of Scott Anderson's 𝘒𝘪𝘯 ...more
May 05, 2026 11:10AM · 1 like · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Guests of the Ayatollah: The First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam by Mark Bowden	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
n 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘏𝘢𝘸𝘬 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯, Mark Bowden composed a literary symphony comparable to timeless war classics such as 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘑𝘰𝘺, 𝘞𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘖𝘯𝘤𝘦... 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨, and 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴. With 𝙂𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙮𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙝, Bowden takes you on a fateful journey ...more
Apr 29, 2026 04:44AM · 3 likes · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
On its surface, Shoe Dog is a #business story. But in truth, it's a raw and surprisingly candid portrait of what #leadership actually looks like when the stakes are existential and the path is anything but clear. Nike's rise to brand dominance was ha ...more
Apr 22, 2026 06:37AM · 1 like · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Lessons from the Admiral: Naval Wisdom and Sea Stories for Leaders by Mark C. Fava (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Great book filled with common-sense wisdom that we all wish we had when we needed it most.
Apr 17, 2026 08:37AM · 1 like · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Of the books in my collection, few speak to me in the same way @David Epstein's 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 did. By any measure, I'm a utility infielder, a generalist who can slide into just about any role and make it work. While I have 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴, being a ...more
Apr 08, 2026 06:06AM · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book really liked it Tom Clancy Executive Power (Jack Ryan #20) by Brian Andrews (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 05, 2026 07:29AM · like
Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing We Were Soldiers Once... and Young: Ia Drang - The Battle that Changed the War in Vietnam by Harold G. Moore	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
The book is one that leaves a deep and lasting impression. It's a sober reflection of war, an unflinching reckoning with the brutal realities of war, the bonds forged by fire, and the memories that never truly fade. The battle became a proving ground ...more
Mar 31, 2026 10:39AM · 1 like · like · see review
Steven Leonard rated a book really liked it The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results by Gary Keller (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I still hear Curly's voice every time I read 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, the 2013 book from Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. Honesty, I think the City Slicker in me convinced me to pick it up off the bookshelf at JFK on my way back from Baghdad. But, I had a few more ...more
Mar 25, 2026 06:24AM · 1 like · like · see review

Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing

Parachute Infantry by David Kenyon Webster

Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper's Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich
by David Kenyon Webster

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If you ask me what I remember most about reading David Webster's book, 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺, it's the tedium of combat. Webster, a veteran of the famous 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), U.S. Army, jumped into Normandy on D ...more

Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing

Raising the Bar: The School of Advanced Military Studies and the Introduction of Operational Art into U.S. Army Doctrine, 1983–1994
by Kevin C.M. Benson

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When I stepped into the hallways of the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) in the summer of 2000, it was impossible not to feel the tinge of imposter syndrome. How would I stack up against the best and brightest in uniform? Was I ca When I stepped into the hallways of the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) in the summer of 2000, it was impossible not to feel the tinge of imposter syndrome. How would I stack up against the best and brightest in uniform? Was I capable of holding my own with the toughest curriculum in the US Army? Would I spend the entire year swimming upstream?

The answers to those questions came in the wake of 9/11... planning America's response was no small task, and that effort continued for months on end. The SAMS experience was transformational. And that education allowed us to translate everything we'd learned into action on the ground.

𝘙𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘳 is the story of the first decade of the school that would come to redefine the role of intellectual development in the military. Dial the clock back a couple of decades, and that's where Kevin C. M. Benson begins the story of the institution that I still consider a second home. When the Army shifted away from the Cold War doctrine of Active Defense toward AirLand Battle, one better suited to a modern, maneuver-based force built around the Big 5 systems (M1 Abrams, M2/M3 Bradley, AH-64 Apache, UH-60 Black Hawk, and Patriot missile system), the institution needed #leaders capable of thinking and operating at a much higher level. SAMS was the answer.

From the outset, the curriculum fused operational theory, history, and emergent doctrine to create a learning crucible that produced #leaders who could translate broad strategic intent into concrete tactical action. The reading load was intense - I think we read over 300 books that year - the debates heated, and the exercises challenging. But would it work?

Benson cites Operation Just Cause (Panama, 1989) and the Gulf War (1990-91) as the proof of concept. Those operations - planned and orchestrated by "Jedi Knights" - demonstrated the value of the program and the validity of the core idea. Those successes also cemented the importance of professional military education in the modernization process - as the Army moved toward a more modern and capable force, the educational system needed to transform to meet the evolving needs of that force.

That theme - intellectual development as a core tenet of transformation - runs throughout 𝘙𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘳. It's also as relevant today as it was 40 years ago. SAMS achieved something that every other service has attempted to replicate in some form, forging #leaders who think, act, and communicate on an entirely different level.

As a product of SAMS, I might be a little biased. But 𝘙𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘳 reminded me of something that I've shared with more than a few SAMS students over the years: If you really want to "be all you can be," then you need SAMS. ...more

Steven Leonard rated a book it was amazing

King of Kings: The Iranian Revolution—A Story of Hubris, Delusion and Catastrophic Miscalculation
by Scott Anderson

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With everything going on in the Middle East today – and to be fair, for pretty much the past 50 years – you can never read enough about Iran and the history that helped shape our present experience. I recently picked up a copy of Scott Anderson's 𝘒𝘪𝘯 With everything going on in the Middle East today – and to be fair, for pretty much the past 50 years – you can never read enough about Iran and the history that helped shape our present experience. I recently picked up a copy of Scott Anderson's 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 — 𝘈 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘶𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘴, 𝘋𝘦𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘤 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, his 2025 narrative history of the slow march to revolution and the role America played in that event.

The book opens on New Year's Eve, 1977, with a scene that reads like a dark comedy: President Jimmy Carter standing beside Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi at a state dinner in Tehran and toasting him as a symbol of stability. Fourteen months later, the Shah fled Iran in exile, driven out by a volcanic religious revolution. That irony symbolized by the toast is central to the Anderson's storytelling. American leaders saw what they wanted to see.

That story that follows is one of a dictator blind to the disdain of his subjects and a superpower lumbering into disaster. The narrative shifts between the Shah's gilded court, the American embassy, and the revolutionary fires building around Ayatollah Khomeini – the inevitable collision of royal hubris, wishful thinking, and religious fervor and political unrest. Intelligence agencies recorded Khomeini's speeches but never bothered to translate them, while the U.S. continued to prop up a weak and despised ruler.

Three key themes are weaved through the book. First, the catastrophic cost of assuming that adversaries share your values, rationality, and interests. Second, the institutional failure of intelligence when it serves policy rather than challenging it. Third, the long-held anger over the CIA-led coup of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh in 1953. Those three fueled the rise of religious nationalism among the economically-marginalized, religiously-fervent masses.

Probably the most important and relevant lesson for today is one that Anderson weaves into nearly every chapter: military and geopolitical power cannot substitute for genuine understanding of the society you are engaging. That's a lesson that we just seem to learn again and again.

Put 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 on your #reading list. If not for today, maybe the next cease-fire hiatus. ...more

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Guests of the Ayatollah: The First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam
by Mark Bowden

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n 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘏𝘢𝘸𝘬 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯, Mark Bowden composed a literary symphony comparable to timeless war classics such as 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘑𝘰𝘺, 𝘞𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘖𝘯𝘤𝘦... 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨, and 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴. With 𝙂𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙮𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙝, Bowden takes you on a fateful journey n 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘏𝘢𝘸𝘬 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯, Mark Bowden composed a literary symphony comparable to timeless war classics such as 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘑𝘰𝘺, 𝘞𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘖𝘯𝘤𝘦... 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨, and 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴. With 𝙂𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙮𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙝, Bowden takes you on a fateful journey back to a crossroads in America’s emerging conflict with Islamic fundamentalism: the fall of 1979, when a group of Iranian students stormed the U.S. Embassy in hashtag#Tehran in an act that would define, as the author so aptly describes in the title, America's hashtag#firstbattle in the war with militant Islam.

As Bowden notes in the book, the hostage crisis was an unprecedented “assault on hashtag#diplomacy.” In a world where practiced diplomacy often marks difference between conflict and peace, “Diplomacy exists because it offers a chance at rising above [international grievances].” With the ascension of the ruling hashtag#mullahocracy in post-Pahlavi Iran, an deeply repressive and authoritarian governing body, any possibility of maintaining an internationally viable government was shattered.

Rather than a true Islamic Republic, Iran remains a hashtag#destabilizing influence throughout the Middle East, providing arms, training, and financing to any sect of militant Islam sharing the mullahocracy’s vision of a grand Islamic revolution. None of this is lost on Bowden, who carefully details the contemporary relevance of the actions of a handful of Iranian students on that November day in 1979. Although published nearly 20 years ago, 𝘎𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘺𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘩 is as timely and relevant today as it was when I bought my copy in 2006. And, like any other work written by Bowden, it's just a damn good read.

A takeaway quote: “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘺 𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺, 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘵.” ...more

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Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
by Phil Knight

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On its surface, Shoe Dog is a #business story. But in truth, it's a raw and surprisingly candid portrait of what #leadership actually looks like when the stakes are existential and the path is anything but clear. Nike's rise to brand dominance was ha On its surface, Shoe Dog is a #business story. But in truth, it's a raw and surprisingly candid portrait of what #leadership actually looks like when the stakes are existential and the path is anything but clear. Nike's rise to brand dominance was hardly smooth: chronic cash shortages, fractious bank relationships, legal battles, manufacturing crises, and near-bankruptcy, again and again. Knight doesn't waste time trying to gloss over the mess — he freely admits that he was frequently confused, often afraid, and routinely made decisions with dangerously incomplete information.

Four key #leadership themes emerge from the chaos. First, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲. Knight couldn't always pay his employees well or promise them stability, but he could offer them a mission, and the early Nike team was bound together by a genuine conviction that they were building something meaningful. Second, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺. Keep moving, keep growing, and solve problems by outrunning them. Third, 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆. Nike's early team was eccentric, unpolished, and fiercely loyal, and the true architects of the company's culture. Fourth, 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝘁. Not reckless risk, but the deliberate, eyes-open acceptance of uncertainty that entrepreneurial leadership demands.

The second and third themes combine to form the most powerful #leadership lesson from the book: 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻. Knight rarely knew exactly how Nike would survive the next year, but he never doubted why it should. That conviction held the organization together when strategy could not. As Knight writes in the book, "The cowards never started and the weak died along the way — that leaves us." ...more

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Lessons from the Admiral by Mark C. Fava

Lessons from the Admiral: Naval Wisdom and Sea Stories for Leaders
by Mark C. Fava (Goodreads Author)

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Great book filled with common-sense wisdom that we all wish we had when we needed it most.

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Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
by David Epstein (Goodreads Author)

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Of the books in my collection, few speak to me in the same way @David Epstein's 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 did. By any measure, I'm a utility infielder, a generalist who can slide into just about any role and make it work. While I have 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴, being a Of the books in my collection, few speak to me in the same way @David Epstein's 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 did. By any measure, I'm a utility infielder, a generalist who can slide into just about any role and make it work. While I have 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴, being a generalist has opened more doors for me over the course of my life.

When 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 hit the bookstores in 2019, Epstein took aim at the "10,000-hour rule" — that breadth of experience, diverse skill sets, and a winding path are not liabilities, they are the secret sauce of exceptional achievement.

𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 offers a few key themes — the value of late specialization (why I'm learning to play the guitar at my age), the power of analogical thinking across disciplines (cross-functional, baby), and the danger of over-optimizing for "kind" learning environments (where feedback is immediate and rules are fixed, like golf or chess) at the expense of "wicked" ones (like medicine, business, or geopolitics, where patterns are murky and rules shift). Epstein argues that utility infielders (my term, not his) often develop a richer toolkit for solving complex, ambiguous problems than those who tunnel deep into one area early.

One important takeaway from 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 is that matching your skills to a problem type matters more than raw hours of practice. In those uncertain moments — which describes pretty much most of modern professional life — range and adaptability outperform narrow expertise. Resisting the urge to specialize too early, and sampling broadly before committing, is not wasted time; it is essential preparation.

One especially meaningful quote from 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 captures its spirit well: Epstein writes that the challenge of our era is not finding specialists, but cultivating people who can "think outside of the established pathways" — precisely the individuals that rigid, early-specialization systems tend to screen out.

Embrace your inner utility infielder. ...more

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Tom Clancy Executive Power by Brian Andrews

Tom Clancy Executive Power (Jack Ryan #20)
by Brian Andrews (Goodreads Author)

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We Were Soldiers Once... and Young by Harold G. Moore

We Were Soldiers Once... and Young: Ia Drang - The Battle that Changed the War in Vietnam
by Harold G. Moore

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The book is one that leaves a deep and lasting impression. It's a sober reflection of war, an unflinching reckoning with the brutal realities of war, the bonds forged by fire, and the memories that never truly fade. The battle became a proving ground ...more

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The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results
by Gary Keller (Goodreads Author)

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I still hear Curly's voice every time I read 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, the 2013 book from Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. Honesty, I think the City Slicker in me convinced me to pick it up off the bookshelf at JFK on my way back from Baghdad. But, I had a few more I still hear Curly's voice every time I read 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, the 2013 book from Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. Honesty, I think the City Slicker in me convinced me to pick it up off the bookshelf at JFK on my way back from Baghdad. But, I had a few more hours of flying ahead of me and I needed more than Clausewitz and the in-flight magazine to get through it.

At first, I thought it was a real estate book — Keller founded one of the world's largest realty companies — and almost stuffed it into the seat pocket in front of me. But, it ends up being a compelling guide to achieving peak performance by radically simplifying your focus. It transcends industry boundaries to offer universally applicable wisdom for #leaders, professionals, and anyone committed to meaningful personal growth.

At the heart of the book is a deceptively simple idea: the path to extraordinary results lies not in doing more, but in doing less, better. Like Curly told us on that trail ride — find your one thing. Keller argues that the most successful leaders and individuals have always understood that uncommon results come from narrowing their attention to the single most impactful thing they can do at any given moment. Rather than spreading energy thin across an endless to-do list, effective leaders get laser focused on the one thing.

There are three things the authors highlight that are worth mentioning. One, multitasking is a myth. It's an illusion. It's a distraction. Two, work-life balance can be an unworkable ideal. You have to define it for yourself, and it will vary from person to person. Three, they channel the Pareto principle: 20% of effort produces 80% of results. For #leaders, it's a matter of ROI — ruthlessly prioritizing the activities that compound results across the entire team. Bank that 20% where it counts.

However, the most important takeaway for #leaders is the 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯: What's the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it, everything else will be easier or unnecessary? Asking this question every morning when you haul yourself out of the rack drives clarity, cuts through the white noise, and sharpens your #strategic thinking. As Keller and Papasan remind readers, "Success isn't a game won by whoever does the most. It's won by whoever does the most important things."

Get a little Curly in your life. You need it. ...more

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	Strategy Strikes Back: How Star Wars Explains Modern Military Conflict by Max Brooks (Goodreads Author) (Editor), John Amble (Editor), M.L. Cavanaugh (Editor) 3.93 avg rating — 352 ratings — published 2018 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	To Boldly Go: Leadership, Strategy, and Conflict in the 21st Century and Beyond by Jonathan Klug (Editor), Major General Mick Ryan (Foreword), Steven Leonard (Goodreads Author) (Editor) 3.86 avg rating — 118 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Winning Westeros: How Game of Thrones Explains Modern Military Conflict by Max Brooks (Goodreads Author) (Editor), James G. Stavridis (Goodreads Author) (Foreword), John Amble (Editor) 3.88 avg rating — 57 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Why We Write: Craft Essays on Writing War by Randy Brown (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Steven Leonard (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Eric Chandler (Goodreads Author) (Contributor) 4.49 avg rating — 41 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Power Up: Leadership, Character, and Conflict Beyond the Superhero Multiverse by Steven Leonard (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Jonathan Klug (Editor), Kelsey Cipolla (Editor) 4.45 avg rating — 11 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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