A Warrior's Path, Lessons In Leadership

by Robert A. Trivino

This is my personal journey through one of the greatest warrior and leadership cultures of today, which ultimately provided me with defining leadership characteristics and the skills of a serious warrior. Nobody is born a great leader, they are made through hard work and determination. My first Indian name given to me by the medicine man when I was a child was Bobcat. As I grew and became a young man, I returned home from my first combat experience and was given my warrior's name, Evergreen Mountain. I am an American, first and foremost, but I am also a Pueblo and Yaqui Indian. I am a former member of the US Army’s 18th Airborne Corps, 75th Ranger Regiment, and spent most of my career as an operational member of a Special Missions Unit under the United States Army Special Operations Command. These are some of my most important leadership lessons learned from the battlefield of the war on terror. It is my sincere hope that this book serves as a resource and a compass, providing direction and guidance for individuals seeking or in a leadership position.

Genres: Military Fiction, Business

235 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2015

Reviews

[Texjim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must preface my comments with the caveat that I am an old retired guy, who never served in the armed services and have never read anything devoted to leadership before this book. This is the story of personal evolution of Native American who grew up in rural New Mexico under largely subsistence conditions and enlisted in the army two days after finishing high school. Being his first plane flight, first time away from mom, first time out of the NM/Mexico environs, it is difficult to imagine an 18 year old this fully committed to doing the right thing. The degree of self-correcting introspection in this story is outstanding and easily its strongest point. The author tracks his 21 year professional journey from green private to Sargent Major, the highest non-commissioned rank in the army's elite forces. The author continually illustrates his educational progress with the errors that lead to each step forward in his thinking process. There are several descriptions of actual training and war zone missions that are particularly illuminating to the uninitiated like myself. These are professional soldiers and the degree of planning, attention to detail and post mission analysis is incredible. The author illustrates very well the concept that leadership involves leading and attending to (caring for) both those above and below you in the chain of command. He is always pointing out his own mistakes and the practicalities of what made one of his superiors better than another. Especially important was how each leader dealt with failures. The teams were always trying to improve their approach to the next mission. In this regard, the effectiveness of the After Action Review (AAR) really stood out as a process applicable to any organization. After each mission the team carefully reviewed the events and each member was permitted complete freedom to identify problems, own errors and suggest solutions without recriminations.

For me, it's a bit late in the game to benefit from this excellent guide but I would recommend it highly to anyone starting out or wanting to hone their skills. I would also strongly recommend this as required reading for anyone working in teams responsible for the health and well being of others. The text itself is a bit dense at times slowing down the read. The author is clearly trying to teach the reader and some of the slowness arises from natural and necessary pedagogical redundancies. This is not a shoot-em up, but a real life story of an evolving leader with great observational and analytical skills.

[Christopher Piehota · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book on combat leadership and leadership in general. Recommended.

This was a good book that took combat and military leadership experiences and gave those who have not shared similar experiences the gift of perspective and awareness. Could have been five stars but the author lost me a few times during some of the combat recall sequences. All said, this book is recommended reading for new and tenured leaders.

[Jimrudi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting if you're into Special Ops.

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young soldier takes his Native American heritage, inserts
the discipline of the U. S. Army, and eventually become a member
of the Ranger organization. At each stage of his life and career,
he builds on his understanding of "leadership". The first maxim
given the reader is that a leader does not manage those
he supervises, he asks them to do the duties needed from them.

With each period of his Army life, the author gives the background
of what he needed to learn about leadership, and then reiterates
his working points, so that the reader sees the development of the
layered understanding. The author has moved from the Army into
civilian life as a police instructor, and has successfully used his
acquired skills in new opportunities. Well-written and direct.

This book was given to me by Goodreads in expectation of a review;
the opinion expressed is mine.

[Buzzard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book on leadership that I have ever read, with lots of exciting stories from a special operator fighting the war on terror to illustrate his leadership points. Hard to put down.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book

I would recommend this to anyone ​wanting to improve upon their leadership skills. We should all be constant learner's of leadership throughout life.