Many thanks to Paralus for reminding me of this!
I found a down and dirty article that covers the "are you a Sam or Courtney" dilema of leadership. Its on a USAF website (surprising to me, but did you know that the USAF has one of the best, if not the best library on military leadership?). Go there for the whole thing but a snippet...
I found a down and dirty article that covers the "are you a Sam or Courtney" dilema of leadership. Its on a USAF website (surprising to me, but did you know that the USAF has one of the best, if not the best library on military leadership?). Go there for the whole thing but a snippet...
Some discussions often start with the questions, "Are you a Sam on that issue or a Courtney?" or, "is that person acting like Sam or Courtney?" Sam Damon and Courtney Massengale are Army officers portrayed in Anton Myrer's novel "Once An Eagle." The stories of these two officers contain themes worth exploring: heroism, good versus evil, ethics and morality, corruption of power, career over family, devotion to country, and unchecked ambition. Charles Krulak, former commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, said this story "has more to teach about leadership...than a score of modern-day management texts. It is the primer that lays out, through the lives of its two main characters, lessons on how and how not to lead."Read the whole thing its a very short summation, but consider this. No matter what station in life you hold you're in a leadership position...even if you're just leading yourself. Are you a Sam or Courtney?
As a member of the military, our focus is often on what a military member does as opposed to what we actually are, or should be. Both officers are aggressive, educated and devote countless hours to studying their profession. Both serve in America's wars from World War I through Vietnam and are successful. Both officers rise to general officer rank and are given multiple command opportunities. However, the two officers differ in their approach to leadership.
i think a true leader needs to adapt their leadership style to whatever environment their in, the Pentagon is a different animal than Afghanistan, having leaders of all stripes is needed, as long as they go to the right places.
ReplyDeletethat's the type of greyness that has gotten us into the trouble that we're in right now. how can you defend Courtney type leadership?
ReplyDeletei think you need to really go over that passage again.
while Courtney style is more political unfortunately those are people the military does need, when it comes to dealing with the hill on appropriations, when it comes to dealing with civilian leaders who are politicians instead of military leaders, finding a middle ground with people and getting acceptance is how politics happens. it doesn't win battles in Afghanistan but it does on capitol hill or the white house, and both are necessary. certainly not everything Courtney does is good, but people like this tend to do good at PR or political affairs. Courtney should not avoid balance when needed, and opposite take the blame when it is their fault, its a sign of moral courage, and that is lacking in much of Courtney but some of the skills like cultivating positive relationships are needed in an increasing fractured political system.
ReplyDeletecourtney isn't trying to achieve balance. he's an opportunist that seeks to gain advantage at the expense of others. he claims credit where none is due him and he lays the blame on others when it is undeserved.
ReplyDeleteto see that you find those qualities admirable is...disturbing. your attempt to seek compromise with everyone is leaving your moral compass wobbly. sometimes a stand must be taken. it seems like you don't believe that. interesting.
i made the comment that some of the parts of courtney were good, but not all. There are times to take a stand, and times to negotiate and play the game until you can figure out a way to get things your way. I was simply making the point there are times where making positive connections with as many people as possible is good, courtney is an opportunist, hence why i agreed with parts of the leadership but not all.
ReplyDeleteThe book is always better than the Cliff Notes version. Courtney has few if any redeeming qualities.
ReplyDeleteWhile we may want military leaders who are politically astute enough to safely navigate the halls of Congress or who are skilled enough to appreciate complex diplomatic situations, we do not want leaders playing politics, especially not at the expense of those they are supposed to lead.