Veteran's Day is a day of recognition of those who serve our country and protect our freedoms. In honor of those honorable soldiers I want to talk about five characteristics that every good military person must possess and coincidently every good business leader as well.
1. Loyalty
In the military loyalty is required to be a successful unit. A soldier must be loyal to the cause he or she is fighting for, must be loyal to the commanding officer to follow duty assignments and must be loyal to fellow soldiers because literally their lives are in each other's hands.
Business loyalty is needed for the same reason. Without loyalty to the cause the team isn't working toward the same end in mind and goals are not accomplished. Loyalty to leadership means buying into the vision and the focus of the organization. Loyalty to fellow employees means the workplace is more harmonious and works well together as a unit. Without these loyalties in the workplace goals are missed, in-fighting occurs and distractions misdirect people from the primary purpose of the organization. On a scale of 1 to 10 with ten being the highest, where would you rate the loyalty in your organization? You success is probably at the same point on that scale.
2. Discipline
I doubt a soldier would ever tell his commanding officer, "I didn't sleep well last night, missed my morning coffee, and really don't feel like going in to battle today." Sounds almost comical doesn't it. How disciplined is your staff in coming to work ready to make a difference, ready to fight for what is important, eager to face the obstacles of the new day? Can you imagine one morning you walked in and your staff was at the ready in advance of the day, prepared with mental toughness and eager to face the day? This is how you become successful.
3. Courage
Courage is being assigned a forward position and preparing yourself for life and death situations. Courage is knowing your responsibility to protect the freedoms of people who are unable to fend for themselves. Courage is being able to make hard decisions for the good of your organization without side agendas and political games. Courage is taking responsibility for your actions even when things go sideways. Courage is not a fool's game as some want to tell you. Courage is what makes leaders.
4. Commitment
Think about your staff around you. Would you say they are committed to maximizing their effort in the workplace? A soldier knows that without full commitment, he or she could end up dead, or those counting on them could end up dead. Commitment is what wins battles, wins wars, and beats the competition. If you have staff working with half-effort and aren't committed to their role, you are getting far less results than you deserve. Whining is not commitment. Commitment is about "Shut your hole and know your role."
5. Dedication
One definition of dedication is the act of binding yourself to a course of action. Dedication is not about wavering, and it is not playing each side it's about a full onslaught of connection with a action to be taken. If you are going to try to take a hillside you have to be dedicated. If you are going to drop into a hot zone, you must be dedicated, if you are going to accept the responsibility of being an executive you have to be fully engaged and bound to the cause, the mission and the vision of your organization.
Our veterans demonstrate these five characteristics to survive, to make a difference to protect the freedoms we all too often take for granted. We need these people, we count on these people and without our armed forces we would not enjoy the success we have in this country. As an executive are you willing to accept the challenge to live to this standard? Get to it.
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