I recently finished reading "Hal Moore on Leadership", a biography of sorts of Howard "Hal" Moore, an accomplished - and decorated - officer in the US Army best known for leading the first battle of the Vietnam War in the Battle of Ia Drang which was famously dramatised in the 2002 film We Were Soldiers starring Mel Gibson.
I first learned about Hal a few years ago through a quote of his:
“I'm going to be the first man on the ground in any big battle we go into, and I am going to be the last one out.”
It resonated strongly with me because I see it as a fundamental part of building trust and developing respect with members of a team through empathy.
Reading "Hal Moore on Leadership" was incredibly inspiring, sharing stories of Hal's long career and fascinating life as well as the lessons in leadership that he had learned along the way. Many of the lessons he learned were through the course of his illustrious 32-year military career. I wanted to share some of the insights the book offers that might help us collectively become not just better leaders, but better human beings as well.
Hal's "Four Basic Principles"
During his service in the Korean War, Hal developed a set of four principles of leadership.
Principle #1: Three strikes and you're not out.
A reference to the rule in baseball where a batter is "out" in an inning when a pitcher achieves three strikes against them, this principle reminds us that as leaders, we need to keep going and keep persevering. Being sure of ultimate success, despite setbacks, is crucial. If a leader thinks they might lose in a situation, they have already lost. Determination to prevail in the face of adversity exhibited through words and actions to the team around you boosts morale, strengthens bonds and empowers teams.
Principle #2: There's always one more thing you can do to influence any situation in your favour. And after that, there's one more thing.
With this principle, Hal encourages leaders to continuously assess the situation, understand the "mission", understand the challenges, understand the environment and its constraints, and work through the "what-ifs" to identify both risks and opportunities. He advocates for being proactive rather than reactive which is great advice.
Something Hal highlights is the need to be mindful of the organisation's constraints and "centre of gravity". How these constraints are dealt with can distinguish great leaders. The "centre of gravity" is the thing that needs to be in balance for the organisation to operate; its source of strength. Protecting it, and leveraging it is often the key to success.
Principle #3: When nothing is wrong, there's nothing wrong - except there's nothing wrong. That's when a leader has to be the most alert.
In the book, the first sentence describing this principle is:
Complacency kills.
This goes hand in hand with being proactive. Leaders must maintain awareness of their surroundings and be ready to respond to what might otherwise be unexpected.
Principle #4: Trust your instincts.
Instinct - or intuition - developed and honed over time through experience and learning are tremendously powerful tools. It can help in being decisive under pressure and in identifying risks or threats.
When a quick decision is not required, Hal still incorporates empirical information into his decision-making, employing one of two approaches to ruminate on it. One approach is to make a tentative decision and then "sleep on it" while the other is to "get moving" through some exercise or activity that promotes blood flow.
Leader Traits
Throughout the book, Hal highlights what he considers are traits or attributes of a "good" or successful leader. Below are some that I consider especially poignant.
Work Ethic
A strong work ethic is a fundamental element for nurturing a high performing team. Demonstrating that ethic by setting that example for others follow and establishing that as a norm for the team goes a long way to fostering a high-performing culture. This quote from the book resonated with me;
No job is ever "beneath" you. In whatever you do, do it to the best of your abilities."
Growth Mindset
One thing that was evident about Hal while reading the book was his ceaseless pursuit of knowledge and skills. He calls out that leaders often fail when they think they know everything. He also highlights that learning for leaders is not just about technical knowledge in their chosen field, but just as important is learning about people and oneself. He aptly states;
To be a leader, you must be willing to a be lifelong learner.
Persistence & Willpower
Hal shares a great story that highlights the importance willpower and being persistent and resolute in pursuit of a goal. He was trying to gain admission to West Point - the oldest and most prestigious military academy in the U.S.. Candidates must not only apply to the academy but also be nominated by a member of Congress, the Vice President or the President of the United States. To obtain the required nomination he moved to Washington to take up a job at the Senate Book Warehouse while completing high school at night. He would actively seek Senators and Congressmen by knocking on doors and asking for appointments. It took two and half years before he was able to secure a nomination, but not to the branch of the military he wanted - the Naval Academy at Annapolis rather than the Army at West Point. But calling back to Principle #2; there was one more thing he could do - he asked if he could swap his appointment with another candidate to which the Congressman agreed. Through persistence, Hal had achieved his goal of attending West Point.
Clear Intent
Leaders must not blindly direct their teams. They should establish clear intent - the "why" - along with the end state and articulate them clearly. A leader should never say, "Because I said so.". He says it quite well in the book;
If you can't justify the rationale of an order to yourself, don't make your subordinates do it. Re-evalute your reasons and find another method.
Staying Informed
During World War II while at West Point, Hal recalls watching video reports of the war raging in Europe and gleaning insights into the environment and the enemies they were expecting to face after graduating from the academy. When leaders are informed, they can help their teams be informed. Staying informed plays into principles #2-4 in being "one more thing", "being alert" and training instincts.
Leaders stay informed of current events, and they should anticipate challenges based on those events.
Honour & Integrity
Integrity is especially important to me and a trait I cherish. There's one particular story that Hal tells where he exemplifies integrity. Following his graduation from West Point there were events planned to celebrate. One of those events was a picnic. A group of cadets gathered to plan the picnic and in that meeting, some of the cadets suggested one of the cadets - Ernie Davis, a black man - and his family not be invited. Something not all that uncommon in the 1940s sadly, but Hal, disgusted, stood up and threatened to boycott the picnic if Davis and his family were not invited. The idea was walked back and Davis and his family attended the picnic in the end. It is a shining example of integrity that everyone - not just leaders - should seek to duplicate.
A good leader never discriminates or alients based on race, colour or other genetic factors.
Hal would personify integrity throughout his career, often railing against the establishment in the process. One such example occurred late in his career when he was a three-star General working as the Deputy Chief of Staff. He reported directly to one General Rogers - who himself had been a top-ranking cadet at West Point before commissioning as an Infantry Officer. Rogers was known to be confrontational and "in-your-face". He would publicly berate subordinates. He was the polar opposite of Hal. Yet, Hal would challenge Rogers on policies he felt would harm the Army. He opposed the top brass when they ordered him to dilute recruiting standards to "make the numbers" for example. He also "argued vehemently" when they ordered him to begin assigning women to support jobs with the 82nd Airborne Division's Ready Brigade because, at the time, women could not deploy to combat so if called upon with 12-hour notice, the Ready Brigade would have to leave with thirty-percent of its support troops left behind. At one point, Hal was tapped to become the Commanding General, US Army Japan which might have led to a fourth star - the highest rank for a peacetime General. However, Hal saw this as a ruse; it was a "paper Corps" comprising "forty clerks and eighty filing cabinets". It was an effort to send him somewhere he could no longer cause "trouble" or disrupt the chorus of "yes men". He politely turned down the offer and retired.
Stand up for principles; choose the "harder right" over the "easier wrong".
Self-Confidence
This is a tricky one as it's vital that self-confidence does not lead to arrogance, conceit or hubris. Self-confidence is important as a leader because a leader must believe they can accomplish anything. This trait harks back to principle #1, "three strikes and you're not out".
Dignity
Stationed in Japan after World War II, Hal recounts his experience on the Japanese train service and the behaviour of the Japanese people following the devastation of the war. He was struck by the cleanliness and hundreds of Japanese soldiers around showing no anger or antipathy towards American soldiers. The train was spotless with clean sheets, left and arrived on time. Six weeks out from a five-year war, he recalls, and they had already begun cleaning up and disciplining their services. I like his quote in the book;
Even in the midst of defeat, carry yourself professionally and maintain your discipline. That is the quickest way towards recovery.
Humility
Being a good leader is an exercise in balancing authority and humility. History is full of leaders who failed to maintain that balance. It's vital the "power" and authority granted by being a leader does not go to one's head and influence the decisions and actions to the detriment of the team or organisation. The leader is not the smartest person in the room. Recognising the strengths in others and leveraging those strengths is key to being a great leader. Respect is a two-way street; you get what you give. Hal cites an example of joining a team (or his platoon) where members have more experience and technical "know-how" than the leader. Succinctly put;
When in charge, take charge, but treat your subordinates with respect, dignity and common courtesy.
Tone
Somewhat related to the humility point above, the leader sets the tone and attitude of their people. If they treat their people poorly, they will perform poorly. The leader creates and enforces the standards of performance, institutional integrity, character and personality of their team. He shares three tips:
- If you want something done, ask nicely.
- If a subordinate forgets to perform a task, don't take it personally; remind them nicely. In a fast-paced and busy environment, some things will inevitably slip through the cracks. We should not assume they are lazy or stupid.
- If a subordinate performs a task and the outcome is not what you expected, don't attack their intelligence or their character. Rather, politely explain the deficiencies and offer an idea for a solution.
Remember;
A worker's performance often reflects the attitude of their leadership.
Discretion
Exercising discretion effectively with good intent is a hard trait to master. Hal shares a great story from his time in Japan where American GIs stationed there were indulging in vices in the local towns; getting drunk and visiting brothels. Knowing that many of them were in fact leaving the military soon, he didn't want to tie them up in the military legal system. So when troops got picked up by the military police (MPs), Hal devised a simpler, more creative punishment. They had to go running with him - he was an exceptional runner. He notes that no one that received this punishment, made trouble again. It highlights;
Whereever possible, solve problems at the lowest level.
Addressing issues like disciplinary problems or negligence or just honest mistakes at a local level benefits the relationship with the team, avoids diverting high-level resources and avoids making a mountain out of a molehill.
In a similar vein - and this really should go without saying;
Praise in public, punish in private.
Never resort to public humiliation when correcting the behaviour of a subordinate. It damages the relationship with the individual as well as the broader cohesion of the team.
Empowerment
Empowering your people is fundamental to building mutual respect and supporting their growth and development. Doing so effectively means pushing authority (and decision-making) down but keeping accountability for the results. Never blame subordinates for poor results, blame yourself for not training them properly or giving poor instructions. But when things go well, push the praise and recognition down as well.
It's important to note that for such a policy to work, subordinates must be informed by their leader of their views and guidance on what's going on, what the priorities, policies and principles are in various situations. I generally refer to these as the guardrails. They establish a clear playing field for the team to operate in with a level of autonomy empowering them to be successful in their roles.
A leader should surround themselves with person who fit their requirements and standards - and then turn them loose to do their jobs.
Mindfulness
A good leader is mindful of how they affect their environment and those around them. Hal cites a terrific example of this in the book. While serving in Korea he took command of a company that had previously been commanded by someone Hal described as "an obscene, loud, rabbit-faced person who is interested only in getting back to the USA.". This turned out to be an apt assessment as the colonel reportedly confirmed that the departing commander had said he had lost interested in the company. This disinterest was evident in how the company functioned; poorly. "Fixing" the company was something Hal in fact relished in;
If given the choice between taking over a good outfit or a bad outfit, I'll choose the bad outfit every time. They'll have nowhere to go but up.
The action he took demonstrated his mindfulness. Recognising the men had been abused and the environment (or culture if you will) was rife with alienation and distrust, he set about seeking advice from the non-commissioned officers on tactical matters. They reciprocated by educating him on the intricacies of mortar and fire support. He also immediately moved six men out of the worst "boar's nest" in the area - a bunker infested with rodents. He moved them into the officers' bunkers and moved the officers into their rodent-infested bunker. He then took the initiative to build showers for the platoons and company command post meaning the men didn't have to travel an hour round-trip down dusty roads to the regimental shower point. These acts of compassion demonstrated to the men that he cared for them and their welfare, morale and performance increased dramatically.
There are two things a leader can do: he can either contaminate his environment with his attitudes and actions or he can inspire confidence.
In conjunction with "discretion" discussed above, the building of the showers offers these lessons:
Good leaders don't wait for official permission to try out a new idea. In any organisation if you go looking for permission will inevitably find the one person who thinks it's their job to say "No!". It's easier to get forgiveness than permission.
Simple acts of courtesy and graciousness have a profound impact on a subordinate's morale, self-perception, and performance.
Most importantly, a leader proves himself by demonstrating his concern for and relationship with the people under him. The old adage: "Take care of your people and they wll take care of you.".
Embrace Failure
Failure is inevitable. It is a quintessential part of the human experience. How we deal with failure is what matters. Learning from mistakes so we don't repeat them is essential for a leader. Hal shares a brilliant - albeit tragic - failure of his leadership. By the time Hal was commanding troops in Vietnam, he had repeatedly proven himself an eminently capable leader. Despite that, during the battle of Ia Drang, he made a fateful mistake and misjudgement. He gave command of a platoon to one Lieutenant Herrick despite his own Sergeant Major airing grave concerns regarding Herrick's aggressive and "bull-headed" behaviour - to the point of recklessness. In fact he had told Hal, "Colonel, if you put Lieutenant Herrick in there, he will get them all killed.". On another occasion, the lieutenant's own platoon sergeant confided in the company commander that Herrick's foolhardy aggressiveness might get the platoon killed. During the battle, Herrick's platoon came upon an enemy squad that rapidly retreated into the forest. Herrick diverted the platoon to chase the squad ultimately leading them into an ambush. Within the first hour, Herricks, Sergeant Palmer and Sergeant Stokes were killed. Herrick's platoon would come to be known as the "Lost Platoon". A side lesson:
When you identify a toxic subordinate leader, remove them. If you cannot remove them, reassign them to a role where their toxicity can be minimised.
Hal's failure to remove a toxic leader from the ranks had grave consequences and while an extreme example, it serves to demonstrate that even great leaders can and will fail from time to time. Hal didn't make that same mistake again.
Toxic Leaders
All of us will encounter toxic leaders in the course of our careers. In the book, Hal shares some archetypes of toxic leaders:
- Bully leaders inflict emotional pain, deliver threats and ultimatums, and insult and invalidate the views and opinions of others.
- Narcissistic leaders are arrogant and self-congratulatory. He notes that these types of leaders often contrast their own abilities against those of their subordinates. They are overbearing and presume that they are the standard everyone else should strive to emulate, but their tactics are so heavy-handed and self-aggrandising that they invariably earn contempt from their subordinates.
- Divisive leaders share many of the qualities of a narcissistic leader, though channels their arrogance towards a specific person or group whom he perceives as otherwise unfit to be a member of the team. They often use public humiliation of the targetted individual(s) and purposely cultivate resentment and ridicule against them until they leave or our ousted from the organisation.
- Insular leaders form cliques and actively seek to ensure that their "followers" benefit from their protection and privilege. Those outside of the leaders circle become targets of ridicule and derision and held to higher standards than those in favour.
- Hypocritical leaders operate on a code of "Do as I say, not as I do." and typically don't practice what they preach. They will often hold subordinates to a higher standard than they hold themselves to. This speaks directly to the work ethic trait discussed above in that leaders establish acceptable norms through a combination of words and actions and those two need to be aligned or the actions will ultimately set the standard.
- Enforcement leaders knowingly and willingly execute orders, demands or policies without regard for their subordinates in an effort to appease their own superiors.
- Callous leaders are similar to enforcement leaders in that they lack regard for their subordinates but differ in that they lack empathy rather than trying to appease their superiors.
- Seniority preference leader demonstrates a preference for people who have served the longest time in the organisation. In doing so they establish double standards and prejudice towards people with lower tenure.
- Credit-hog leaders take credit for other people's success or contribution and resent giving credit where it's due.
- Blame-shifting leaders are quick to point the finger when things go wrong and actively seeks someone to blame. They maliciously accuse others of wrongdoing without evidence or cause. Everything is always someone's fault.
Random Tidbits
All throughout the book, there are "key takeaways" or messages. I've captured a few of the ones that stood out to me below (in no particular order):
- Tell subordinate leaders your standards from the outset and what you expect.
- Be dead honest with those above and below. Totally candid but not harsh. Straight talk.
- Respect your people. Be loyal to them. Loyalty goes up and down the chain of command.
- Treat every person "fair-and-square". No favourites. If you discover subordinates who are uniquely talented, give them the tough jobs and mentor them. It's your duty to help them develop their skills and to learn.
- Keep your people informed. Tell them what's going on: what's coming up, what's hot and what's not.
- Do a lot of listening, especially around the boss. That way you will know at least twice as much - what the speaker knows and what you know.
- Take notes when being given instruction or when your leader is sharing their philosophy or guidance on a matter.
- Be ready so you don't have to get ready. A good leader will pre-position as many assets and people as he can before an event or as a contingency in case of disaster. Thus, when the alert and /or emergency inevitably comes, you will be better prepared to respond to it.
- Don't complain to your boss. They want solutions; not just problems.
- Look for and find the really good "horses" in your organisation and run them hard. Push them and challenge them with greater levels of responsibility.
- Leaders at all levels must know their stuff, be dead honest, have unquestioned personal integrity, set the example, and treat their people "fair and square".
- Strive for excellence, do not be content just to "get by".
- When confronted with a challenging problem, take a positive attitude. Face up to the facts and deal with them. Figure out a way to solve it.
- Select good people for your direct staff and make sure they know your policies. Instruct them not to hold back when they truly believe you are about to make a wrong decision.
- Leaders lead from the front; managers lead from the rear.
- A leader should never tell an outfit that it's screwed up. If he does, then it will be screwed up. Why? Because the boss said so.
- If you seek to correct a subordinate's overall behaviour or performance, start by telling them what they do well, then tell them where they need to improve.
- A good leader trains his people to adapt to changes in the environment or the marketplace.
- Don't overreact. And never overreact to an overreaction.
Wrap Up
Hal Moore was a remarkable man who led an equally remarkable life. It's worth highlighting that he left West Point as "below average" in class rank and in the lower levels of cadet leadership. But he was determined to get better every day. The epilogue contains a number of Hal's Officer Evaluation Reports - essentially Performance Reviews. They make for fascinating reading and offer an insight into Hal from the perspective of his own leaders.
Something that stood out to me was how Hal himself was influenced by leaders he had had - both good and bad. Similarly, I can pinpoint interactions with leaders that influenced my thoughts and leadership. Leaders impart their values and philosophies to other leaders who in turn will do that with their subordinates some of whom will be leaders themselves. I truly love this element of leadership.
I cannot recommend "Hal Moore on Leadership" enough. It's a relatively short but inspiring read. We should all strive to be like Howard Moore.
If I had to leave you with just one message from Hal, it would be this:
Commanders are not always leaders. Commanders are appointed. Leaders are unofficially "elected" by the troops in the unit. Likewise in other fields of endeavour. Every leader is put through an informal process in the first few weeks wherein their people judge them and decide whether or not they are worthy of their trust. They must earn that trust. How? A leader must prove themselves by their actions, appearance, demeanour, attitude and decisions.