Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
Taking leadership principles from the battlefield and applying them to the home front.
“There are no bad teams, only bad leaders.” - Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
Mission Brief
In life, as in all things, there are levels. I quickly learned this upon entering college, as I adapted my small-town perceptions of what it means to be smart, athletic, or talented, recognizing that amidst 20,000 students some people are racing on higher gears. When it comes to the gears of pressure, fear, and struggle, it seems that there are not many levels higher than that of warfare. The concept of warfare alone is extreme, taking us to our limits and pushing us to the brink of danger with the ultimate price on the line: the lives of our comrades. In their book, Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win, retired Navy SEAL’s and co-founders of leadership training and consulting company Echelon Front, Jock WIllink and Leif Babin unload the lessons they learned through the ugly, the beautiful, the unforgiving, and the demanding aspects of leading troops in such an environment. Centering on their service in Iraq, the two walk you through the complex challenges that they faced as naval officers, such as cooperating with Iraqi locals, making decisions under pressure and uncertainty, and managing emotions and egos amidst the chaos of war; additionally, they take you through some of the lessons they learned as both candidates and instructors in the infamous Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL school. Willink and Babin break these intense combat experiences down to the leadership principles that drive success on the battlefield, and they explain how you can leverage these same principles in business and in life. With these many principles in the book, the pair communicate a common theme: if a leader is to be successful, they must take exceptional accountability for themselves, their subordinates, and their mission — they must take “Extreme Ownership.”
“Combat is reflective of life, only amplified and intensified.” - Babin
Comments, Questions, and Concerns
As an ROTC cadet, this book resonated directly with my training on campus, vastly improving the ways that I communicate, diversifying the ways I approach problems, and expanding my perspective on leadership; however, its lessons and incites proved equally valuable outside of my military life, where they helped me control my emotions, look at the big picture, take responsibility for my outcomes, prioritize my tasks, and execute my missions. In particular, I benefitted from Extreme Ownership’s emphasis on personal accountability, in that it encouraged me to ask more of myself and to own my fate. I found myself spending less time pointing fingers at others, feeling bad for myself, and making excuses, while spending more time owning my mistakes, focusing on controllables, and making progress. Whether you are a lieutenant leading a platoon, a CEO managing a company, or a parent raising a family, if you are looking to take your leadership abilities to the next level, then Extreme Ownership is the book for you.
“Discipline equals freedom.” - Willink