Echelon Front

Leadership is not about you. It's your opportunity to care and make life better for your people. #leadership #leaders #extremeownership #leadershipdevelopment

Leaders must find the balance between two opposing forces— confident but not cocky, resolute but not overbearing, aggressive but not reckless, disciplined but flexible, and humble but not passive. Jocko Willink and Leif Babin call this the Dichotomy of Leadership. Yet, as any leader knows, this is easier said than done.     The first step is being aware of what you need to balance. You have to be both a leader and a follower, detached yet focused on the big picture. At times, you’re pulled in opposite directions, and both sides may feel right. The challenge is recognizing when you're out of balance and making adjustments before it’s too late.     There are risks of overcorrection. In trying to fix problems, we can fall into micromanagement, or swing too far in the other direction, hoping problems will solve themselves.     You also must be weary of complacency. If you think everything is going perfectly, that's a red flag. Either your team isn’t being tested, or you're not seeing the full picture. True leadership means staying humble and detached enough to see the next problem before it arises. Solving one issue might create another. It’s a never-ending process of balancing and rebalancing.    For anyone looking to dive deeper into these concepts, consider picking up our new, expanded edition of The Dichotomy of Leadership, out now: https://lnkd.in/gy6sD7QC. This book explores how to navigate the many contradictions leaders face, like balancing authority with humility and decisiveness with patience. It offers practical advice on how to lead effectively while keeping these opposites in check.    Leadership is about managing contradictions and finding balance. By staying aware of these dynamics, we can avoid the traps of overcorrection and complacency and keep moving forward.    Stay humble. Stay detached. Stay balanced. 

Good leaders don't blame their team for their mistakes. They take personal accountability because they are responsible as the leader. Then, good leaders work with their team to fix the errors and prevent them from occurring again. This is Extreme Ownership. This is how you can lead your team to solve its problems.

Being the easy button is inhibiting your team's growth. When you answer every question, solve every problem, and make every decision, your people are not able to step up and grow. Why would your team think for themselves when they can just press the Easy Button and have their leader think and make the right decisions for them? When you step in and micro-manage your team, you may avoid mistakes in the short term. But your people will never learn to think or act for themselves. In an attempt to own it all, you centralize command and deny the team a chance to take Extreme Ownership as well. As a leader, you must give your team opportunities to try and fail. So, take a step back and let them try. If they make a mistake, don't get frustrated. Instead, help them learn from it. Own it all, but empower others. Learn more in Chapter 2 of Dichotomy of Leadership, now available in the expanded version: https://lnkd.in/gHWCGmy2

You don't really want to say NO to someone’s request or idea. But in a busy environment with a never-ending to-do list, we have to prioritize what’s most important. So as Dave Berke suggests, next time you're feeling overwhelmed, ask this simple question: “Will this help us accomplish the mission?” Learn how to better set these boundaries through earnest questions on the Extreme Ownership Academy: https://lnkd.in/gkszD76t

For every positive behavior a leader should have, it is possible to take that behavior to the extreme, where it becomes a negative. A leader’s greatest strength can also be his or her greatest weakness. You must balance these dichotomies in order to lead effectively. Learn how: https://lnkd.in/gHWCGmy2

Extreme Ownership introduced the foundational principles of leadership every leader must understand in order to be successful. The sequel, the Dichotomy of Leadership, shows you how to apply the principles of Extreme Ownership in the real world, where leadership isn’t black and white but gray. Check out the new expanded edition of Dichotomy out today. https://a.co/d/21U0HuI

Extreme Ownership introduced the foundational principles of leadership necessary for leaders to be successful. The sequel, the Dichotomy of Leadership, shows you how to apply the principles of Extreme Ownership in the real world, where leadership isn’t black and white but gray. Check out the new expanded edition of Dichotomy released today. https://a.co/d/4zkomkN

Extreme Ownership introduced the foundational principles of leadership every leader must understand in order to be successful. The sequel, the Dichotomy of Leadership, shows you how to apply the principles of Extreme Ownership in the real world, where leadership isn’t black and white but gray. Check out the new expanded edition of Dichotomy out today. https://a.co/d/21U0HuI

Extreme Ownership introduced you to these leadership concepts, but the Dichotomy of Leadership will enable you to apply them in the real world. Leadership isn’t black and white. You must balance conflicting traits and principles to be a successful leader. And the expanded version of “Dichotomy of Leadership is out now — to empower you to lead. Get your copy today: https://lnkd.in/ggts7WUu