a thought on leadership

from someone who experienced ups and pretty brutal downs

We all see much on social media, particularly in the hyper sensitive days ahead of an election. The hardest years teaching at the National War College, where professional ethos required vocal non-partisanship on the part of anyone in uniform (and I preferred it for civilians as public servants who serve our nation’s Constitution rather than a single party or belief), were those preceding a presidential election. 2004, which seemed so polarized though does not look nearly as such in retrospect, was the most challenging election I experienced, though the aftermath of 6 January 2020 was the single most stressful event.

I came across the following this morning, attributed to the late Vice Admiral and 1992 Vice Presidential candidate James Stockdale. Stockdale, if you’re too young to recall, became H. Ross Perot’s (if you’re too young to identify Perot, consult Dr. Google) running mate to a great degree because the retired naval aviator and Medal of Honor recipient had credibility in foreign affairs the candidate himself woefully lacked as a business mogul.

More relevant, Stockdale was the most senior U.S. military prisoner of war held by North Vietnam. Stockdale endured more than seven years’ captivity. The main gate at the Naval Air Station North Island in Coronado, California bears his name. Following his release, Stockdale led at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, then the Citadel in South Carolina.

A maverick, Stockdale advocated stoicism to address the stresses of life, using this as a foundation for leadership. His life after the Citadel focused on writing about leadership.

Stockdate introduced himself to the nation in a debate with Al Gore and Dan Quayle in 1992 by asking rhetorically, “Who am I and and why am I here?” This became the brunt of jokes as did the Perot/Stockdale ticket’s 19% showing in the 1992 vote. But he persisted in his beliefs about behavior and leadership.

In short, Stockdale carried what most of us would consider ample reason for bitterness, victimization, and doubts. He said forty four years ago last month in the Naval Proceedings,

“The educated man, particularly the educated leader, copes with the fact that life is not fair. The problem for education is not to each people how to deal with success but how to deal with failure. And the way to deal with failure is not to invent scapegoats or to lash out at your followers. Moreover, a properly educated leader, especially when harassed and under pressure, will know from his study of history and the classics that circumstances very much like those he is encountering have occurred from time to time on this earth since the beginning of history. He will avoid the self-indulgent error of seeing himself in a predicament so unprecedented, so unique, as to justify his making an exception to law, custom, or morality in favor of himself. The making of such exceptions has been the theme of public life throughout much of our lifetimes. For 20 years, we’ve been surrounded by gamesmen unable to cope with the wisdom of ages. They make exceptions to law and custom in favor of themselves because they chose to view ordinary dilemmas as unprecedented crises”.

Quite an observation by someone who could have bemoaned “life is not fair” for seven years’ incarceration on behalf of his nation. He chose not to do so. Stockdale lived a different leadership.

Thank you for reading Actions today. I welcome any feedback on the late Vice Admiral, his thoughts, or any other topic. Thank you for your time. Please feel free to circulate this if you find it of value. Thank you especially to the subscribers of this column as your resources advance my efforts to expand measured, civil conversation.

A glassy morning on the creek proceeded fierce winds heralding the true end of summer and the sailboat show.

Be well and be safe. FIN

Vice Admiral James B. Stockdale, USN (retired), “Moral Leadership”, Naval Proceedings, 106/9/931 (September 1980).