Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win

concussion, but the enemy could not get close enough to U.S. forces,
protected behind sandbags and concrete barriers. The Marines and
Soldiers fought off those attacks with such frequency that they almost
became commonplace—just another day in Ramadi.
In Task Unit Bruiser, we were confident and perhaps even a little
cocky. But I tried to temper that confidence by instilling a culture within
our task unit to never be satisfied; we pushed ourselves harder to
continuously improve our performance. I reminded our troops that we
couldn’t take the enemy for granted, that we could never get complacent.
With all that in mind, the boys of Task Unit Bruiser were fired up and
eager to prove themselves as we deployed to Ar Ramadi in the spring of
2006.
Immediately upon arrival, we were humbled by the violence of the
battlefield and the incredible heroism of conventional U.S. Soldiers and
Marines of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 28th (2-28) Infantry Division.
Our SEALs had the benefit of much more advanced training and all the
finest weapons, lasers, optics, and gadgetry that the enormous Special
Operations Command budget could buy. But we were in awe of the
Soldiers and Marines who manned the outposts in enemy territory and
were daily locked in a deadly struggle against a fierce and determined
enemy. When the 1st Armored Division’s Ready First Brigade Combat
Team arrived to replace 2-28 a month into our deployment, again we
developed a deep respect and admiration for these brothers-in-arms and
were proud to serve alongside them. Every one of the conventional units^3
we worked with had seen extensive combat; all had lost troops, and
suffered many more wounded. These Soldiers and Marines were the real
deal. They epitomized the term “warrior.”
The enemy was also strong and incredibly capable. They were deadly