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

storyboard brief with photographs, and a detailed multipage operational
summary. If we killed any bad guys on a combat mission—which in
Ramadi was virtually every operation—we had to provide sworn
statements describing precisely what happened and how our actions
complied with the rules of engagement for each enemy fighter killed.
And that doesn’t even include the pages of required intelligence
paperwork we had to compile.”
“I didn’t figure you guys would have to deal with such stuff,” said
the field manager.
“No matter how big or bureaucratic your company seems,” I said, “it
pales in comparison to the gargantuan U.S. military bureaucracy. And
imagine how much more emotional and frustrating it was for us when
our lives were on the line everyday. I often worked myself into a rage
over some very similar issues to yours here.
“But we had two choices,” I said. “Throw our hands up in frustration
and do nothing, or figure out how to most effectively operate within the
constraints required of us. We chose the latter.
“Let me ask you a question,” I continued. “Do you think the company
senior executives at corporate headquarters want you to fail?”
The field manager looked puzzled. He had clearly never considered
the question.
“Could they be scheming about how to make your job more difficult,
how they can keep you and your team flustered with questions, scrutiny,
and paperwork or how they might totally sabotage your mission?” I
asked.
Of course, this wasn’t the case. Having worked with the company’s
executive team, I knew they were a smart bunch of driven, eager
overachievers who wanted their frontline troops to not only accomplish