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

a blue-on-blue. I opened an e-mail from my commanding officer (CO)
that went straight to the point. It read: “SHUT DOWN. CONDUCT NO
MORE OPERATIONS. INVESTIGATING OFFICER, COMMAND
MASTER CHIEF, AND I ARE EN ROUTE.” In typical fashion for a
Navy mishap, the CO had appointed an investigating officer to determine
the facts of what happened and who was responsible.
Another e-mail from one of my old bosses stationed in another city
in Iraq, but privy to what was happening in Ramadi, read simply, “Heard
you had a blue-on-blue. What the hell?”
All the good things I had done and the solid reputation I had worked
hard to establish in my career as a SEAL were now meaningless. Despite
the many successful combat operations I had led, I was now the
commander of a unit that had committed the SEAL mortal sin.
A day passed as I waited for the arrival of the investigating officer,
our CO, and command master chief (CMC), the senior enlisted SEAL at
the command. In the meantime, they directed me to prepare a brief
detailing what had happened. I knew what this meant. They were looking
for someone to blame, and most likely someone to “relieve”—the
military euphemism for someone to fire.
Frustrated, angry, and disappointed that this had happened, I began
gathering information. As we debriefed, it was obvious there were some
serious mistakes made by many individuals both during the planning
phase and on the battlefield during execution. Plans were altered but
notifications weren’t sent. The communication plan was ambiguous, and
confusion about the specific timing of radio procedures contributed to
critical failures. The Iraqi Army had adjusted their plan but had not told
us. Timelines were pushed without clarification. Locations of friendly
forces had not been reported. The list went on and on.