If you’re a leader, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin’s book Extreme Ownership has the answer.
Jocko Willink and Leif Babin served together in a Navy Seals team deployed to Iraq. They learned how to lead on the battlefield. . The book Extreme Ownership combines military memories and business case-studies while distilling the lessons they learned into leadership principles.
The answer to the question “Whose fault?” is an easy one for the leader. It’s the leader’s fault. That’s what Extreme Ownership demands.
This applies to:
- My relationship with Christ – it’s not God’s fault I haven’t progressed in my sanctification. It’s the power of the Holy Spirit in me that will do the work, but I need to work out my salvation with fear and trembling.
- My relationship with my wife and daughter – Am I unhappy with how my daughter behaves? How did I enable it? What can I do to set her up to succeed? What can I do to help stand beside my wife and support her in her own dreams?
- My relationship with my students – I’m responsible for helping my students learn how to write well. It’s my job to instill them with a growth mindset. I hope they will take ownership over their own education, but I need to take the responsibility of helping them when they’re in my classroom.
- My relationship with my work – I’m responsible for the career I have. I’m not being held against my will in my current position. If I want something else, I need to make it happen.
This is a tall task, but it’s what the book has called me to do.