Take it from me: Army Rangers always lead the way. I was cast as
the “military” character on Donald Trump’s popular show The
Apprentice 2. After 15 long weeks, it came down to me and a Princeton-educated
attorney. In front of millions of viewers, Donald Trump chose me as his apprentice.
Immediately, I was bombarded with variations of the same question:
“Do you think your military background helped you win ‘The Apprentice?’”
The answer: an unqualified yes. My military background and training were crucial
factors—not only for winning The Apprentice, but for succeeding
in every venture I have undertaken since that very influential time in my life.
Of course, there’s the discipline, attention to detail, showing
up on time, and saying “Yes Sir!” and “No Ma’am!”
But there is so much more to military leadership training than that. It is a whole
mind-set. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that what I learned
at West Point and in my military service centered on 10 essential principles for
effective leadership. These principles apply to any venture in life.
1. Integrity. The most important principle is Integrity. It’s
always about taking the hard right over the easy wrong. You’ll invariably
find situations in your work life that will question your character and invite
you, at the least, to cut corners to get the desired result. At these moments,
you have to ask yourself, what’s the right thing to do? It’s less
about knowing what’s right and more about having trouble with doing what’s
right. It’s always difficult to deal with moral issues at work, especially
those in which you risk personal or professional jeopardy by doing the right thing.
But, maintaining your personal integrity, over time, will serve you better. Once
lost, your integrity is something you can never get back.
2. Passion. Passion is a two-way street. You should be doing something you’re passionate about, and if you’re doing something, you should
be passionate about it. The best times in anyone’s work life is when they
can combine those two sides to the equation. A good way to find your own passion
at work is to own something. There’s always going to be some politics around
any program or work experience, but you have to find something that you can say,
“This is mine, and I’m going to make it happen.”
3. Planning. I was accused on The Apprentice of being on
the spreadsheet too much. When you have so many moving parts and you have to count
every penny, you can’t afford to not have planned for something. Many people
get the wrong impression when you say planning. They think bureaucracy,
and that’s actually the process. Effective planning requires covering your
most important bases: long-term and short-term goals, intermediate tasks to accomplish,
and monitoring and measuring. If you can build each of those elements into your
professional projects, you’ll be successful.
4. Perseverance. It’s not the size of the dog in the fight,
it’s the size of the fight in the dog. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy.
You need to show some intestinal fortitude to get through life. In any profession,
you need to have perseverance—to keep pounding away until you find a way
to win.
5. Teamwork. There is no “I” in TEAM. To take charge
of your career, you have to be an asset to your organization, and becoming an
asset requires learning how to effectively motivate and inspire others to work
hard for a vision, whether you are the leader who espoused the vision or not.
You have to help others believe in the vision by helping them understand their
role in contributing to the success of the project. Your co-workers need to see
the value and need for the project. People want to contribute and to create value.
6. Duty. Do what you’re supposed to do, when you’re supposed to do it. Roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. Get down in the trenches.
Show that you’re willing to do that, capable and willing to do that. If
you show you’re willing to do whatever you ask anybody to do, it goes a
long way towards earning respect because it will show first that you are technically
and tactically capable enough to do the job; and second that you’re willing
to do what it takes to get the job done.
7. Flexibility. In all aspects of life, the person with the most
varied responses wins. Show that you’re willing to learn, that you don’t
know it all.
8. Loyalty. Remain loyal—up, down, and across your organization. Many people see this as being loyal to your co-workers, but it goes deeper than
that. You don’t have to be everyone’s friend all the time. T’s
need to be crossed and I’s need to be dotted, and your loyalty to the team
and to getting the job done will earn you respect in your colleague’s eyes
far beyond what any casual socializing will give you. You can’t demand respect—you
have to earn it over time. And it all starts with how you show up and operate
your first day on the job.
9. Impeccability. If it is worth doing, it is worth doing right.
Strive for excellence in everything you do at work. Giving half of your effort
will only yield half of the result, and even less of an image for yourself.
10. Selfless service. One of the best ways to give to those around
you is networking. And I’m not just talking about networking for yourself.
Put your focus on connecting people up. Don’t sit in front of your computer.
Get out and meet people, whether it’s in associations, organizations, networking
events, or even non-networking events, if you’re always thinking about how
to connect people up, it’s going to come across to people that you’re
looking out for their best interests first, rather than your own. I call this
the Karma Club. It’s give a little to get a little. When you’re
talking to someone, instead of thinking about the next thing you’ll say,
think about how you can help that person.
These principles sound simple, but it takes discipline, training,
and devotion to keep them front and center in everything you do. Whether you’re
seeking success in a boardroom, on the playing field, on a sales call, fundraising,
leading troops in Iraq, or starting your own business, the principles of taking
command and being effective are the same. PE
