Gen. George S. Patton On Leadership
by Miki Saxon
Gen. George S. Patton, who commanded the US’s 7th Army in Europe and the Mediterranean during World War II, is one of the most loved and respected soldiers in US history.
Patton was tough, irascible, inspiring and considered a guru on the subject of leadership.
After reading a list of brilliant, succinct, one-liners on leadership, taken from the 1995 book “Patton’s One-Minute Messages” by Charles M. Province, I picked seven to share, with appropriate (if sometimes irreverent) commentary.
“No good decision was ever made in a swivel chair.” Even if it’s a Herman Miller design, so get up, get out and walk around.
- “Do everything you ask of those you command.” Especially since no boss does a lot of commanding these days.
- “No one is thinking if everyone is thinking alike.” The only thing that may benefit from hiring yes-people is your ego and that’s only in the very short-term.
- “Never make a decision too early or too late.” That said, worst of all is no decision at all.
- “Know what you know, and know what you don’t know.” Now learn to admit it.
- “Success is how you bounce on the bottom.” I can personally swear to the accuracy of this having bounced several times in my life.
- “Any man who thinks he’s indispensable, ain’t.” This is my all-time favorite. It’s similar to one my first boss used when a team member got a little too cocky, “Nobody can be duplicated, but anybody can be replaced.”
You can learn a lot from Patton as long as you remember that he was a great leader not because of his skill for soundbites, but because he always walked his talk.
Image credit: National Archives
