Colin Powell Catherine Lobbestael USAF Senior Noncommissioned Officer

Renowned historian and classicist scholar Victor Davis Hanson’s January 11, 2012 commentary entitled “Heavy Price of Defense Spending Cuts: Nations That Choose Butter over Guns Atrophy and Die” warrants a thoughtful analysis of its merits and shortcomings by U.S. military officers entrusted with leading this nation’s youth while implementing our national strategy.

The person that I am writing my essay about is Colin Powell because he is a retired four-star general from the United States Army. He has achieved many things in life and is still alive today at the age of 80. I also admire him because he has gone to 4 schools. He has gone to 3 colleges. They are the National War College, City College of New York, and George Washington University.

In the case study “Generals versus the President,” General Ridgeway’s level of dissent eventually crossed the line of acceptability to the point where he committed professional suicide. Initially, he attempted to directly influence the opinions of the members of the JCS and the NSC to not support President Eisenhower’s policy of massive retaliation. His actions within the JSC and NSC were not totally outside of the bounds of normalcy.

Some People if they hear his name Colin Powell they say who is that but he is well known for being secretary of state and serving in the army and saving his friends for a burning helicopter. He joined the ROTC after college

General Douglas Macarthur was one of the most well known military figures in the history of the United States. He gave his farewell speech to congress on 19th April 1951 and went into retirement after 52 years of service in the United States army. He was given the chance to address his final message to the US government. This analysis carefully examines his ethics, goals, strategies, strengths and weaknesses. The speech is very famous and highly popular among the American audience. Therefore, we will take into account all factors to critically evaluate the speech and find out what makes it important.

Leadership. It is a trait that is valued in almost any form of society. Whether it be leadership in the workplace or leadership on the battlefield, leadership is a prized capability for people. But, according to Colin Powell, this valued leadership trait can be lost at the hands of the followers of that leader. If these followers no longer trust their leader with their problems, then that person is no longer their leader. And, this statement does have some validity. While the raw talents of a leader are valuable to a group, ultimately, the success of the leader is contingent on whether or not the leader acknowledges and includes his followers. Therefore, Powell’s point is agreeable to a large extent, as it is imperative that the followers not only

Most people recognize Colin Powell as one of the most admired and popular leaders of our time. Often times in leadership you will not always be popular or admired, so what makes this leader different? It was those core values ingrained in him at early age by his parents that would shape him as a future leader (Koltz & Powell, 2012). As with any great leader he’s had his fair share of trials and tribulations, but like an infantry officer he continued to press forward. Colin Powell has been a visionary and ethical leader since the early days of Persian Gulf to Washington’s corridors (Roth, 1993). Throughout my research he has become a personal inspiration for me due to his ability to inspire and motivate those around him. Let’s take a brief look into his background to provide a better understanding of his leadership style.

This lieutenant fought in the same war and on the same battle field as his fellow comrades, but could not sit at the same table and have dinner. This was the life that Colin Powell, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former Secretary of State experienced but later became one of the most respected men in U.S. history. In Powell’s book, It Worked For Me, he talked about his thirteen rules, which are quotes and aphorisms that he lives by. There were two that stood out to me. “It ain’t as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning” (Koltz, 2012). In an interview with Mark Crumpton from Bloomberg Television, Powell said it really

Colin Powell’s “It Worked For Me in Life and Leadership” (2012) is a riveting book that discusses in great detail the simple but often-fundamental leadership principles that have been consigned to oblivion by most people and leaders. The evocative book provides a basis on which one can evaluate their strengths and weaknesses in leadership in all dimensions, particularly at the work place and suggests other areas of improvement that the reader can asses to ensure proper development. Through careful, frequent and honest evaluations from both self and others, it is possible for a person to become the best version of himself or herself; in turn, this contributes to a well-rounded leader.

This shows how respected he was among the Washington staff. This also shows the competence, candor, and integrity Powell posses throughout his term in Washington D.C. Colin Powell continues to advance through the ranks and through the staff jobs he was appointed to. He then served as senior military aide to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, helping to coordinate the invasion of Granada and the bombing of Libya (Biography.com, 2010). To help coordinate these attacks would have to take great courage, because there’s always a chance of casualties. He commits to these plans and excels with both operations.

General Powell highlights 18 lessons learned in leadership that are applied to successful companies, and how they are applied to leadership in his presentation to the Outreach Program, and the Sears Corporate Headquarters. These approaches can be applied not only in business but life in general. I will highlight three of the lessons that have impacted my career in the military

George H. W. Bush was a Visionary but not an Ethical Leader. In this paper, I will discuss how he used Inspirational Motivation to inspire troops to war, and Dispositional Flexibility to get the world through the chaotic collapse of the USSR. On the other hand, we will prove he was Not and Ethical Leader, because he fell into the trap of Worry over Image when he sent 2500 soldiers into Panama to increase his public image. His lack of depth as a critical thinker while dealing

General Powell displays transformation leadership through individualized consideration. “IC involves dealing with others as individuals and considering their needs, abilities, and aspirations as you work together to further their development.” General Powell’s Army background influences the idea of taking raw iron and fashioning it into a sword; as noted in his quote “leaders are made, not born” implies leadership is a shaping process. Transformational leaders who display individual consideration tend to coach and mentor, excel in two-way communications, listens effectively, and personalize interactions with subordinates. Part of General Powell’s principle of empowerment is an investment in the leadership potential of team members. This investment is necessary in sustaining productive organizations.

Clausewitz defines war as an “act of force to compel our enemy to do our will.” The nature of war is enduring yet the character of war changes over time. Current US strategic guidance is advancing the point of view that since the character of war has changed to focus on irregular wars then the US military should prepare for a future of irregular wars. This shift in focus forgets that the nature of war is enduring and in order to be successful, we must prepare for all types of conflict. This paper will define the types of conflict and the likelihood of each followed by a discussion of US strategic guidance and ending with an analysis of the training resources and force structure requirements needed to achieve success for all types of

There were numerous times were people would try and pressure him into a decision by noting there was no time for indecision. He could keep his calm, cool manner and think a situation through before reacting. I think that being able to think things through no matter the situation speaks volumes to what a leader needs to be. He also showed that not every situation needed to be thought out at that time. He was known to have thought of contingency plans prior to actions as to cut out reaction time needed due to him thinking it through before implementation and able to switch tactics on the fly. He showed this attribute multiple times but one example sticks out in my mind’s eye. We had set up a forward position in Ramadi in what we thought was a hostile minimal area. Once we had set up our hasty area for command and control of an impending raid we came under small arms fire and a mortar attack. He had set up sectors of fire and counter fire areas before we had set up even though we were told numerous times that it was not needed. Due to his intellect, he had taken it into advisement but had planned on it not being as such and we were able to respond in kind and repel any such attack. I learned from him that no matter what happens you need to think things through and show a strong intellect so your soldiers are confident in your decisions and believe in you.