Leadership in the our military is paramount. Without it, they could not engage in battles and defend the freedoms of our country. Their lives literally depend on it.
In business, our lives aren’t literally dependent on its success. But a business’s success is dependent on the quality of its leadership. Adopting these 11 essential Marine Corp leadership principles will have you navigate your business more effectively and lead your company and people towards success.
Included with these 11 principles is a civilian adaptation to guide you in your business. These principles are also an important tool for self-evaluation. As you progress, you can use them to identify your own strengths and weaknesses, and seek self-improvement.
KNOW YOURSELF AND SEEK SELF-IMPROVEMENT
Use the 11 leadership traits to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. An accurate and clear understanding of yourself and a comprehension of group behavior will help you determine the best way to deal with any given situation.
There are different archetypes, or styles, of leadership. The effectiveness of each depends on the situation. What natural style of leadership do you possess? Visionary, Coaching, Affiliative, Democratic, Pacesetting, or Commanding? Understanding the different styles and their application to particular group situations will make you more effective as a leader. (see post on “Leadership Styles”)
Think of the leadership styles as tools in a toolbox. The more tools you put in it and the better you are at using those tools the more adept you’ll be at leading and handling situations (see post on “Your Leadership and Management Toolbox”).
Take Away – Know yourself and your style of leadership and understand how it applies to your organization or business. Apply the Japanese philosophy of Kaizen and continually seek self-improvement and enlightenment (see post “Kaizen and You”). Reading articles is a great way to learn because they tend to be more succinct than books.
Tyler de la Plaine, Founder and Principle Consultant
Thrive Venture Consulting — bringing people and ideas together.