Quote of the Day: Norman Schwarzkopf on Leadership

Early September has a particular kind of pressure: the year is in full motion, schedules tighten, and the temptation is to fix everything with a sharper plan. But this season also rewards a quieter kind of preparation, the kind that starts inside. “Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy.”

Strategy is the map: objectives, priorities, contingency plans, and the ability to choose a direction when the data is incomplete. Character is the compass: the steady moral center that keeps your decisions aligned with what’s right, not merely what “works.” When Schwarzkopf elevates character over strategy, he’s pointing to a truth most teams learn the hard way: people will forgive a flawed plan faster than they’ll forgive a flawed person leading it.

For your own leadership, this is practical. When you’re unsure, don’t ask first, “What’s the smartest move?” Ask, “What’s the cleanest move?” Clean means honest about trade-offs, accountable for outcomes, respectful of others, and consistent when no one is watching. A strategy mistake can be revised in a meeting; a character mistake can linger in culture for years.

Norman Schwarzkopf earned this perspective through a lifetime of command, culminating as the U.S. general who led coalition forces during the Gulf War, where decisions carried real-world consequences and trust was a strategic asset.

Today, pick one conversation you’ve been avoiding and enter it with integrity: state the truth plainly, take your share of responsibility, and make one fair request. Let your character do the leading, and may your example make the path easier for everyone who follows.