“Balance in leadership is crucial to victory,” decorated former Navy SEALs Jocko Willink and Leif Babin write in the introduction to their second collaboration, “The Dichotomy of Leadership.” The reason: “for every positive behavior a leader should have, it is possible to take that behavior to the extreme, where it becomes a negative.” The book is divided into three parts: Part I: Winning the War Within: the mindset necessary to lead and win. If a member of the team is better informed to make a decision or lead the team through a situation, a confident leader can put her ego aside and follow. This is particularly important when holding the line and enforcing standards. The aggression that wins on the battlefield, in business, or in life is directed not toward people but toward solving problems, achieving goals, and accomplishing the mission. The Dichotomy of Leadership is an outstanding follow up to Extreme Ownership that expands on and hones in on the principles laid out in Extreme Ownership. This is the second book I have presented from these former Navy SEALs. A leader can not lead alone, they need a team behind them with a common goal. Jocko Willink and Mike Sarrialle on the Y Combinator Podcast - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlhujkRroJY BOOK SUMMARY LEADERSHIP. Free Audiobook and Summary of Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Like this article? Your submission has been received! Sure, they take extreme ownership but they’re not extreme in their attitudes nor actions. I love designing visuals and writing insightful articles online. “So what does it take to win? This unit was the most highly decorated special operations unit of the Iraq War. Sequel to the multimillion-selling Extreme Ownership. If you are only one or the other, then you will fail. Disciplined standard operating procedures, repeatable processes, and consistent methodologies are helpful in any organization. While a leader must not become overwhelmed by the minor details, he also must not be too detached to lose control and fail the mission. Buy this book from Amazon. A great follower takes ownership and builds trust with their boss. “An aggressive mindset should be the default setting of any leader,” writes Willink in Chapter 6 of The Dichotomy of Leadership. Learn how you can apply the main lessons & principles from The Dichotomy of Leadership in a quick, easy listen! Sure, they take extreme ownership but they’re not extreme in their attitudes nor actions. Problems aren’t going to solve themselves—a leader must get aggressive and take action to solve them and implement a solution. Jocko Willink and Mike Sarrialle on the Y Combinator Podcast - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlhujkRroJY Dichotomy of Leadership is the follow-up book to Jocko Willink and Leif Babin’s wildly popular book on leadership, ... Here’s a quick summary of each chapter: Care about your individual team members, but accept that you might have to sacrifice individuals to save the group. In The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win (2018), authors Jocko Willink and Leif Babin show how key military principles apply to leaders who work in corporate settings. The book is divided into three parts: 1) Balancing People, 2) Balancing the Mission, and 3) Balancing Yourself. Both men are former Navy Seals and now run a consulting company together called Echelon Front. Leaders help employees understand why certain seemingly trivial actions (like logging a simple entry) helps the company’s long-term growth and eventually their own personal success (and paycheck). The best leaders manage the balance between the extremes of a few core attributes: confidence and humility, discipline vs. creativity, mentoring vs. firing, training hard vs. smart, leading and following, and empowering vs. micromanaging. Don’t focus too much on enforcing trivial polices such as no phone meetings. Publisher's Summary. Both books are about leadership, but you don’t need to be a leader to benefit from reading them. And Willink explains that the only true test for a successful leader is whether or not his team finds success. Drawing on original interviews with Read more…, In Mentor to Milllions, Kevin Harrington, one of the original “sharks” of the TV hit Shark Tank, and serial entrepreneur Mark Timm take you on a journey that radically redefines what it means to truly Read more…. “Aggressive" means proactive. “We don’t have the budget” and “we don’t have time” are not valid excuses. This serves as a good companion to Extreme Ownership - you might as well read this one if you’re reading the other. To be overly aggressive without critical thinking is to be reckless. The dichotomy with the Default: Aggressive mind-set is that sometimes hesitation allows a leader to further understand a situation so that he or she can react properly to it. I presented my synopsis of The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin at the November First Friday Book Synopsis in Dallas. But once every effort has been made to help an underperformer improve and all efforts have failed, a leader has to make the tough call to let that person go. Know high-stake areas where you must set rigid standards. ISBN: 1250195772 Also available in audiobook In this second book written by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, they explore several different areas that are challenging as a leader, The Dichotomy of Leadership.It requires for a leader to find balance between opposite forces. Effective leaders are detached enough to see the bigger picture but also attentive to what’s going on in the front line. It is critical for leaders to find the balance between standing firm and enforcing rules, and giving ground and allowing the rules to bend. I realized I was fortunate to have managers who were on both ends of the scale.  Too little, and you will fail. Most under-performers don’t need to be fired; they need to be mentored. Yes, you have to be driven. As operations grow and become more complicated, you won’t be able to inspect everything, and things will eventually spiral out of control. 5 Related Book Summaries. It detracts the team and slows them down. They balance the forces that pull them in opposite directions. Oops! Download The Dichotomy of Leadership Summary $ 9.97 – $ 13.97 Master the Dichotomy of Leadership to become a more effective leader! Creator of the number one Business podcast - over 500K downloads per week. About The Authors: Jocko Willink and Leif Babin are two former Navy SEALs who deployed in the Iraq war and later turned business consultants. They balance the forces that pull them in opposite directions. Sign up for a free trial here. When you’re stuck making phone calls, responding to emails and dealing with insurgencies, consider blocking time so you can detach and reinforce what your priorities are. Balance accountability with educating the team on. 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