This text on the principles of naval leadership covers many topics including motivational theory and the qualities of leadership.

The naval leader has taken centre stage in traditional naval histories. However, while the historical narrative has been fairly consistent the development of various navies has been accompanied by assumptions, challenges and competing visions of the social characteristics of naval leaders and of their function. Whilst leadership has been a constant theme in historical studies, it has not been scrutinised as a phenomenon in its own right. This book examines the critical period in Europe between 1700 -1850, when political, economic and cultural shifts were bringing about a new understanding of the individual and of society. Bringing together context with a focus on naval leadership as a phenomenon is at the heart of this book, a unique collaborative venture between British, French and Spanish scholars. As globalisation develops in the twenty-first century the significance of navies looks set to increase. This volume of essays aims to place naval leadership in its historical context. An electronic version of this book is freely available, thanks to the support of libraries working with Knowledge Unlatched. KU is a collaborative initiative designed to make high quality books Open Access for the public good. The Open Access ISBN for this book is 978-1-911534-76-1. More information about the initiative and details about KU’s Open Access programme can be found at www.knowledgeunlatched.org

Designed for busy junior officers in the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine, this primer teaches the basics of leadership in five sequential steps. It begins with a useful overview of major leadership studies, followed by an informative summary of the wisdom of 380 senior sea-going officers regarding those leadership attributes required of the junior officer. One chapter includes sea stories from officers of varied backgrounds, each offering a leadership lesson that was learned the hard way. Along with this sage advice from experienced sea-service officers, the book offers a final chapter that helps readers build personalized plans to improve their own leadership skills. Such a practical guide is certain to turn young officers into successful leaders.

This book was designed to be the final leadership text for those who are to be commissioned in the Naval Service.

Leadership is a most demanding undertaking. How do some people make it seem so simple, so natural and instinctive? In the age-old debate as to whether leaders are born or made, Thomas contends that the answer is both. Great leaders throughout history were born with certain capabilities. Preparation honed those capabilities. Then that ability and preparation were combined with a will to lead. When circumstances demanded, the great leaders of history pulled these attributes together to create results that drove the course of history. While leaders are present in every aspect of human undertaking, we chose to illustrate each of the components of leadership through the most dramatic and demanding of all human undertakings—war and the preparations for war. Wartime leaders are leaders “writ with a darker pen.” Wartime challenges are, because of the life and death nature of the affair, more monumental and exacting. In the selection of individuals to illustrate each point, we chose wartime leaders as well as those who guided their subordinates and organizations in preparation for combat. Further we chose American leaders with a distinct and obvious bias towards the navy and Marine Corps. Multiple reasons led us to our approach for Leadership Embodied. First, a biography is perhaps the most effective method for imparting leadership lessons. Simple listings of prescriptive traits or descriptive qualities are patronizing and, frequently, boring. Second, our biographical examples are familiar to most—or at least they should be. Finally, all of these historical selections have dramatically shaped today’s institutions, practices, and customs within the naval services. These are not marginal figures with marginal influence. The individuals included, and their respective leadership attributes, should be required reading for any student of leadership. Each has a particular lesson for midshipmen on their journey to becoming a navy or Marine Corps officer. This book does not promise to be a panacea. There is no short cut. Leadership does not follow a prescribed path. We study examples to inspire us to become better, to be strong when it is easy to give in, and to know others have gone before us and faced insurmountable odds. Leadership, as an ill-defined social science, crosses boundaries with several disciplines including sociology, psychology, philosophy, and history. We have selected a method that combines the psychological “profile” of effective leaders and the historical context of the impact their leadership brought to organizations and events. Our hope for this book is that these case studies illustrate the basic elements—in themselves the very essence—of leadership. It is through inherent talent, arduous preparation, and practical experience that we become capable leaders. The reader brings the first to the table; then we offer a small token in the second pursuit; and circumstances enable the third.

“One of the 12 best business books of all time…. Timeless principles of empowering leadership.” – USA Today "The best how-to manual anywhere for managers on delegating, training, and driving flawless execution.” —FORTUNE Since Turn the Ship Around! was published in 2013, hundreds of thousands of readers have been inspired by former Navy captain David Marquet’s true story. Many have applied his insights to their own organizations, creating workplaces where everyone takes responsibility for his or her actions, where followers grow to become leaders, and where happier teams drive dramatically better results. Marquet was a Naval Academy graduate and an experienced officer when selected for submarine command. Trained to give orders in the traditional model of “know all–tell all” leadership, he faced a new wrinkle when he was shifted to the Santa Fe, a nuclear-powered submarine. Facing the high-stress environment of a sub where there’s little margin for error, he was determined to reverse the trends he found on the Santa Fe: poor morale, poor performance, and the worst retention rate in the fleet. Almost immediately, Marquet ran into trouble when he unknowingly gave an impossible order, and his crew tried to follow it anyway. When he asked why, the answer was: “Because you told me to.” Marquet realized that while he had been trained for a different submarine, his crew had been trained to do what they were told—a deadly combination. That’s when Marquet flipped the leadership model on its head and pushed for leadership at every level. Turn the Ship Around! reveals how the Santa Fe skyrocketed from worst to first in the fleet by challenging the U.S. Navy’s traditional leader-follower approach. Struggling against his own instincts to take control, he instead achieved the vastly more powerful model of giving control to his subordinates, and creating leaders. Before long, each member of Marquet’s crew became a leader and assumed responsibility for everything he did, from clerical tasks to crucial combat decisions. The crew became completely engaged, contributing their full intellectual capacity every day. The Santa Fe set records for performance, morale, and retention. And over the next decade, a highly disproportionate number of the officers of the Santa Fe were selected to become submarine commanders. Whether you need a major change of course or just a tweak of the rudder, you can apply Marquet’s methods to turn your own ship around.