Why a Warrior’s Spirit? Why was the idea of the warrior’s spirit chosen as the image for leaders to hold as a reference point about their leadership roles?
The image could have been the saint’s commitment, the artist’s passion, or the teacher’s patience. The choice was a very considered one, not an impulsive attraction to the romance of a macho martial image.
A warrior’s spirit was chosen because the warrior has always been asked to sacrifice “self” to a higher, more worthy purpose. Personal feelings have to be mastered for the warrior to perform successfully in his/her role.
Societies strive to instill a certain mentality---a strong personal philosophy---in their warriors because, when push comes to shove, one’s natural reaction is to flee the carnage rather than throw oneself into it.
This spirit has always been mostly strongly held by those who are most intimately involved in the mortal clash of combat.
Typical CEOs, bosses, or family business leaders do not approach their jobs as if they were engaged in combat. They don’t use the concept of thinking of their death as their advisor. It isn’t about life and death or the protection of the gene pool.
On the other hand, anyone who has a serious, responsible role in a business that supports an extended family, or who has a broader community of people depending on the success of the enterprise, knows that the stress is powerful and the pressures are daunting.
You go into the family business arena everyday with the hopes and needs of so many people resting on your shoulders.
In many communities you’re an integral part of the economy, and the community at large depends, at least indirectly, upon your success. On the other hand, people get used to anything that is a chronic circumstance.
We habituate and we begin to let things fade into the background and respond to the loudest pressures, even if they aren’t the most urgent.
At West Point the ideas contained in their motto, “Duty, Honor, Country” are used to nurture the warrior spirit within cadets. Colonel L.R. Donnithorne wrote about how they use those words:
…They make you strong enough to know when you are weak, and brave enough to face yourself when you are afraid. They teach you to be proud and unbending in honest failure, but humble and gentle in success; not to substitute words for actions, nor to seek the path of comfort, but to face the stress and spur of difficulty and challenge; to learn to stand up in the storm but have compassion on those who fail; to master yourself before you seek to master others; to have a heart that is clean, a goal that is high…
This image can be used to create a mindset that is the perfect antidote for the four deadly sins of family business.