"It is tempting to protect yourself from the personal or professional costs of
loss by limiting how much you commit, how much of belief and trust in people,
and how deeply you care. Caution and cynicism are safe, but soldiers don't want
to follow cautious cynics. They follow leaders who believe enough to risk
failure or disappointment for a worthy cause.
If I had it to do over again, I'd do some things in my career differently but not many. I believed in people, and I still believe in them. I trusted and I still trust. I cared and I still care. I wouldn't have had it any other way.
Winston Churchill said we make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. To the young leaders of today and tomorrow, it's a great life."
Farewell to the troops
July 2010
