Tuesday, February 24, 2004

LEADERSHIP AS AN ART FORM

I've mentioned here before the concept that leadership is an act of service to one's "subordinates".

Every soldier in that line would understand if the Secretary of Defense had to leave/eat/meet/be somewhere else right now. He's the Secretary of Defense, for crying out loud.

But he didn't. And those troops now have a photo they will cherish forever. And Secretary Rumsfeld has their loyalty forever as well.
The day was to have culminated with the secretary having dinner with troops at the Baghdad International Airport dining facility. But when he was inundated with requests from soldiers and airmen to allow a friend to take their picture with him, Rumsfeld spent most of the visit doing just that. Hundreds of troops lined up along the long wall of the building, patiently waiting their turn, and the secretary greeted the last as enthusiastically as the first.

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