M16: The Power Of Humble Leadership: Lessons From Navy SEALs
Stepping into leadership can feel overwhelming—should you be bold and commanding, or will humility make you look weak? This episode explores the transformative power of humble leadership, drawing from Navy SEAL Leif Babin’s experience in Iraq. Inspired by The Dichotomy of Leadership, we unpack why humility—not charisma—is the key to influence. Whether you're leading a business or a battlefield, embracing humility can unite teams and drive success.
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M16: THE POWER OF HUMBLE LEADERSHIP - LESSONS FROM NAVY SEALS
HOW MANY OF YOU REMEMBER THE MOMENT YOU WERE HANDED YOUR FIRST REAL LEADERSHIP ROLE IN THE WORKPLACE? IT WAS THE JOB YOU HAD BEEN WORKING HARD FOR, AND YOU DESERVED IT. THEN… BOOM…. THERE YOU WERE IN CHARGE OF PEOPLE. SUDDENLY YOU HAD GOALS TO ACHIEVE…AND ALL EYES WERE ON YOU TO SEE IT THROUGH.
AT THAT MOMENT, THERE WAS VERY LIKELY A FLEETING, OR POSSIBLY EVEN A LONGER-LASTING FEELING OF COMPLETE INEPTITUDE. YOUR SKILLSET NOW SEEMED OUTDATED. IT WAS NO LONGER TIME TO BE A DOER, IT WAS TIME TO BE A LEADER.
FOR SOMEONE WHO MAY NOT BE THE TYPE OF LEADER WHO RALLIES THEIR TEAM WITH INSPIRING WORDS OF STRENGTH AND RESOLVE, ONE OF THE MOST COMMON QUESTIONS IS…. WHAT IF I’M TOO HUMBLE…WILL THAT START TO MAKE ME LOOK PASSIVE OR NOT BIG ENOUGH FOR THE JOB?
FEARING LOOKING WEAK, MANY PEOPLE OVER-COMPENSATE --- THEY AMPLIFY THEIR VOICE OR OVERPLAY THEIR POWER, OVER EVEN WORSE, UNDERPLAY THEIR COMMUNICATION, IN ORDER TO FEEL IN CONTROL – WHEN IN REALITY, JUST HOLDING THE TITLE AND TREATING OTHERS WITH RESPECT IS ENOUGH. BEING HUMBLE, AND IN A SENSE, WORKING FOR THOSE WHO WORK FOR YOU, MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
THIS IS A STORY ABOUT WHEN TWO MILITARY UNITS NOT KNOWN FOR WORKING WELL TOGETHER, WERE FACED WITH ONE OF THE DEADLIEST SITUATIONS IN MILITARY HISTORY – AND FOUND SUCCESS BY DOING THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT THEY WERE TRAINED TO DO – THEY DROPPED THEIR EGOS AND SHOWED A LITTLE HUMILITY.
EPISODE
JOCKO WILLINK AND LEIF BABIN WERE U.S. NAVY SEAL TEAMMATES IN IRAQ, AND AFTER THE SERVICE, THEY TEAMED UP AGAIN TO FORM A LEADERSHIP CONSULTING COMPANY CALLED ECHELON FRONT. ONE OF THE WAYS THEY MARKET THEMSELVES IS WITH CO-AUTHORED BOOKS, AND ONE OF THE MORE POPULAR BOOKS THEY’VE PUBLISHED IS CALLED THE DICHOTOMY OF LEADERSHIP.
THE BOOK FOCUSES ON HELPING LEADERS BALANCE THE MANY OPPOSING FORCES THEY FACE…. THOSE GRAY AREAS WHERE WE TEND TO QUESTION THE BEST WAY TO HANDLE SITUATIONS IN ORDER TO BE EFFECTIVE. MANY OF THEIR INSIGHTS, GAINED FROM YEARS OF LEADING HIGH-PERFORMING TEAMS, AREN’T WHAT YOU’D EXPECT FROM NAVY SEALS….AND IN SOME WAYS, THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS ARE COUNTERINTUITIVE.
IN THE BOOK, THEY POINT OUT THAT THE SINGLEMOST IMPORTANT TRAIT OF A LEADER OF ANY KIND OF TEAM, ISN’T CHARISMA OR WORK ETHIC, BUT RATHER, IT’S HUMILITY.
LEIF BABIN TELLS THE FOLLOWING STORY OF HUMBLE LEADERSHIP IN ACTION:
IT WAS 2006 IN THE KEY IRAQI CITY OF RAMADI, AND THE WAR WAS AT A CRITICAL JUNCTURE. LT LEIF BABIN WAS THE CHARLIE PLATOON COMMANDER OF SEAL TEAM 3, A GROUP THAT HAD ESTABLISHED A STRONG REPUTATION FOR IT’S COMPETENCE ON THE BATTLEFIELD. THEY HAD SOLID LEADERSHIP AND ELITE TEAM MEMBERS AT EVERY LEVEL, INCLUDING THE LATE CHRIS KYLE, SUBJECT OF THE MOVIE AMERICAN SNIPER, WHO WAS PROTECTING THE UNIT FROM IRAQI ROOFTOPS.
AS THE OPERATION IN RAMADI GOT UNDERWAY, LT BABIN AND HIS ELITE TEAM OF SEALS WERE ASSIGNED TO OPERATE ALONGSIDE THE U.S. ARMY’S TEAM BULLDOG OF BRAVO COMPANY IN ORDER TO SECURE AND ESTABLISH COMBAT OUTPOST FALCON. THE OUTPOST WOULD BE A SMALL BASE IN ENEMY TERRITORY THAT PROVIDED A PLACE FOR STAGING AND RESUPPLY OF FORWARD UNITS FIGHTING IN THE CITY.
GETTING THE TWO UNITS TO BREAK DOWN THEIR SEPARATE SILOS AND WORK TOGETHER IN LOCK STEP WAS NOT EASY TO ACCOMPLISH. NEITHER GROUP WAS IN THE OTHER’S CHAIN OF COMMAND, SO AS LT BABIN ATTEMPTED TO WORK WITH CAPTAIN BAJEMA, TEAM BULLDOG’S COMMANDER, AND INTEGRATE THEIR TWO TEAMS, HIS EARLY EFFORTS WERE DISMISSED. CAPTAIN BAJEMA COULDN’T SEE WHY HE’D EVER NEED TO RELY ON THIS GROUP OF NAVY SEALS – NOT TO MENTION, HE DIDN’T HAVE GREAT EXPERIENCES WORKING WITH SPECIAL OPERATORS IN THE PAST AND NEITHER HAD HIS SOLDIERS. BUT AS TIME WENT ON, AND THE FIGHT GOT TOUGHER, IT BECAME CLEAR, THEY NEEDED ONE ANOTHER.
ONE NIGHT, LT BABIN AND HIS TEAM OF SEALS HAD JUST RETURNED FROM A 48-HOUR MISSION CAMPED OUT INSIDE A BUILDING NOT FAR FROM THE COMBAT OUTPOST. THE SEALS WERE TIRED, HOT, AND READY TO TAKE OFF THEIR GEAR, GET SOMETHING TO EAT, AND RELAX.
WHEN THE TEAM ENTERED THE POST, THEY SAW CAPTAIN BAJEMA’S TEAM CARRYING TENS OF THOUSANDS OF SANDBAGS FROM A TRUCK, UP THREE STORIES TO BETTER FORTIFY THE OUTPOST ROOFTOP.
THE SEALS WALKED PAST THE SOLDIERS, LT BABIN PAUSED, WALKED OVER TO CAPTAIN BAJEMA AND ASKED IF THEY COULD HELP. THE CAPTAIN DECLINED. HE SAID HE APPRECIATED THE OFFER BUT NOT TO WORRY, THEY COULD HANDLE IT AND THE SEALS NEEDED THE BREAK.
TO MANY PEOPLE, THEY WOULD HAVE TAKEN THAT AT FACE VALUE AND CONTINUED ON, BUT LT BABIN KNEW HOW IMPORTANT IT WAS FOR HIS TEAM OF SEALS TO SHOW THE SOLDIERS THAT, EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE AN ELITE SPECIAL OPERATIONS UNIT, THEY WERE ALL ON THE SAME TEAM AND THEY RESPECTED THE SOLDIERS JUST THE SAME.
LT BABIN TURNED AND TOLD HIS PLATOON CHIEF WHAT THE NEW MISSION WAS. THE CHIEF ANNOUNCED TO THE SEAL PLATOON, MERELY MINUTES FROM THE R&R THEY HAD BEEN WAITING FOR, THAT THEY WOULD NOW BE CARRYING SANDBAGS. THERE WERE A FEW GRUMBLES, BUT THIS WAS A UNIT THAT PUSHED THROUGH ADVERSITY AND WORKED TOGETHER, SO THEY DROPPED THEIR EQUIPMENT, PICKED UP SANDBAGS, AND HELPED THE ARMY SOLDIERS FOR THE NEXT 45 MINUTES UNTIL THE TRUCK WAS EMPTY.
THIS VERY SMALL GESTURE OF HUMBLE LEADERSHIP PROVED TO BE THE CATALYST TO BREAKING DOWN THE SILOS BETWEEN THE TWO UNITS. THE 45-MINUTE SHOW OF RESPECT FORMED LASTING BONDS THAT PROVED INVALUABLE TO THE SUCCESS TWO UNITS HAD FIGHTING ALONGSIDE ONE ANOTHER IN THE DIFFICULT MONTHS AND YEARS AHEAD.
HUMILITY IS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT THINGS TO EMBRACE WHEN YOU ARE IN A POSITION OF POWER. IT CAN SEEM UNNECESSARY….AS THOUGH YOU’RE HANDING AWAY SOMETHING YOU WORKED SO HARD TO OBTAIN.
IT DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU’RE THE LEADER OF A SEAL TEAM OR A SALES TEAM, ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL THINGS YOU CAN DO AS A LEADER IS TO CHECK YOUR EGO AND RAISE YOUR HUMILITY SO YOUR TEAM CAN GROW IN THE DIRECTION THEY NEED. BY LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD, EVEN FOR A SHORT TIME, IT COMMUNICATES THAT EVERYONE ON THE TEAM, WHETHER THEY’RE AT THE TOP OR THE BOTTOM, IN THE FRONT OR THE BACK, IS EQUALLY IMPORTANT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE OVERALL MISSION.