Unconventional warfare needs to remain the heart and soul of U.S. Special Operations Command and component commands.
Brandon Webb
Being a Navy SEAL and sniper taught me all about risk management. Take away all the risk variables under your control and reduce it to an acceptable level. The same fundamentals apply in business.
As a Navy SEAL, and sniper, one of the things I learned was that excellence matters.
Elon Musk should be at the top of the list of people to emulate when it comes to leading large organizations that are highly maneuverable and use it as a competitive advantage.
There's a lot of SEALs who hate me and claim I've broken our code of silence.
The 'Patriot Act,' 'Enhancing domestic security,' and 'Protect America' all sound great - until you realize that they're catch phrases for programs that contain roving wire taps without a warrant and the collection and sale of your personal information to the U.S. government.
Violence of action, as we call it in the Spec Ops community, will often change the odds in your favor.
Too often, it's the Washington way to hide, point fingers, and try to place blame on someone else.
Bad people will find a way to do harm, whether it's homemade explosives, illegal weapons, or flying planes into buildings. Restricting law-abiding citizens' right to bear arms is not the answer.
Great leaders know that adversity produces the greatest opportunities in life.
After serving as a U.S. Navy SEAL, I started a business. In four years, it failed incredibly, but I learned a lot about business, raising equity, and choosing partners.
The people with whom I've worked in the Special Operations community are more concerned with an individual's contribution to the team, and their ability to do their job exceptionally well, than their race or sexual preferences.
Special-purpose dogs have been a critical component for police and military work in the current war on terror. These dogs are some of the bravest animals on the planet.
It ends all things: birds, trees, flowers, mountain tops, and business; it grinds stones to sand, and as terrible as it is, and it's the most beautiful thing we have in our lives - time.
I didn't grow up hunting whitetail, but I would stalk tuna and white sea bass and yellowtail.
I like to measure people by their accomplishments in life and how they consistently act.
Whether you have incredible products like at Apple or a great service business, it all comes down to fundamental trust and relationship-building with your customers.
I am proud to be a SEAL and serve in the military.
The September 11th, 2012, attacks on the State Department compound in Benghazi, Libya, is important and should be studied because in the big picture, it represents a failed foreign policy that spans across both Bush and Obama Presidencies.
I am not a tall man.
Small unit autonomy, breaking the right rules, cultural influence, and relationship building has always been the heart Special Operations. Something must be done to ensure these are not lost to the big machine of SOCOM.
I'm real careful doing public appearances because look at what happened to my friend Chris Kyle.
We saw the integration of the female pilots in the Navy, in combat roles, and the resistance there in the beginning.
Fighter pilots and special operations forces guys have the same DNA.
Law in Ukraine is not black and white; it is shades of gray.
The guys who don't make it through SEAL training are the Rambo wannabes. If you cannot work in a team format but also function autonomously, you won't last for very long.
The consequences of leaking sensitive information is that Americans and coalition forces die, and we lose trust with foreign spies, and our national security is put at risk.
It takes guts to realize you screwed up and to then come clean without any excuses.
A good decision executed quickly is better than a great one never executed.
I sleep well at night.
Time bandits come at all hours, wanting conversations, wasting conversations, wanting meetings, wasting meetings, and all with no purpose.
Three days doesn't sound like a very long time, and under normal, everyday circumstances, it's not - but under POW camp conditions, it doesn't take long to wear down a man's sanity.
Mainstream news covers war and gets everything wrong. I'd rather learn what's happening from soldiers with combat experience. It's like a former NFL player giving play-by-play. We bring the expert commentary.
The Special Ops community has always been about mental toughness.
The Special Operations community is rooted in unconventional warfare.
I think Afghanistan has turned into the Vietnam of my generation, only with a better homecoming.
With rare exceptions, Hollywood typically casts Spec Ops guys as macho, swaggering strongmen. As usual, Hollywood's got it wrong.
If I had to identify the one skill set shared by most by the men who become part of the SEAL teams... it would be sheer brainpower.
If you're going to break the rules, you have to live with the consequences.
While I tend to side with economist Milton Freidman when it comes to free-market economics, there is a place for 'Made in the U.S.A.' where national security is concerned.
I make a habit of asking myself, 'Is there purpose to this meeting or conversation? Do I want to build a relationship with this person or company? Is there purpose behind this meeting that aligns with my life and business strategy?' If the answer is 'No,' then I pass every time.
Going through SEAL training taught me that it's OK to fall down three times, as long as you get up four. This is a good philosophy for most things in life.
Like a lot of business owners out there, I don't desire to face the continual flogging from government regulators who push burdensome and confusing state tax and employment laws on the business. It creates an unnecessary risk when, as an owner, I can just take it offshore.
The collapse of the Soviet Union could not have been a source of national pride for many in Russia. The one person who has capitalized on this the most has been Vladimir Putin.
We need a clear plan to put radical Islamic terrorism out of vogue, and it should be eliminated at its roots. American SOF are part of the puzzle, but they do not, by themselves, complete the picture.
If any country deserves American support, Ukraine does.
The terrorists' only rules? That there are no rules, and this gives them a major advantage.
What is SOCOM's mission statement in two sentences? Most people I know in SOF cannot recite it. If it's not clear from the bottom up, then it's a problem.
Benghazi is important because it demonstrates all that is wrong in Washington.
The game of political music chairs and finger-pointing by career politicians and agency bureaucrats needs to end.
