Articles
Gambling with Influence: Don’t Bet Your Life on Someone Else’s Promise
By Joe Byerly I sat across from the Army general during my initial counseling, just a few months into squadron command. He talked about the two years of command ahead of me. But when he moved on to my next career move, I interrupted him. “Sir, I...
Ep 179- Developing a Monk’s Mindset
Send us Fan Mail Sam Yo, Peloton instructor, former West End theater performer, and author of The Monk’s Mindset, joins Joe to talk about discipline, mindfulness, and learning how to bring the right effort to every part of our lives. Joe and...
Ep 178-Military Barracks, Accountability, and the Cost of Ignoring Small Problems with Rob Evans
Rob Evans joins Joe for a conversation about military barracks conditions, leadership accountability, and why he created Hots&Cots to give junior service members a voice. Drawing from his own experience as a junior enlisted Soldier,...
Saber Junction 25: Reflections of a Regimental Commander
By COL Donald Neal, 83rd Commander, 2nd Cavalry Regiment Just five more minutes of sleep. In the tranquil pre-dawn hours of Saber Junction 25, I learned a commander’s lesson that no field manual could fully encapsulate. I awoke to the sounds of...
Non-Judicial Punishment: The Authority We Are Least Trained to Wield
By LTC Steven Huckleberry Commanders are entrusted with many authorities, but few are as consequential, and as little prepared for, as the execution of non-judicial punishment (NJP) under Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Unlike...
Ep 177- Dopamine and the Problem With Always Chasing What’s Next with Dr. Daniel Z. Lieberman
Daniel Z. Lieberman, psychiatrist and co-author of The Molecule of More, joins Joe to explore the powerful role dopamine plays in shaping our desires, decisions, and sense of fulfillment. Joe and Dan discuss how dopamine isn’t just about...
Ep 176- The Hidden Markets Shaping Your Career with Judd Kessler
Judd Kessler—a professor at the Wharton School and author of Lucky by Design—joins Joe to explore the hidden markets that shape our lives, careers, and opportunities. Joe and Judd discuss how many of the most important decisions we...
Are You Chasing Daisies?
By Joe Byerly We build the future in our head with such vivid imagery. We can taste the salt on the rim of an ice-cold margarita. We can walk through every moment of the romantic date—every reaction, the way candlelight hits our partner’s eyes. We...
Ep 175-Bend But Do Not Break: Rethinking the Future of the All-Volunteer Force with Jaron Wharton
Jaron Wharton—a former brigade commander in the 82nd Airborne Division and co-editor of Bend but Do Not Break joins Joe to examine the future of the all-volunteer force and the role of professional discourse in strengthening the...
The Courage to Start Something New with Andy Yakulis
Andy Yakulis—West Point graduate, former Army pilot, and Special Operations officer turned defense tech entrepreneur—joins Joe to talk about leadership, transition, and the rapidly changing nature of modern warfare. Recruited to West Point just...
Developing Your Reading Plan
by Jakob Hutter During a speech in 1957, Dwight Eisenhower made a paradoxical statement about preparation when he told an anecdote about the maps used during military training in Leavenworth. He stated, “plans are worthless, but planning is...
Pay Heed to the Enlisted: Reading Recommendations for Lieutenants
Summer is a season of transition for newly commissioned officers. The new lieutenants and ensigns attend their officer basic courses and arrive at their first units of assignment. They are empowered to lead, train, and fight alongside some of the...
How I Learned to Get the Most Out of Reading
By Joe Byerly This month, as I transition out of another decade, I’m taking the opportunity to reflect and write on those things I adopted in my thirties that have proved beneficial to me. In this post, I want to share some of the...
Seven Books Every Company Commander Should Read
by Dan Vigeant Leaders worth following are readers. This is not an original, or even new thought. Countless General Officers, business professionals, and thriving entrepreneurs laud the benefits of reading for personal and professional...
Six Simple Steps to Start Reading Again… and Maybe Not Quit this Time
by Robert M. Kinney and Tara L. Kinney Dr. Seuss said “the more that you read, the more things that you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you will go.” He believed that reading is fundamental to a child’s development and we...
Read Voraciously: General Miller’s Reading Recommendations
By Joe Byerly During my recent interview with General Scott Miller, he said, “If you are a serious practitioner in the military, you have to be a voracious reader. If you’re not well-read, it becomes readily apparent.” He went on to say that...
Read Eclectically: Stan McChrystal’s Book Recommendations
In a recent interview on the From the Green Notebook Podcast, the team asked retired General Stanley McChrystal for book recommendations. He began by sharing the book that was the most influential to his military career. Once an Eagle by Anton...
MG JP McGee Recommends Five Books All Leaders Should Read
In the third episode of our second season, From the Green Notebook sits down with the Director of the Army Talent Management Task Force, Major General JP McGee, to discuss the purpose, construct and future of the Commander Assessment Program, as...
General Votel Recommends Leaders Read these 5 Books
From the Green Notebook sat down with former CENTCOM Commander, General Joseph Votel (U.S. Army, Retired), recently to discuss his leadership perspective, as well as his experience leading a combatant command in the first episode of our...
Top 10 Most-Read Articles of 2020
In 2020, a small team of volunteers worked behind the scenes at From the Green Notebook to produce over 100 published articles read by almost half a million people. This team is a great example of how a few people with a purpose can have an...
The Guidon We Only Respect When It Is Ours
By Sam Balch I was serving as a battery commander in the 82nd Airborne Division when our guidon disappeared. After completing a grueling Joint Readiness Training Center rotation, the battery transitioned to the administrative bivouac area to clean...
This Is an Every-Service Problem: Space Power and the Risk of Fundamental Surprise
By Catherine R. Cline The United States is unlikely to be surprised in space in the traditional sense. It tracks launches globally, monitors orbital behavior in near–real time, and maintains an unmatched catalog of space objects. If surprise is...
Waiting for Favorable Conditions
By Joe Byerly They checked the news first thing in the morning. Then again at lunch. Then one more time before bed. They waited for life to return to something that felt recognizable. It was hard to believe that leaders could be so casually...
Commander, Don’t Give Up Your Voice!
By: James J. Torrence We have an authenticity problem, and everyone knows it. The troops know it. The junior officers know it. The staff officers definitely know it. And deep down, our senior leaders know it too. Everyone sounds the same. Every...
To My Fellow “Subjects of Investigations”
By Danita Darby In 2019, I hit a professional and personal breaking point. I was investigated as a “toxic”, or counterproductive, leader. I attempted suicide that year too. I survived both—and what followed was a long, humbling healing process....
Twenty Years in Fourteen Lines
By Joe Byerly The man handed me the document fresh off the printer. “Make sure you keep this in a safe place,” he said. “This is your proof of service. Probably the most important document you’ll ever own.” I looked down at the still-warm DD214,...
Broadening with Purpose: Making the Most of the Army’s Broadening Opportunity Program
By Lyndi Dix During my time in company command, I was approached by a few mentors who encouraged me to consider the Broadening Opportunity Program (BOP) as I began thinking about what came next. I knew broadening was a common next step following...
A Body of Work
By Joe Byerly We start each year with the best of intentions, and then life happens. Dry January becomes Damp January. The gym membership app turns into just another unused icon on the phone. Weekly date nights, diets, check-ins with family and...
The Courage to Face Where You Are
By Joe Byerly For the second year in a row, I’ve traveled to Dallas for the Military Appreciation Bowl in an effort to talk to young men and women about the opportunities for serving in our Nation’s military. The multi-day event includes...
Would You Do it in Secret?
By Joe Byerly When I look back on a career’s worth of decisions, I can trace most of my motives to three sources: necessity, passion, and ego. The first is straightforward. I did a lot of things because they were required of me. I moved across the...
Anyone Can Write for Military Publications—Even Cadets
by Ben Phocas Writing for a military publication may seem like a daunting or unattainable goal for a novice writer. Stereotypes about military writing–and writers in general–abound. They only reinforce tentative writers’ reservations about putting...
Digital Tools for Effective and Efficient Writing
by Trent Lythgoe I’m always looking for the latest digital writing tools. I suspect a few of my fellow professors secretly mock me for using technological writing crutches. But I feel no shame. Writing is hard enough—I see no reason to make it...
FM-VOICE – A Framework for Improving Communications in Your Organization
By R.T. Rotte You’re a company commander, and your platoons aren’t doing what you want them to. One platoon is always a little behind on tasks or unresponsive to key information. Another platoon is executing the tasks and preparing for training,...
Stories of Service: Mentor Your Subordinate to Engage with the Public
By Brian C. Gerardi Each year, our nation observes holidays centered on its service members and veterans. These commemorations—Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day and Veterans Day—often include invitations (“tasked” or “asked”) to senior service members...
Three Books to Improve Your Writing
by Trent Lythgoe For most of my 22 years in the US Army, I thought I was a decent writer. However, graduate school taught me a bitter truth: I wasn’t. But after accepting my failings, I found a powerful tool to help me improve—writing guides....
It’s Time to Write!
By Joe Byerly We have all been there at some point in our military careers. We have woken up in the morning, looked into the mirror, and asked ourselves “Is this sh*t worth it?” Maybe, you’re struggling with what you see as some arcane policy...
Our Sloppy Over-Reliance on Texting
by Jack Hadley Farewelled by my unit and signed out on PCS leave, I stood at a German train station headed to the airport. Then my phone went ding! I reflexively glanced at it, feeling a small but noticeable tinge of stress. I was no longer a...
The Bear: A New, Relevant Source of Professional Development
by Zach Batton By and large, military leaders are not diversifying their sources for professional development. Once and Eagle, Black Hearts, Black Hawk Down, and This Kind of War are just a few repetitive staples in most reading/watch lists....
Leading into the Future: Why You Should Write a Thesis at CGSC
by Benjamin Van Horrick To the incoming class, welcome to Fort Leavenworth and the United States Army Combined Arms Center Command and General Staff College (CGSC). You are embarking on the most pivotal—and certainly not the easiest—year of your...
10 Rules to Live by on Social Media for Those who Serve
by Orlandon Howard “When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.” – King Solomon (1010-931 BCE) It’s easy to make mistakes when communicating regularly on social media....
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