Articles
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...
Ep 172: How Work Stress Hijacks Your Life with Dr. Guy Winch
Dr. Guy Winch, bestselling author and psychologist, joins Joe to discuss his newest book, Mind Over Grind to explore how job stress quietly spills beyond the office—and into our evenings, our sleep, and our relationships. What starts as a...
Ep 171: Bring Your Own Pencil: The Leadership Lesson of Coach Bill Walsh with Griffin Brand and Dan Casey
Griffin Brand and Dan Casey, co-authors of Bring Your Own Pencil: Bill Walsh’s Playbook for Winning at Anything, join Joe to explore preparation, leadership, and what separates sustained excellence from short-term success. It’s Super Bowl...
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...
My Daily Circle of Reading
By Joe Byerly Each morning, the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy got up and read his notebook of personally-curated passages from his favorite books (he later published this as A Calendar of Wisdom). In his diary, he wrote, “I felt that I...
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....
Ep 170- Making the Call: Military Intelligence, Judgment, and Command with Lieutenant General Tony Hale
Lieutenant General Tony Hale, the Army G-2, joins Joe for a conversation on military intelligence, judgment, and decision-making in modern war. Drawing on nearly four decades of service, Hale reflects on the evolution of the intelligence...
Ep 169- Open Doors & Hidden Worlds: The Power of Curiosity with Brad Meltzer
On the release of his latest thriller, The Viper: A Zig and Nola Novel, Brad Meltzer joins Joe for an in-depth conversation on writing, curiosity, service, and the often-hidden moments that shape a life. From bestselling thrillers to...
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,...
Ep 168- Culture, Process, and Technology with General Christopher Donahue
Send us a text General Christopher Donahue, commanding general of U.S. Army Europe and Africa joins Joe for a wide-ranging conversation on leadership, culture, and what it takes to drive real change at scale across massive, dispersed organizations....
What I Learned from Books in 2020- A Reading List
This post was originally shared in the FTGN Monthly Reading List Email. By Joe Byerly I like to read a lot. I have a strong love of learning and I’ve found the easiest way for me to expand my repertoire is to open a book when I first wake up or...
Leadership Lessons from the Patriot Way
A Review of Jeff Benedict’s The Dynasty By Oren Abusch-Magder When I failed my first patrol at Ranger School, I paused and told myself “we’re on to Cincinnati.” On September 30th 2014, the New England Patriots were drubbed 41-14 by the Kansas City...
Turning Words into Works: Reading to Remember
By Joe Byerly Over the years I have collected passages and quotes in small notebooks that I continually refer back to in my writing and in personal reflection. They help remind me why I read in the first place. Two in particular are worth sharing...
Studying the Stoics: It’s About Progress, Not Perfection
By Joe Byerly Recently, I finished The Lives of the Stoics: The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.This book is a profile of twenty-six Stoics, from the founder of the philosophy to Emperor Marcus...
Why We Should Read Fiction and Nonfiction at the Same Time
By Jeroen Verhaeghe Avid readers will recognize the feeling of guilt that comes with buying ever more books knowing full well that the unread stacks you have at home are more than enough to last you several months of quarantine. Luckily, from time...
Why We All Need to Develop a Daily Habit of Reading
By Joe Byerly When it comes down to it, the purpose of a military is to fight and win its nation’s wars. And war is complex. When lives or national interests are at stake the outcome is never certain and events can unfold in a manner that no one...
4 Books to Read Before Ranger School
by 2LT Oren Abusch and 1LT Jack Hadley It’s 0200. Our platoon Charlie 1 is struggling to establish a patrol base. We have just completed a seven kilometer night ruck march, over half of which involved carrying multiple (simulated) casualties. It’s...
The Sergeant Major of the Army Shares His Reading List
By Joe Byerly Recently, I spoke with the Sergeant Major of the Army about COVID-19 and the challenges and opportunities we are facing right now as an Army and a Nation. He highlighted that now is the time to reassess our goals and set new ones. One...
5 Newsletters You Need to Sign-up For Now!
By Joe Byerly I enjoy reading email newsletters! The small number of ones I subscribe to are great source of personal and professional development. They are written from people outside of my profession and introduce me to ideas, books,...
Pick Up A Good Biography, and Learn
By Joe Byerly As Army leaders, we are always looking for leadership nuggets to help us excel in our organizations. So, imagine having the opportunity to sit across the table and listen to stories of people who shaped history in arts, sciences,...
Think Like a Commander
By Lou Crist Several years ago, during an interview, I was asked, “What is the most important thing an S2 does?” The question took me aback. After some thought, I answered that the S2 should impart their understanding of the enemy to the commander....
Burned Brakes and Broken Habits: Bringing a JMPI Mindset to the 2d Cavalry Regiment
By Sam Balch The Paratroopers stand quietly in the PAX shed, helmets on, heavy rucks pulling on their shoulders, face paint applied, and parachutes strapped tight. A Jumpmaster moves deliberately down the line, inspecting every strap, snap, stitch,...
Education Without Execution: When the Best Year of Your Life Doesn’t Prepare You for the Fight.
by Sungkuyn “Eddie” Chang After completing the Advanced Operations Course (AOC) at the United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC), all students completed an online after-action report survey for the Quality Assurance team at CGSC....
The Power of Panta Rei
By Joe Byerly When I was a kid, there were a handful of professional athletes I used to idolize. They were at the top of their game. They had money, fame, and even got to ride around in limousines. I don’t know why, but that was a big deal back...
You Belong at the Table, but Bring your Own Chair: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome in a Culture of Meritocracy
By Lindsey Umlauf Have you ever felt that you were one misstep away from being found out as a fraud? Despite your objective success and merit, does the phrase ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ resonate? If so, you may be experiencing Imposter...
The Battle of the Three Selves
By Joe Byerly Here’s what happened this weekend: Friday: One more drink. One more hour around the fire pit. Then I’ll head home. I’ll deal with the consequences tomorrow. Saturday morning: What the hell was I thinking? I’m exhausted. The...
Two Salaries
By Joe Byerly When we compare jobs or career fields, sometimes we tend to default to one number: salary. How much does it pay? What will our financial quality of life look like? What are the monetary perks of the job? I hear this a lot from...
The Best Education
By Joe Byerly High school. Trade school. The Executive MBA. These are all education programs that teach us. The missed opportunity. The presentation we bombed last Thursday. The friendship that quietly faded away. We can learn from these too....
Compliance vs Commitment: Our Appearance as a Promise of Trust
Photo Credit: Donte Shelton, 49th Public Affairs Detachment By Sam Balch There are two common schools of thought about uniforms and personal appearance. Some see them as walking résumés, proof of what we have accomplished. Others treat them like...
Boromir and Faramir: A Cautionary Tale for the Ambitious Officer
by Major Colin A. Sexton In J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, the brothers Boromir and Faramir of Gondor embody contrasting responses to power, purpose, and personal ambition. Their story is not just a subplot in a fantastical epic; it is a...
Deliberate Communication: What We Can All Learn from Observing Senior Leaders
by Don Gomez Have you ever found yourself in a meeting or gathering expecting to hear one thing from a senior leader but instead hearing something completely different? Something seemingly unrelated to what you thought was important? “What the hell...
Writer’s Block? Find a Coach
by Catherine Putz and Tobias Switzer You finally decided to write. You’ve got something to say, and it’s burning you up. Maybe nobody is talking about it, or the national security establishment is just getting it all wrong. Tired of sitting on the...
A Leader’s Guide to Navigating Social Media in the Military
By Kristy Bell Social media has blurred the lines between our private and professional lives in an unprecedented way, and has also, in some ways, eroded the idea of a “non-partisan military” that shores up our democratic ideals. This came to the...
Six Benefits to Sharing What You’ve Learned with Others
by Jakob Hutter Oscar Wilde once said, “The only thing to do with good advice is to pass it on. It is never of any use to oneself.” When we talk about the role of knowledge in our organizations, we must understand it is essential to pass on the...
Write for You
By Joe Byerly Many view writing for publication in the military as an opportunity to help others with their leadership approaches, inform them on some academic topic they learned about in grad school, or to share lessons learned from a recent...
Genuine Leadership – A Reflection
Editorial note – This blog post is part of our Scribbles series. If interested in submitting creative content, view our guidelines here or contact Cassie Crosby at cassie@fromthegreennotebook.com. By Christian Lance Relleve “The one quality...
Phony: A Short Story
Editorial note – This blog post is part of our Scribbles series. If interested in submitting creative content, view our guidelines here or contact our editors at editor@fromthegreennotebook.com. By Daniel Sukman “James” “Please come in,...
Leadership Vignette: Mission Command and Command and Control (4 of 4)
LTC Kelly McCoy This is the final in a series of four vignettes designed as a supplement to the 2019 series of mission command articles (Part 1, 2, and 3) led by General Stephen Townsend. The vignettes follow a fictional character, John Miller,...
Leadership Vignette: Mission Command and Command and Control (3 of 4)
Editorial Note: This vignette is part of a four-part Mission Command series that will run every Tuesday for the next four weeks. By Kelly McCoy This vignette is the third in a collection of four designed as a supplement to the 2019 series of...
Leadership Vignettes: Mission Command and Command and Control (1 of 4)
Editorial Note: This vignette is part of a four-part Mission Command series that will run every Tuesday for the next four weeks. By Kelly McCoy The following is the first vignette in a collection of four designed as a supplement to the 2019 series...
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