Team Secrets Of The Navy Seals [Hardcover]

Anonymous (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0740719076 | ISBN-13: 978-0740719073

Team Secrets of the Navy SEALs is written especially for business professionals who want to make it in today's extremely aggressive business environment. No force or unit has ever had more success than the SEALs. Author Robert Needham uses the lessons he's learned as a Navy SEAL to guide the reader through the role of being or becoming a leader. "To some, leadership is exemplified by the blind obedience to orders. It is a misconception that to coerce another person to do your bidding makes you a 'leader.'"Navy SEALs are recognized around the world as being the best. From their start as Naval Combat Demolition Units (NCDU) in WWII to the founding of the SEALs in 1962, only 8,000 men have been allowed to join this top-notch unit. Needham is still on active duty as a SEAL and knows how to achieve results. "The ruthless effectiveness and efficiency of the SEAL Teams stems from the fact that we always start from, perfect, and practice the basics. The Team is a dynamic that works toward success, not hindered by pride, preservation, and self-interest."Needham's principles define and illustrate the word "team," and they will motivate business people working toward that common goal.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The armed forces are a wellspring of managerial concepts, and in the elite Navy SEALs commando unit, the watchword is teamwork. According to this gung-ho leadership primer, the SEALs take the fostering of teamwork very seriously. SEALs are taught that their very lives, as well as national security, depend on the Team. They pledge to each other that "dead or alive, bloody or broken, Team members-all of them-are coming home!" They endure ritual teamwork training ordeals where they sit huddled together for hours in icy, raging surf, their instructors taunting them as they help each other stave off drowning and hypothermia. Indeed, "every minute of a SEAL's life is geared toward the Team!" If none of this sounds quite right for your organization, be assured that this is at heart a stentorian version of standard-issue civilian managerial advice. "Team Secrets for Innovative Thinking," for example, turn out to be 1) posting a suggestion box and 2) asking underlings for input, while the leadership nostrums-don't micromanage, help subordinates develop their capacities and show appreciation for their work, be "a staunch protector of your men and not a self-absorbed weasel"-have been corporate commonplaces for decades. The anonymous author, a Navy SEAL himself, deploys hard-bitten military aphorisms and lots of acronyms to dress up the turgid style and vacuous content of business literature, but no amount of swaggering soldierly camouflage can adequately disguise this boilerplate.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

The author of O has been in the room with Barack Obama and wishes to remain anonymous.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 131 pages
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing (May 2, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0740719076
• ISBN-13: 978-0740719073
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #967,996 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Needham is an active Navy SEAL who has seen service in major combat in Panama, Somalia, and the Persian Gulf. He has just returned from special operations in the fight against al Qda in Afghanistan.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good book on leadership, September 9, 2007

By 

Chris Jaronsky (NJ, the garden state) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Team Secrets Of The Navy Seals (Hardcover)

I did not read anything in this book that I would consider a secret. But I do think this is a very good book on leadership and team-building. I have read many leadership/team-building books and all have a few nuggets that make the book a worthwhile read. This book had all of those and more.

I have spent time in the military and have seen awesome levels of dedication to team. Sometimes this attitude can be transferred or built up in a civilian organization. But it takes a lot more work.

The problem as I see it is that the Seals are all volunteers and they really want to be the baddest mothers on the planet. They like to be cold, wet, and tired, and actually ask for more to prove they can handle anything. While in the civilian world, that kind of dedication is almost non-existent. While there are many people that don't mind, or even like, to work hard, they all know that when the whistle blows, its Miller time and they can go to their comfortable homes.

As far as the civilian world goes, you can try to build a great team, but you will never come close to the dedication of an elite military unit, not just Seals, but all branches have their elite teams. It just seems that you cannot build this culture because corporate America does not like it when you push your people past their known limits. Yes, you will make them better people, but companies are worried about lawsuits, not having the best team in the corporate world.

This book, if read and followed, will make you and your team better and more productive. The book goes into many subjects, like "know what you've got", "have an open door policy", "the menace of micromanagement", "have teammates, not lackeys", and a few others. While most of this may seem to be commonsense, I felt it was good to be reminded of these and to also have the author present a topic I am familiar with in a different light. Sometimes hearing something from a new angle makes it stick better.

This is an easy read and if you lead a team or want to be a better teammate, then this book is definitely worth the small cost. I recommend it and will read it again in the near future to make sure that the lessons taught here stick.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book For Teaching Team Leadership Skills, August 29, 2006

By 

Timothy A. Wilson "twilson117" (Northboro, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Team Secrets Of The Navy Seals (Hardcover)

As a management consultant, I've always been interested in anything that would help me get the message of team work across to my clients. I seen many people who attempt to lead but fail to do so. Many micro-manage, accept mediocrity, or finger point when something goes wrong. This book is a good guide on how to help - coach - someone who wants to be a great team leader. Lots of good examples and the chapter summary lessons are excellent and are great teaching and talking points of their own. I intend to give copies of this book to several of my clients as gifts.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Leadership clues for anybody..., April 30, 2011

By 

Karen G. Harrill "kh-nc-quilter" (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Team Secrets Of The Navy Seals (Kindle Edition)

This book is right on the mark about how a team is built and lead. It also tells the issues that will prevent a true team atmosphere from forming, including some people do not work well with others unless you can find something in it for them where they feel like they shine and can learn to see the shine in others.

Well worth your time to read and think about. Training your people then trusting them to perform. Following every large project with a review session and writing up what worked, what did not, and where could we have done better is worth the time it takes before your team scatters off to their next project. Avoiding finger pointing. Owning up to mistakes. These were all key to the best jobs during my career and were elements of the worst jobs that drove me nuts!