As a U.S. Navy commander, Adm. Mike Mullen led more than 360,000 troops around the world. To effectively lead, Mullen learned early in his career that he had to gain people’s trust. He You also had to establish a firm set of personal principles to guide him you in decision making. From his days as a college athlete, where he learned the importance of team leadership to his early days at 26 years old commanding a ship, he embraced the importance of accountability and trust.
After 43 years in armed services and now 10 years into his retirement, Mullen, 75, says he wouldn’t be here today if he had not learned the lessons early in his career. At 26, he was commanding a ship. He spent as much time as he could walking the ship, talking to the sailors, understanding their challenges, and helping them navigate their career paths. Throughout his career, Mullen enjoyed engaging people in conversation, learning from his father, a successful public relations professional.
Along with solid communication skills, to earn trust, Mullen says that as a leader “you’re responsible for the good or the bad – intentionally or unintentionally. If you take the responsibility – and not blame them, troops will trust you.” Mullen encourages leaders to reflect on what they learn – all the time.
As an instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy, he asks these young recruits to write a final paper on what they have learned as leaders. By taking the time to reflect on the decisions you’ve made, Mullen advises, you can understand what you need to learn. Keeping a journal to chronicle today’s moments so that you can look back years later to see what you were thinking at that time is another valuable tool.
Mullen ties this process of reflection with the need for everyone to have a set of values and principles to guide their decisions. Throughout his career, including as Chairman of the Joint Chief Chiefs of Staff, Mullen found himself advising the Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama during some precarious times in our world’s history, including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the war on terror.
What also prepared Mullen for those tough moments was learning from his own mistakes. After he got reprimanded early in his career, it took him 11 years to finally get back on track. With the help of mentors who gave him plenty of tough love and feedback, he rose through the ranks, taking on tougher assignments each step along the way, traveling the world, learning about the history and cultures of countries he had never dreamed of visiting as a kid growing up in Southern California.
When it comes down to making difficult decisions, and which Mullen had to make many, he urges leaders to surround themselves with people of diverse backgrounds, interests, and ideas.
“I actively try to see problems from someone else’s eyes,” Mullen says. “I’ve always tried to understand their problems from their perspective. … You need both sides to resolve very difficult issues.”
Listen to the podcast here:
Or here: