The Do-Over

Note: all episodes of The Do-Over have been copied to a new show, "Radio Stockdale". Search on your podcast player for "Radio Stockdale" and hit Subscribe. Hear all of your old Do-Over episodes, and many new episodes on Ethics, Character and Leadership on "Radio Stockdale". No new episodes will be posted on this show starting November 1, 2021.

The demands placed upon naval officers to show courage comes in many forms. When guns are blazing and missiles firing; when you climb a rope ladder to board a suspect ship; all of those require courage. But moral courage, the courage to do the right thing day in and day out, is just as hard. And frankly, it's where most of your courageous leadership will be displayed.

This is the story of a young officer, reporting aboard his first duty station, and an accident that ensued on his watch. Why is it important to embrace responsibility, for your actions, and the actions of your team? How do you balance the creative engineering initiative of your sailors and Marines with the classroom work you learn in school? When does it make sense to stop work, and reset the direction and focus of your unit's task? How can you have the courage to ask questions and seek help in order to fulfill your unit's mission?

When perfect isn't always best. Balancing perfection and time management in a high pressure situation. Tommy Martinez, USNA Class of 1978 was a U.S. Marine Fire Direction Officer, plotting fires for his artillery battery. He and his team had to move at night, set up, and do geometry, all within range of an Iraqi counter battery fire. He talks about what he would do differently one night during Desert Storm.

Making an assumption about another's life transition led to an uncomfortable parting when Dr. Clementine Fujimura was an academic Department Chair at the U. S. Naval Academy. Dr. Fujimura discusses a situation she would have handled quite differently regarding a colleague. She also talks about how to be a more effective leader with any age group.

Why is it so hard to ground a pilot? What is the ultimate responsibility of a leader? What does it mean to "embrace your mistakes"? RADM Lawrence Chambers is the 2nd African American USNA graduate, and the first to make Flag Rank. Among many accomplishments, he was the commanding officer of the USS Midway during Operation Frequent Wind.

LtGen John Wissler, USMC ret. reflects on what training and support he would have provided to the Marines and Sailors of the provisional Mortuary Affairs unit following the Second Battle of Fallujah. LtGen Wissler is a 1978 graduate of the Naval Academy. Among many roles in his more than 30 years in the USMC, he was the Commanding General, FMF Atlantic.