Over the past three years, I have been stopped on the street by great folks telling me their own stories: How they didn't back down from the sharks, … - William H. McRaven

If you want to change the world, sometimes you have to slide down the obstacle head first.

Unfortunately, over the millennnia there have been men and women who cloaked themselves in "honor" only to be as unscrupulous and as vile as any humans in history. But true honor- doing the right thing for the right reasons- is the foundation of great leadership. With it, your colleagues will follow you through the trials and hardships of your quest. But without honor, nothing you accomplish will be of lasting value. And if you dishonor your company, your family, your country, or your faith, then your legacy of leadership will be forever tainted.

I saw this level of initiative time and again during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps understood that the nature of the fight required the generals and admirals allow the junior officers and enlisted to make tough combat decisions. We had to delegate responsibility because there just weren't enough senior officers to oversee all the tactical operations. We had to trust the rank and file to do the right thing.
It is always difficult for senior leaders to trust their subordinates with important decisions, decisions that invariably affect the reputation of the unit and that of the senior leader. But if you don't create a culture that allows the rank and file to act on their own, they will be mired in indecisiveness and that will stall any forward momentum. However, leadership is not always defined by the man or the woman at the top of the chain of command, and you don't have to be in command to lead.