General Mattis - Operations Occur at the Speed of Trust

Cooperation, too, occurs at the speed of trust.

D. Brown Management Profile Picture
D. Brown Management
April 19, 2020 3 minute read
leadership
Share

Retired General Jim Mattis uses the word trust 65+ times in his autobiography Call Sign Chaos:  Learning to Lead.  

Leadership Tools: General Mattis operations occur at the speed of trust.

General Mattis ties trust together with building speed into operations to provide an advantage. This was cited multiple times by Michael Valenti, Major in the US Marine Corps, in a study he did on General Mattis's leadership style and the results: The Mattis Way of War: An Examination of Operational Art in Task Force 58 and 1st Marine Division

Construction projects are often chaotic and require a high degree of trust between parties from the initial business development following through to the design and construction phases. Contractors that focus on building trust at all levels move quicker and more profitably than their peers. This is especially true in uncertain conditions like COVID-19 and the likely post-COVID recession.   

Patrick Lencioni defines trust as the foundation of effective teams delivering results.  

  1. Trust in Each Other
  2. Constructive Conflict
  3. True Commitment
  4. Holding Each Other Accountable
  5. Focus on Results

Brené Brown has studied trust deeply and digs into what trust really is, including how to build and maintain it: The Anatomy of Trust. She uses the acronym BRAVING to break trust down into individual components.  

  • Boundaries
  • Reliability
  • Accountability
  • Vault
  • Integrity
  • Non-Judgment
  • Generosity

Additional Book Resources

 

Winston Churchill - Success, Failure and Enthusiasm
When there are no clear answers, it is critical to experiment, learn, and rapidly scale up those things that work. "Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Winston Churchill
Related Article
If a Problem is Worth Solving, It's Worth Solving All the Way
Not all problems are created equal and not all problems are even worth solving. When they are; be aggressive in solving them so they never come up again. Remember that 90% of continuous improvement is just about eliminating problems consistently.
Related Article
Principled Leadership Versus Prescriptive Direction
Where is your comfort zone? What are your tendencies? What's the right balance? Build more effective teams, projects, and construction business by understanding these differences in people and role requirements.
Related Article