There are two kinds of mistakes: mistakes of the head and mistakes of the heart. Mistakes of the head are calculated and willful acts of misconduct (and should really be called “on-purposes”). Mistakes of the heart are truly accidental where there is no malice or forethought.
“There’s a huge gap between a good person and a person of character, there’s an equivalently huge gap between ethics and courage.” – Gus Lee, Courage: The Backbone of Leadership
Following rules alone not only fails to inspire trust it leads to a culture of “compliance with the letter of the law” and finding “loopholes” to achieve the lowest level of compliance necessary to stay out of trouble. Rules, standards or laws will never set the bar high enough to draw out the excellence that can only come from character and integrity.
Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. – Abraham Lincoln
“Humbleness, thankfulness, humility, respect, courage and honor are much more important than winning ballgames.” – Coach Matt Labrum
A daughter’s wedding: transferring responsibility for her care and protection from her father to her husband. The passing of the sword.
Petraeus’ resignation was essential and he knew it because he is an authentic leader. For Senator Feinstein to publicly wish it wasn’t so, is simply poor leadership. Poor leadership that we have become very tolerant of.
Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.
Accepting that Robert E. Lee possessed fine ideals and a sterling character, we should use his sad life as a warning, not a model.
As law enforcement officers, Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes, and their partners are confident and focused. They willingly stand up to the worst the world can offer. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood.