GySgt John Basilone, a USMC Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, and Purple Heart recipient from the WWII era is rightfully revered by Marines throughout the generations due to his courageous leadership under fire in some of the most desperate battles in WWII. Reading more about his life, something that struck me was he didn’t just teach his Marines how to fight in a tactical sense. He prepped their minds, hearts, and souls for battle...

I felt a twinge of guilt that I wasn’t as engaged in the lives of the men and women who work for me and that I work with as I should be. I had let the tyranny of the work schedule and wanting to succeed professionally start to overtake one of the most important aspects of leadership…taking care of your people. We like to say in the military or at least the Marine Corps: “Mission First…People Always.” I wish it was exactly like that but confess that sometimes I don't get this right...

Before 9/11 happened, my family was not all that keen on me joining the military. My grandmother and aunts felt that I had the intelligence to become a doctor or lawyer and wondered why would I want to join the military? My father in particular was not keen on the idea at all and in fact it was not a subject we discussed especially as I got into high school Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps. After the events of September 11, 2001, all of that changed...