Robert Ciccolella’s Post

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

If you've seen the Band of Brothers series or absorbed the book by the late Stephen Ambrose, you'll be familiar with Capt. Lewis Nixon. He was an officer assigned to Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during WWII. He was also best friend of the company's legendary leader Maj. Richard Winters. #Veterans of my generation have been influenced by this story. Many will know it. Nixon was an important intellectual and spiritual counterweight for Winters. He helped Winters think more inclusively, see through the eyes of his soldiers. Winters credited Nixon with counseling him through many tough decisions throughout the war. He also credited Nixon with helping him keep his heart and conscience intact during a soul-crushing journey. Nixon was also troubled. Dependent on alcohol, he famously scrounged for his favorite whiskey throughout the war. Booze scouting was among his first actions when the company moved to a new post. Incidentally, Nixon's favorite "Vat 69" was also chosen by Sir Ernest Shackleton to serve "medicinal and celebratory purposes" during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The picture below shows Nixon after "celebratory purposes." Easy had raided Hermann Goering's house in Berchtesgaden, finding a wine cellar containing 10,000 bottles. Winters gave Nixon first choice, and he took a truckload back to his quarters, throwing one of many legendary 506th parties in the days surrounding German capitulation. There are a couple of leadership thoughts which this photo gets me thinking about. 1️⃣ Celebration is normal. When people have done something special, help them mark it. If you don't they'll assume you take them for granted, which maybe you do. I've lost track over the years of how many teams I've watched deliver elite, sometimes world-changing performance, only to find leaders were not nearly as excited as they'd been before, and perhaps were already onto the next challenge without recognizing anyone. Fund the parties. Fund them for everyone, not just executives. 2️⃣ Great people are flawed. Indeed, we're all flawed to a lesser or greater degree. But great people have their flaws exposed more rapidly and completely than the rest of us. Tolerate imperfection. Focus on effort and effectiveness while working to support people with everything else. Including personal demons. Winston Churchill said of a "perfect" colleague "[h]e has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." Human degrees of imperfection often run inverse to potential for greatness. Eliminating imperfect people from our organizations makes us weaker, not stronger. Take Nixon out of the 101st, and we have a very different story. A less effective and inspired Dick Winters, and a diminished team. So if you're working toward a zero defect organization, just remember that this is what victory when it matters most looks like. It ain't gotta be pretty, and it usually isn't.

This piece of advice can apply to anything in life! 👉 In this clip, hear just a just a portion of the conversation I had with Dr. Theresa Larson DPT, CSCS, USMC, a Veteran, author, keynote speaker, and the dynamic force behind Movement Rx. Discover how her holistic approach to wellness, leveraging the power of movement, can transform organizations and corporations for the better. 🔗 Watch Now at the link in the comments…. Don't miss out on this unique perspective on how physical well-being can revolutionize company culture, driving productivity and profitability to new heights! 📈 #Wellness #Leadership #Productivity #YourNextMission #MovementRx #Veteran #Inspiration John Scott American Freedom Foundation Your Next Mission® U.S. Army Soldier For Life Herb Thompson Paul Estrada Brian Pearce David Osborn (SGM Ret) Jason R. Copeland Dr. LaToya Sizer Allen V. Cheesman Jason VanKleeck Teresa Duncan, PhD Ted Hacker

The Battle of Hurtgen Forest was the worst performance and drubbing the US Army suffered in World War II. In new essay, revisit the battle, #leadership failures, and six key lessons learned that remain relevant both on battlefields and in business today. https://lnkd.in/efHtYGMT