November 19, 2024
by Stephen T. Messenger
George S. Patton was one of the greatest military generals of our nation. He exemplified the five BRAG+1 qualities of leadership and was a leading contributor to the Allied successes during World War II. A crowd favorite, Patton was beloved by his soldiers and the nation with his exploits known far and wide.
Patton was so much more than a famous battlefield general. He was an avid horseman, fencer, and Olympic Modern Pentathlete in the 1912 Games. He was a student of military history, graduated West Point although he failed math and had to repeat his first year, designed his own sword, and had a tank named after him. Now if only he was a taxidermist…
However, Patton had a fatal flaw: his ego. Even in the face of being the quintessential military leader of a generation, Patton fell from grace because he struggled to keep his feelings in check and his mouth shut at times. We can be the best leader in the world, but if we disrupt those around us, frustrate our bosses, and are combative with our peers, we will struggle.
Exemplifying 80% of the BRAG+1 Framework
Simply put George Patton was amazing! He was almost everything the Army wanted in a combat leader. It really started with his outlook on life to “advance” at all costs. This is such a critical mindset when in charge. Being aggressive embodies the leadership qualities of putting boots on the ground and engaging the adversary. His philosophy focused on not letting temporary setbacks get him down but being resilient when the enemy attacks. And it relied on engaging with and destroying our problems at all costs.
Patton’s motto in battle was “GO FORWARD!” and this was for two reasons. First, he understood the importance of exploiting advantages on the battlefield and sustaining momentum. When he heard from a corps commander that the objective to reach the Selune River was achieved, Patton ordered him to keep going as “throughout history, many campaigns have been lost by stopping on the wrong side of the river.” We must constantly advance our position.
His second reason to drive forward was to keep his people motivated and see new ground taken every moment. People love to win, and Patton knew that the motivation to see ground being taken, enemies being defeated, and progress being made was critical for his organization to want to achieve even more.
Patton discouraged the defense and rarely let his units dig trenches. He thought it would create a mental model that the enemy had an advantage. Instead, he believed, “An army is defeated when it digs in.” This is a great object lesson to always have the mindset to close with the enemy, destroy them, and be relentless on advancing our goals and objectives.
Patton did this his whole life. In the Pancho Villa Expedition of 1916, he participated in the first U.S. Army motorized attack using three Dodge touring cars. In World War I, he led the 1st Provisional Tank Brigade into battle, at times walking in front or riding on top of the tanks. In 1923, he saved two children from drowning after a boating accident in frigid water earning him the Silver Lifesaving Medal.
When World War II began, Patton drove his passion for armored warfare forward. He was quickly promoted to the general officer ranks and had leading roles in North Africa, Sicily, and European campaigns. He was constantly out in front of his troops, urging them to move ahead at all costs. He took town after town and repeatedly outmaneuvered both his enemy and friendly forces who struggled to keep up. His aggressive actions were imperative to winning the war.
The Fatal Flaw
With Teddy Roosevelt, last week we talked about how too much aggressiveness may cause problems. George Patton’s aggressiveness and ego were downright damaging with his bosses. For all his great qualities, he often caused trouble with superiors because of his massive ego and actions that at best made it seem like the war was about himself and at worst disrupted national interests.
At the Biscari Massacre, two of Patton’s soldiers killed dozens of prisoners of war citing they were following Patton’s orders from one of his speeches. Patton slapped two of his men suffering from battle fatigue. He openly countered U.S. policy by stating in a speech that Great Britain and the United States were destined to rule the world, alienating coalition members. He was widely considered an antisemite and alienated the very same Jewish people he came to liberate in displaced persons camps.
His actions isolated him from his bosses. The Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight Eisenhower relieved and sidelined him right before the Normandy Invasion, a role in which he was destined to have a significant impact. General Omar Bradley, his boss in Europe, wanted to relieve him permanently after the slapping incident. Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery had a heated rivalry with him to get to Berlin first. Finally, President Truman after the war wrote a note to Eisenhower about the poor treatment of Jewish people being overseen by Patton.
There is no doubt Patton was an amazing commander. All those bosses and peers mentioned above acknowledge this. But he was also a distraction, and his actions caused superiors heartburn and consternation. Patton let his ego overshadow his amazing leadership abilities. By taking ourselves out of the equation and focusing on our organizational goals, we can mitigate the Patton ego syndrome by being incredibly successful along with being a team player.
Patton Life Lessons
Our two takeaways from Patton are to go for it and make it about us, not me.
First, if Patton were here today, he would say, “Go for it!” His “advance” mentality had him achieving success after success. We must have the same mindset in our goals. We only have a limited number of months or years in a certain position. We have kids in our homes for a mere two decades or less before they’re gone. We take a position at work which may last only a year or two. We take on a project that could be over in weeks.
Look, once we have a goal, it’s our job to be all in and go for it! Patton attacked above all else. He relentlessly pursued his objectives and knocked out target after target. On his subject of tank warfare, he read, wrote, discussed, and built a culture of armored activity. We must have the same aggressive mindset whether it’s a class we’re taking, a business we’re building, or a job we possess. Let’s use our limited time wisely to get big things done quickly.
On the flip side, it’s so important to not make things about us. Patton had a huge ego, and it caused him to do some things that disrupted the organization. We can be both aggressive and a team player at the same time. When running hard to make things happen, it’s necessary to bring others along.
Don’t make it all about us. Watch our words and deeds. Don’t alienate our boss or do something that causes disruption. Be a team player.
Part of the BRAG+1 framework is about placing service over self. It is always about the organization and never about our own interests. Patton was a great role model for being successful. He was not so great about building coalitions. The best leaders can do both.
Subscribe at the link above to The Maximum Standard. This platform is a free, no-ad site designed to help others live up to their full potential as a leader. Thank you for committing to something greater than yourself. Your leadership matters.
We are also looking for authors. You will reap the benefits by having an idea, putting it down on paper, wrestling with it a little, and publishing it for others to see. I encourage you to take this bold journey with us. We have editors standing by to help you.
This series is part of our BRAG+1 Leadership Philosophy. If you’re just joining us, start from the beginning on 16 January: A Team to BRAG about and continue from there:
Boots: Put Boots on the Ground
Regimentals: Place Service over Self
Armor: Be Resilient to Life’s Attacks
Gun: Close with and Destroy the Enemy
+1 (Belt): Not a Hint, Sniff, nor Whiff of Impropriety
This website is a personal blog and all writings, podcasts, opinions, and posts are the authors’ own and do not represent the views of the United States Army nor any other organization. Podcast music credit in this audio file is to: “Alex Productions – Legends” is under a Creative Commons license (CC BY 3.0). / @alexproductionsnocopyright
Music promoted by BreakingCopyright: • 🌆 Royalty Free Epic Cinematic Music -…
The Maximum Standard 
