5 Ways to Embrace the Concept of Extreme Ownership

In 5 Ways to Embrace the Concept of Extreme Ownership, I talk about how “Extreme Ownership” has become very popular over the past eight years thanks to the incredible book by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin of the same name and the outstanding teachings from the Echelon Front organization.

In the episode, I also share how extreme ownership has existed for over 1,000 years. I was made aware of this today as I read from “The Daily Stoic” by Ryan Holiday. In this work, Ryan shares how well-known stoic and philosopher Marcus Aurelius sought to find fault within himself when others made mistakes. This concept of leaders taking ownership is a central tenet of the Extreme Ownership mindset.

So why is this ancient and, more recently, the revitalized concept so hard for some leaders and team members to grasp and follow?

Here’s my $.02 on the top 5 reasons:

The first is ego. The ego causes us to blame others quickly and to redirect failure, so we’re not associated with it.
Second is a need for more confidence. Unconfident people cannot comfortably accept criticism or fault.
Thirdly, no one likes to “lose.” “Everybody loves a winner” is a famous saying.
Fourth is the ease of blaming “them” or saying “they” did this or that.
Fifth is the need for team cohesion.

So how do we evolve to embrace better and accept “Extreme Ownership”?

Supplant the ego with an openness to improve in all aspects of your life
Do your best and present your case with confidence
Accept that life is filled with loss, personally and professionally
There is no “They/Them” when it comes to placing blame
Be proactive in building up your team’s communication and coordination

Thank you for reading and listening to 5 Ways to Embrace the Concept of Extreme Ownership. Truly owning our own and our team’s mistakes takes practice and are challenging. But, it is invaluable for leaders to do this to grow individually and to help foster more resilience within their teams and across their organizations.

Godspeed ya’ll,

Kevin

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Kevin Pannell, PMP | Founder of KPannell Productions, LLC | Creator & Host of the KEV Talks Podcast | Principal on the @Pannell5Fit and KEV Talks YouTube Channels