On April 8th 2005 hundreds of area sailor’s converged at the Naval Station San Diego Theater to hear Dr. Waitley’s lecture on high performance human achievement. Dr. Waitley attributes his success largely to his time in the navy stating, “He did not make the Navy a career but the Navy made his career”. He recalled several stories from his service in the navy and more specifically as a pilot.
Waitley spoke of his relationship with H Ross Perot as a young midshipman and many notable Prisoners of War. He spoke of what he refers to as POW or The Psychology Of Winning. In one particularly interesting story he explained that captured prisoners when interrogated in Vietnam were segregated based on goals and vision. The most stubborn and convicted visionaries would receive the worst punishment and the most secure facilities. It was interesting to note that no one ever escaped from a minimum-security prison in Vietnam but many escaped from maximum security.
Dr Waitley thanked his audience and stated that military personnel are not only defenders of freedom but also developers of democracy.
There are 4 attributes of leaders, which he professed.
- Leaders see ahead and are excited, a leader not only has vision but also is able to help others envision the future.
- Leaders must be a realist. A visionary and a realist is a great combination in a leader.
- Integrity is the mission 24/7 at home, at work, public or private. A little lie today becomes the hurricane of tomorrow.
- A leader needs courage. Lack of fear is not courage, training is courage. He reminded us of the second quote of Neil Armstrong when he landed on the moon, “It’s just like drill”. Courage is the strength to do training repeatedly until reality is just like drill.
Self-esteem is a great thing, he said, but self-esteem without self-discipline is useless. The civilian companies want former military personnel because they have both. When applying for a job in the civilian sector he recommends thinking about what you can do for an organization. Ask them “What can I do for you?
Dr. Waitley re-enforces what any great mind of the modern century would tell you, that things must be envisioned mentally before they can be obtained physically. Specifically he stated, “the mind seeks the target software and the body just runs it” and with regard to setting goals “in your imagination you never miss”.
He confessed that in his own life sometimes he was a goal tender, and goal minder, instead of a goal setter and a goal getter.
I really appreciate the Navy recruiting command for sponsoring and offering free admission to see Dr. Waitley. This is a perfect example of the positive steps our navy is taking to build leaders of tomorrow, today. If you happen to have an opportunity to see Denis Waitley speak, I strongly encourage you attend. His words are a feast of knowledge and entertainment with the flow of a time-tested river, swift and sure.
Ó 2005 Mark C. Carroll
All Rights Reserved
You make one want to grab the chance to listen to Dr. Waitley. This is a well written article that clearly defines the message the speaker was relaying to the audience. A lot of deep psychology goes into what the man is teaching! Very intereing.
Sherry