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War is conflict. Fighting is an elemental exposition of the age-old effort to survive.
 
It’s the cold glitter of the attacker’s eye, not the point of the questing bayonet, that breaks the line.
 
It’s the fierce determination of the driver to close with the enemy, not the mechanical perfection of tank, that conquers the trench.
 
It’s the cataclysmic ecstasy of conflict in the flier, not the perfection of his machine gun, which drops the enemy in flaming ruin.
 
Yet, volumes are devoted to armaments; and only pages to inspiration.
 
It lurks invisible in that vitalizing spark, intangible, yet as evident as the lightning—The Warrior Soul. The fixed determination to acquire The Warrior Soul, and having acquired it to either conquer, or perish with honor, is the Secret Of Victory.
 
George S. Patton Jr.
The Secret Of Victory, 1926
 
Preface
 
George S. Patton Jr. was not superhuman. He wasn’t born with stars on his shoulders. He was as mortal as anyone else in the world. He was just a guy doing his job—a job that he loved. He knew that to be a great commander he had to act like a great commander. He knew what it took to be the best in his field. He had no illusions, no prejudices. He was one of the great pragmatic leaders. He knew that a leader must not only act the part, he or she must become the part.
 
Although Patton was born neither a general nor a soldier, he determined at a very early age what he wanted to be. Once that decision was made, he never stopped working toward his goal. He trained himself, molding his personality and his philosophy, by immersing in the role of a great warrior, finally becoming what he wished to become. He worked at it and imbued himself with the warrior spirit. As he often said, “As a man thinketh so is he.
 
The purpose of this book is to indoctrinate readers with the Patton philosophy to such an extent that they will never stop aspiring to their goals; and to show that through perseverance, study, and eternal desire anyone can become great. As the general often said, “If a man thinks war long enough, it’s bound to have a good effect on him.”
 
Although this is a short book, it isn’t meant to be read and done with in a day. Don’t just read the book in one sitting and think you’re finished. Read one maxim per day. Read it and think about it within the context of your personal experience. Think about what’s being said. What does it mean to you? What does it mean in the context of your business or profession? What does it mean in the context of your life?
 
When you’ve given the book a great deal of thought and come to some personal conclusions, you may discover that you know people similar to the ones referred to in the text. You’ll probably notice situations and conditions in your company that are in need of rectification. That’s going to be the easy part.
 
The difficult part will be doing something about it. That’s where Patton’s one-minute-messages on perseverance and leadership come in. No one is going to do it for you. You’re going to have to do it on your own, using your own initiative and drive.
 
In this text, exchange the following words:
 
supreme commander =          CEO
headquarters  =          the boardroom
commander    =          manager
soldier =          employee
victory =          market share
maneuver        =          marketing
enemy =          foreign manufacturers
killing  =          producing the best product
 
This book will not make you a great general or get you promoted to top level management in your company. No book can do that. Life is too unfair to make all capable, qualified people top managers. The book will, however, help you learn to discipline yourself. It will show you how to transform into a no-nonsense manager who can make good, sound decisions. It will help you become a person with good leadership skills who can recognize those skills in others. If opportunity knocks, and you have the necessary skills, you’ll be ready to answer the door.
 
As you read this book, don’t think only in military terms. Think also in business terms.
 
Replace the concept of victory with the idea of putting a quality product on the market before your competitor.
 
Replace the concept of war with the idea of making your quality product the standard for the market.
 
Replace the concepts of casualties and death with the idea of layoffs and bankruptcy. It’s not hard to do, especially when you realize that business is synonymous with war.
 
I’ve started each page with a direct quote from General Patton. Each and every one delivers a distinct, powerful message concerning a quality of leadership and effective command that is sadly lacking in the American business community today. Following each of Patton’s quoted maxims, I’ve written a one-minute message—a succinct clarification of the explicit meaning of that maxim using the Patton style and approach.
 
Although the messages following the quotes are my words alone, I’ve tried my best to write them as I think the general would have written them. After almost thirty years of studying Patton’s philosophy and writing style, I feel comfortable doing so.
 
The Patton quotes come from a variety of sources:
 
Martin Blumenson. The Patton Papers. 2 vols. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1972–74.
 
George S. Patton Jr. Gen. War As I Knew It. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1947.
 
Porter B. Williamson. Patton’s Principles. Tucson: MSC, 1979.
 
Fred Ayer Jr. Before the Colors Fade. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1964.
 
Charles R. Codman. Drive. Boston: Little, Brown, 1957.
 
George S. Patton Jr. The Secret of Victory. Library of Congress, 1926.
 
Deming’s fourteen points, seven deadly diseases, and obstacles are from:
 
W. Edwards Deming. Out of the Crises. Cambridge: MIT, 1982.
 
Mary Walton. The Deming Management Method. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1986.
 
I’ve written these one-minute messages using the military environment to keep their original flavor and context. Some of them need no translation from military to business concepts. These concepts are basically the same in both environments. Some of them, however, don’t translate well upon first reading. When are translated idiomatic expressions from one language to another, true meanings are often lost. This also happens with translations of professional languages—e.g., when a doctor uses the word discomfort he really means pain. In these instances, some thought must be given to Patton’s message and how it can be associated with the business community. In some cases, to make sure the translation is correct, I’ve added a second paragraph that will offer specific insight into the use of the message in the business community.
 
As I began to write this book, I felt as though I had already read these same words before or at least something similar to them. There was something vaguely familiar about some of the messages, something I hadn’t considered while focusing specifically on my study of General Patton and his philosophy. I pulled W. Edwards Deming’s book, Out of the Crisis, from my bookshelf and began to leaf through it, making comparisons between Patton’s one-minute messages and Deming’s fourteen points, seven deadly diseases, and obstacles. To my surprise, I discovered that many of the principles are the same. My initial surprise subsided when I realized that fundamental principles are universal. It doesn’t matter whether they’re conceived in the mind, observed from nature, or learned from experience. They do not change. Patton believed it is the job of the high command to provide the best quality it can in leadership, materials, supplies, and judgment. Deming reiterates that concept when he says the philosophy of producing quality must come from the top. It can’t be done by the worker on the line, and it can’t be accomplished by middle management. If there is no commitment from the top leadership of a company to produce the best quality product, using statistical quality control, there won’t be any quality. Quality can’t be inspected into a product after it’s manufactured.
 
Patton knew, as does Deming, that good management is not enough. Along with management, the company must have good leadership, and if anyone knew about leadership, it was General George S. Patton Jr. He would have made one hell of a businessman.