Go Above the Call of Duty

Mission Critical

Teammates, what’s the difference between success and failure? How about between winning and losing or the haves and the haves not?

Think about it – think hard … because success isn’t inherited or handed out in class or gifted during the holidays. NOTE – there one way and one way only to earn success: you work for it. But it’s not just work or even hard work, it’s more than that – it’s extra effort, what we call “above the call of duty”. This is what separates the men from the boys – the true winners from everyone else.

When I was in ninth grade, I had the privilege of learning from William H. Armstrong – author of more than 20 books, including “Sounder” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. At the time, he was “easily” in his late seventies – definitely eccentric but probably the most memorable man I’ve ever met. He had two quotations hung behind his desk. On the first day he read them aloud to us and told us to remember them. On the second day, he handed out a blank sheet of paper and told us we were having our first test – not a quiz – a test – if we aced it, we would receive an A for the semester. We were psyched.

He pointed to the quotations behind him – now turned around so all we could see was the cardboard backing … and he said: “Your test is to write down verbatim the two quotations I read to you yesterday.”

Needless to say, none of us received an A, but this point was indelibly made on me … and hopefully you’ll take them to heart, for whether your mission is to transform your body or your life, you’re gonna need to keep those close to you, especially when the going gets tough, as it always does.

They are:

“Before the gates of excellence, the High Gods have placed sweat.”

“If a man does only what is required of him, he is a slave, the moment he does more, he is a free man."

Go above the “call of duty” – put the extra effort in, and you’ll never be disappointed.

CHARLIE MIKE – ALDEN

P.S. The stronger your body (fitness level), the better suited/equipped you are to go above the call of duty.

Defining Your Mission Part 1

Teammates, on the last blog I defined what a mission is, on this blog I want to define YOUR mission. Let me be clear – I have no intention of defining your specific mission because I can’t – only you can. My hope is to challenge you with some questions – and your ability to honestly seek the answers will directly help you define YOUR mission.

First, a quick recap on the definition of mission:
• a mission is a purpose-driven goal
• a goal is a dream with a deadline

So how do you sort through the goals that are worth “dying-for” and the goals that are “nice to have”? There’s no right answer here, but I can tell you from experience that there are two kinds of goals out there – there are the nice-to-have superficial ones and then there are the ones that will define you and your character – they’re big, scary and hairy and will leave you doubting yourself until you start to try. My question to you is:

What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?

Answer this one slowly – take some serious time to dream – look inside yourself and ask honestly, what would I do if I knew I wouldn’t fail at whatever I tried…then ask yourself that again…and then again and again. The true answer won’t come immediately – you’ll have to sort through the superficial ones first – like having a billion dollar bank account or a private jet, but the ones that will start to percolate to the surface are ones that have a deeper meaning to you – they’re the ones that have a purpose. Sometimes, actually most times, that purpose doesn’t immediately connect with you.

You’ll have to journey a bit down the planning path of a couple of your dreams, but the sooner you learn to connect a purpose to your goal, the sooner you’ll stop viewing work as a “9 to 5” job and start seeing work as an opportunity to excel beyond what is currently possible or even what some may consider acceptable.

Huh?

Stay with me here – you see most folks get caught up very early in life in the game of earning money as the ultimate reward. No doubt, having money opens doors to new possibilities, but for most, we end up chasing a never ending rainbow of superficial stuff – cars, boats, houses, jewelry, etcetera and get stuck in a vicious cycle of: “I work because I owe, and owe because I work” (and btw I’m as guilty as the next guy for coveting different “superficial things”), but the trick is to earn these things doing what you love, not doing what you “have” to do to continue make payments on the things you’ve wanted. Once you get ‘stuck’ on the car, house, credit card payment treadmill it becomes increasingly more difficult over time to get off the vicious cycle.

Part 2: how to follow YOUR dream

CHARLIE MIKE -- ALDEN

Picture of Buzz Aldrin's footprint on the Moon courtesy of wikipedia

The Mission of CHARLIE MIKE

My name is Alden Mills and I started this blog while I was on a new mission in my life – moving slowly from one peak in my life (as a platoon commander of Navy SEALs) to a new peak as an entrepreneur. The “valley” I encountered between those peaks reminded me of other valleys that I have endured during my life. Though the mission may be different, the tools to succeed remain the same … and that’s the purpose of this blog – to share with you those tools of mission success, so you are empowered to encourage others to go after their own missions – that is – their own purpose-driven goals.

I named this blog CHARLIE MIKE after the SEAL Team radio call sign for CONTINUE MISSION. I don’t care who you are or what you’ve done – we all face dark valleys in our lives and when we do, we are faced with a decision: quit or forge ahead – that is, Continue Mission. It’s our hope that the words shared on CHARLIE MIKE will inspire you to Continue your Mission. It takes a team to accomplish a mission – and we’re here to help … God only knows we’re received more than our fair share of help from teammates over the years.

If you find success, we’ll hope you’ll share it so others may benefit – for there is no great success than helping others succeed.

CHARLIE MIKE – ALDEN

Swim Buddy Mission Plan

TEAMMATES – I’m heading out for a little vacation with my family, and as I do I wanted to take a moment to thank my SEAL swim buddies on CHARLIE MIKE. I want thank them for not only writing when I’m absent but more importantly for also adding different voices and perspectives to the mission of this blog. Hearing one voice all the time might be great for some, but it surely won’t resonate with others.

That’s the point of our CHARLIE MIKE Team, each one emphatically believes that taking control of your body is the best way to change your life, but each swim buddy represents a different voice with a different perspective. The more perspectives we can offer to you, the richer your mind will be when it comes time to take action. In order for you to achieve anything, you must first believe. How you come to believe in your plan is your business, we just want you to know that we’re here for you and believe in your potential.

So while I’m surf-torturing my tadpoles on the East Coast, I hope the perspectives you gain from Marcus, Stew, Tim, Tom, and Mike will inspire you to take action on your mission plan. Then, of course, share your journey of successes (and failures) with all of us…after all, if you’re not failing, you’re not trying!

HOOYAH CM SWIM BUDDIES!

MILLS OUT

Beach picture licensed under Creative Commons Attribution

Identify The Enemy

Guest blogger: Tom Rancich

9/11. The day that changed America. Separated us into pre and post 9/11. Well, those who have read "For the Courage of the Founders" know how I feel about that. It is wrong. But, for this guest appearance, that got me to thinking about the things that change us and how. So there have been some positive changes in the country since 9/11, but I think that at a very basic level, when you allow your enemy to change the way you conduct your life, you are making a fundamental mistake. Your enemy does not want you to succeed. He, by definition, wants to see you fail. So to change the way you live because of his actions, well, just fundamentally wrong to me.

So what does that have to do with Charlie Mike? Well, continuing the mission is CRITICAL to the success of the mission; be it a Pyrrhic success or otherwise. The point is, if you let the enemy stop you---well no Charlie Mike in that. So who are your enemies in your quest for fitness and a more healthy lifestyle? Is it the high school gym teacher that said you can’t do pull-ups because you are a girl (whether or not you actually were a girl)? Is it the pie in the fridge? A beloved enabler on the couch? Or, like most people I know, is it the voice that says, I can’t, or I don’t have the time, or I am too tired, or, or, or……

So on this 9/11, let’s share some of the enemies that are trying to turn us away from fitness---and then share ideas on how to defeat them. I have met a lot of people who say, “I want to be fit and I feel better when I PT, but I just never have the (time, energy, desire.)” I could never make sense of that thought---but clearly an enemy is getting in the way---let’s kick its ass.

There I was in the Tora Bora mountains; enemy in my sights---when suddenly I smelled a pie and just had to have a slice………

Postscript: Incidentally, no pies were hurt in the making of this blog. On a very serious note---to all the people who have seen the worst of this conflict---I know the hollowness and lack of joy you might experience daily. I do not know if it will ever be great again but it sure is worth the attempt. So if things aren't going well, contact me at Off-Shore Consulting or visit the Veterans Hotline.

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Lt. Commander Thomas Rancich, US Navy SEAL (Ret.) is the co-founder of VRHabilis, a disabled veteran-owned small business with the broad vision of increasing career opportunities for disabled veterans in construction and related fields. Rancich and co-founder Elliott Adler are developing an enhanced remote controlled capability for land clearance and target placement. With this device, a disabled vet working from a pickup could be fully operational. VRHabilis, which stands for Veteran Run Work (Latin derivative), is pioneering the concept of using adaptive technology to bridge the gap between industrial and medical technology ... because the highly trained, motivated and adaptable veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are not looking for hand outs but rather the opportunity to reintegrate into the work force.

Through his consulting firm, Off-Shore Consulting, Tom provides professional advice on leadership, team building, program development and strategic vision.

Alden Mills and Tom Rancich served together in the Teams. Tom has been a guest blogger and “on-line” coach for the Perfect Pushup team many times over the past few years: this is his third guest blog on Charlie Mike.