Admiral James Stockdale is a medal of honor recipient for his actions while a prisoner of war. Stockdale was the highest-ranking officer in his prisoner of war camp. By actively working against his captors and motivating his fellow prisoners of war to do the same, Stockdale exemplified behaviors of leadership. Stockdale’s leadership encouraged his fellow prisoners of war to maintain their integrity. Likewise, I have seen a cadet change the culture of a company. Using the same traits as Stockdale, I have seen a cadet leader create followers who care more about The Citadel’s four pillars of development.
The eight behaviors of leadership are as follows: empowering others for action and decision-making; holding team members accountable for results, putting team members first, keeping a balanced view of one’s own importance, staying authentic to one’s real self, acting and speaking with courage; creating trust that permits others to make and learn from mistakes; and …show more content…
While a prisoner of war, Stockdale developed people and resources, acted with courage, and stayed true to himself. These characteristics motivated his followers to maintain as much integrity as possible. “BACK US” is an example of Stockdale developing resources. By creating the acronym and guidelines, Admiral Stockdale was able to communicate his expectations and strategy for dealing with the Vietnamese. By bruising his face and attempting to remain a leader, Stockdale acted with courage. His active resistance to the North Vietnamese was courageous since he did not have to do it. Admiral Stockdale could have easily done nothing. Not many people would condemn Stockdale for inaction. By acting in accordance with his values, Admiral Stockdale stayed true to himself. His fellow prisoners could see that he was remaining true to his own ideals and this encouraged them to do the