What does leadership look like in the middle of a war zone—one of the most dynamic, agile, and consequential environments on the planet? General Stanley McChrystal knows intimately what it’s like – and is committed to teaching his hard-earned leadership insights to others.

Heading up the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), he led the U.S. military’s most elite special ops teams against Al-Qaeda in Iraq, and from there was commissioned to command the war on terror in Afghanistan.

That mission in itself is treacherous… and General McChrystal also crashed head-on with a political controversy – one that led to the end of his military career but opened the door to teaching leadership at Yale university, authoring multiple bestsellers, founding the McChrystal Group (his well-known management consulting company) and even being portrayed by none other than Brad Pitt in the movie War Machine.

What General McChrystal teaches isn’t about battlefield maps and tactics, it’s about building a team that’s informed, committed and focused. And even when the mission isn’t immediately successful, it’s about teaching the importance of risk, failure, and ultimately marching forward.

It's a fascinating discussion, rich with gems and insights. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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Rod Stewart & the Faces: A Complicated Alliance