“All In” - ordinary human beings

Falling from grace, four-star Gen. David Petraeus proved to be an ordinary human being, biting the fatal mutual attraction with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. Paula Broadwell, in the dress like Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct, illustrated their bonding was based on their basic instinct their book entitled “All In” – reflecting their basic instinct’s thought: ALL IN, the body and the soul, nothing left. Their fresh attraction was stronger than anything else all together: Pride, patriot, reputation, family.

[TJKCB]

General David Petraeus’s Rules for Living
Nov 5, 2012 1:00 AM EST
Lessons on leadership from General David Petraeus.

1. Take your performance personally—if you are proud to be average, so too will be your troops.


Pete Marovich / ZUMA Press

2. A leader must provide a vision—clear and achievable “big ideas” combined in a strategic concept—and communicate those ideas throughout the entire organi-zation and to all other stakeholders.

3. A leader needs to give energy; don’t be an oxygen thief.

4. There is an exception to every rule, standard operating procedure, and poli-cy; it is up to leaders to determine when exceptions should be made and to ex-plain why they made them.

5. We all will make mistakes. The key is to recognize them and admit them, to learn from them, and to take off the rear- view mirrors—drive on and avoid making them again.

6. Be humble. The people you’ll be lead-ing already have on-the-ground conflict experience. “Listen and learn.”

7. Be a team player. “Your team’s triumphs and failures will, obviously, be yours.” Take ownership of both.

8. Don’t rely on rank. If you rely on rank, rather than on the persuasiveness of your logic, the problem could be you and either your thinking or your com-munication skills. Likewise, sometimes the best ideas come from bottom-up information sharing (i.e., “Need to share” not “Need to know”). Use “direct-ed telescopes” to improve situational awareness.

9. Leaders should be thoughtful but deci-sive. Listen to subordinates’ input, evaluate courses of action and second- and third-order effects, but be OK with an “80 per-cent solution.” “There will be many moments when all eyes turn to you for a decision. Be prepared for them. Don’t shrink from them. Embrace them.” Some-times the best move is the bold move.

10. Stay fit to fight. Your body is your ulti-mate weapons system. Physical fitness for your body is essential for mental fitness.

11. The only thing better than a little com-petition is a lot of competition. Set chal-lenges for your subordinates to encourage them to excel.

12. Everyone on the team is mission criti-cal. Instill in your team members a sense of great self-worth—that each, at any given time, can be the most important on the battlefield.

[TJKCB]

By REENA NINAN (@reenaninan) and ALYSSA NEWCOMB (@alyssanewcomb)
Nov. 11, 2012
As a military expert with ties around the world, Paula Broadwell kept a busy schedule packed with writing, teaching and helping wounded soldiers, leaving little time for the married mother to commit "indiscretions," a friend told ABC News.

"I have some serious questions about who is connecting these dots and how. ... Paula Broadwell is not the type ... she isn't," said David Bixler, an active duty double amputee who met Broadwell though a charity foundation in 2010.

As a biographer to Gen. David Petraeus, Broadwell enjoyed tremendous access to the general during the year they spent together in Afghanistan, finding out the idiosyncrasies that helped shape the man who was the public face of the war.

But what remained unseen was the extramarital affair that Petraeus told friends began after he left the army in August of 2011.

People close to Petraeus told ABC News they found Broadwell too "gushy" about the general, whom she viewed as a mentor, and commented to each other that they believed the 40-year-old was "in love with him."

It was clear in interviews Broadwell gave to promote her book, "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus," that she and the general shared a mutual trust.

The career of the four-star general, arguably the most respected military leader of his generation, came crashing down when the FBI stumbled upon the affair after probing an allegedly harassing email that had been sent from Broadwell to a woman in Florida.


The Charlotte Observer, T. Ortega Gaines/AP Photo
Paula Broadwell, author of the David Petraeus... View Full Size

David Petreaus Affair: Paula Broadwell in Hiding Watch Video

CIA Director Gen. Petraeus Regrets Affair Watch Video

David Petraeus Resigns Over Affair With Biographer Paula Broadwell Watch Video
In Broadwell's inbox, sources say investigators found emails that indicated she and Petraeus were having an extramarital affair.

WATCH: Paula Broadwell interview on "Around The World with Christiane Amanpour"

By all accounts, Broadwell seemed to have it all.

The 40-year-old resides in Charlotte, N.C., with her husband, Dr. Scott Broadwell, who works as a radiologist, and their two young sons.

Growing up in Bismarck, N.D., Broadwell was the valedictorian and homecoming queen of her high school.

She went on to attend West Point, where she was ranked No. 1 in overall fitness in her class. She spent some time in the Black Ops and later earned post-graduate degrees from Harvard University and King's College in London.

On Monday, just days before before Petraeus would step down from his post with the CIA, a story by Broadwell was published on Newsweek's website titled "General David Petraeus's Rules for Living." No. 5 is notable in light of the news about his extramarital affair.

"We all will make mistakes," he said. "The key is to recognize them and admit them, to learn from them, and to take off the rear-view mirrors -- drive on and avoid making them again.""

Petraeus resigned on Friday, citing personal reasons and an extramarital affair.

"Yesterday afternoon, I went to the White House and asked the president to be allowed, for personal reasons, to resign from my position as D/CIA," he said in a statement. "After being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgment by engaging in an extramarital affair. Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours. This afternoon, the president graciously accepted my resignation."

[TJKCB]

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7400733n
"All In: The Education of General David Petraeus," by Paula Broadwell
March 2, 2012 12:54 PM
Jeff Glor talks to Paula Broadwell about her book, "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus." The book examines the four-star general's evolution as a solider as well as the profound impact he has had on the entire U.S. military. A former Army officer who spent months on the ground in Afghanistan herself, Broadwell draws on hundreds of hours of exclusive interviews with Petraeus and his top officers and soldiers to tell the inside story of this commander's development and leadership.