My Share of the Task: A Memoir

This book is well researched and honestly portrays the trials General Stan McChrystal and his teams endured during his career. Full disclosure, I have known him for over 20 years and count him as an important mentor in my life, a comrade, and a friend. Three things jump out at me as important to Stanley McChrystal; loyalty, trust, and personal relationships. They are reminiscent of the ideals of Field Marshall W.J. Slim and General U.S. Grant.My Share of the Task will be compared to both Grant and Slim in their prose and authenticity. It is well written and possibly one of the best military memoirs of our time. If I told you he was not a professional writer I would not be telling you the whole truth. He is. The one flaw in this book is that GEN Stan does not emphasize the lifelong lesson he learned about the importance of correspondence. I have read his words in operations orders, commander's guidance, personal letters, letters of recommendation, and letters to fallen service members family's. He is a gifted author and this story will grab your attention like a Bourne movie script at times.Like Grant he avoids trying to cause injury to any person in his telling of history. He succeeds in being apolitical. Also like Grant there is a recognition that he cannot possibly mention all the great men and women he served in over his career especially during his decade of war. Instead he introduces us to a few people that can teach us about honor, warfare, friendship, courage, and peace.Take a seat on the pain train and strap in. Learn about SARs, networks, partners, CT machines, reconciliation, maintaining humanity, operators, analysts, interrogators, TSFs, The Task Force, Counterinsurgency, advisors, and many other terms that will now be forever be required vocabulary for the military.Its pages are not full of the word "I". Instead of lengthy sections about Gen McChrystal we are introduced to the real heroes he looked up to; a senior NCO in Iraq, a young paratrooper in hospital, and a rifle squad on Patrol in Afghanistan. He also takes time to describe some great leaders who left an indelible mark on warfare and the military but may never be heard of outside the military. People like General Gary Luck, LtGen Sir Graeme Lamb, and Command Sergeant Major Mike Hall loom large in his life and he ensures we understand why their style of leadership is most often the best. It strikes me less as a memoir and more as a chance to publicly honor the men and women who quietly and efficiently worked under his command.Like Grant he mentions in passing his senate confirmations for promotion and meetings with the Presidents to spend the majority of his text focused on larger decision-making events or small but important moments spent with troops. This shows his desire to focus on events that can most effect the tide of battle. Also like Slim he shows that he understands that campaigns are won and lost by the caliber of the people in the Armies not just the leader leading it. He knows that he owes all his success to the success of his people.This fills a gap in the current literature about the events since September 11th because of his unique duty positions and experiences. One of the few officers to serve repeatedly in both Afghanistan and Iraq as he progressed from BG to GEN. He was deployed to combat zones for the majority of the time from 2002 through 2010.He explores the lessons he kept in his rucksack as he moved from command to command. Trust subordinates. Surround yourself with the best people and let them go. Be demanding but be patient and listen to your subordinate's gut feelings and subject matter expert's decisions about what to do next. Let subordinates tell you you are wrong and explain why they are right. Honor friendships. Trust makes units efficient. Everyone can be a strategist regardless of rank. Delegate authority until you are uncomfortable and then delegate some more.It's not all about the operators kicking in doors and snatching the enemy out of his room in the middle of the night. He takes the time to honor all the people who make up exceptional units. The wise supply sergeants, the dedicated adjutant, the interrogators, the intel analysts, the sergeants majors, and the squad leaders.He has a humble sense of where he fit into these wars historically. He doesn't see himself as a miracle worker just a man that accepts a task and gives one hundred percent to accomplish it and demands 100 percent from his teammates. To work at such a high optempo he relies on a strong wife, a love for Soldiers, and a deep belief in the sanctity of human life.Like President Lincoln his leadership style worked by making his men feel it was an honor to serve with him. He never minded accepting another's way of doing things if it meant they would relish accomplishing the task their way. People never wanted to fail GEN Stan because it made them feel wretched as if they had disappointed their father or grandfather.Its not a book that glorifies his legendary status in the spec ops community, instead it highlights why when he put the call out for a few friends to join him for Afghanistan dozens showed up at the pentagon within days. With no idea of their future jobs and no specified length for their future combat tours his trusted comrades quit their jobs and left their families to join the band and go back out on tour.

Good book, well-written and informative. Also, a genuine officer and consummate professional who embodies the warrior code. Shows the US military is in good hands.One star was deducted because at places Gen. McChrystal seemed to skim over relevant parts. For example, when he returned to the Pentagon as Director of Joint Chiefs tasked by Adm. Mullen to break down barriers. He highlights that but not much is said of his 7-8 month stint.McChrystal doesn't directly criticize others, perhaps the closest he comes to doing so are his terse remarks on Bremer.He is also a bit lax in absolving the military brass of providing sufficiently frank input to the civilian leadership. Whereas Gen. McChrystal emphasizes how he valued such input from those that served under him, and went a ways to cultivate an atmosphere that he views as important for effective leadership, one gets the sense that generals of his generation are, themselves, on the timid side when it comes to interfacing with civilian leadership.Given the importance of rank/promotion as an undercurrent in McChrystal's accounts (he is subtle but pointed), it remains in the background.Overall, a great book. Policy wonks who haven't served in the military should find it especially informative and useful.

McChrystal get it from the grunt at the tip of the spear to the sometimes-unqualified top leadership. It's a great read and should be required reading for both military and political leaders. The book is a reminder of the diversity of experiences possessed by our military leaders from field commanders to tours of the Pentagon, staff assignments, war college, etc. One of the characteristics that distinguishes our military from many businesses and institutions is the constant push to improve or to exit. It's a complete reversal of the congressional system where individuals hold offices for decades. Although far from perfect the military is far more of a meritocracy than most other institutions.McChystral's discussion of his role as commander should be required reading for corporate leaders. From his efforts to bring out the best of the intelligence capabilities of diverse organizations was literally a matter of life or death for our soldiers on the ground and also critical in guiding the application of our limited resources. Some of the leadership principles and techniques have great applicability in complex organizations.Although some reviewers complained at the lack of running and gunning, the unique viewpoints across decades is really interesting. One of the most fascinating was the rise of fundamentalist power in postwar Iraq. The actions they took to end the civic programs and drive those trying to improve conditions for the civilian population out of the country.The writing is tight and articulate without excess drama. Those who live for the next Jerry Springer like interview or story may be disappointed.Our corporate leaders could, but probably will not, learn about true integrity driven leadership.It is hard not to feel our nation's loss when Obama fired McChrystal for comments made "off the record" to Rolling Stone reporters while taking a brief break from the demanding rigors of waging two wars. Obama could have taken McChrystal to the woodshed for Obama's gratification and sent him back to war for our nation's benefit, but Obama chose the selfish alternative. Our nation suffered and in all likelihood we lost some great warriors when the services of this exceptional leader were withdrawn from the war and the nation's military.My guess is that there's lots more to the story that will come out over the years but this is a good start. Unfortunately it is a disturbing part of the continuing story to discredit those military leaders who are most closely connected with the troops. The steady political extermination of military leaders has the look and feel of the depths of the Stalin era.Highly recommended.

This is a warts and all account of the career of one of the USA’s finest Generals. It is told in straightforward language and is accessible to all readers. He makes it clear that his career was a success not just because of his hard work, but also due to a team of exceptional men and women who supported him and he gives credit where it is due. That his career came to and end though no fault of his own gives pathos to the end of the book, yet shows that he is a man of honour who takes responsibility and leadership very seriously. It also informs the reader of the wider nature of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. I thoroughly recommend reading this book as it will give you a real insight into what leadership really means.

Très bon livre qui est centré sur la manière dont les différents services engagés ont trouvé une nouvelle forme d'organisation et de procédures dans le cadre de the war on terror (iraq - afghanistan). (attention il s'agit d'une version en langue anglaise)

Must read for all military leader and leaders in general. An honest account of an honest, determined and hardworking solider. Blockbuster material.

This is an excellent volume. McChrystal gives an honest account of his life in the military and records in fine detail his involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. Given the circumstances of his resignation, it would not have been surprising to see him launch into a long defence of the incident in Paris that was so dramatically reported in Rolling Stone. However, he does not do this, preferring to let the record speak for itself and pointing out that a subsequent enquiry failed to substantiate the truth of the Rolling Stone article.Being ex-military myself, I have long held that what used to be called "man-management", taught me more about managing people in civilian life than a hundred courses could do. General Stanley McChrystal's summary of leadership that he provides at the book's conclusion should be required reading for anyone in, or aspiring to be in, any position of authority.It will be a revelation to many people to see just how much "management" is required in the prosecution of a counter-insurgency. The general, since leaving the military, has set up his own management consultancy. My feel is that any company availing itself of his services will benefit more than they could ever imagine.

The book is very interesting read, but focuses almost completely on the last two wars, but offers an interesting insight into the "other side". What I missed was a critical reflection of the events leading to his resignation, while the reporter did appear in two sentences, the actual crisis appears only on the last page of the epilogue.Anyway, I can recommend the book to anyone who is looking for inspiration on leadership, since McChrystal informs the reader not only about his actions and also about his motivations behind the actions.