Character in Action: The U.S. Coast Guard on Leadership

A must read for anyone that wants to know more about this great service. Great insight into the workings of the US Coast Guard. Makes you appreciate what they do as the smallest of the military organizations. If you are considering entering the US Coast Guard, you have to read this!

I was provided a copy of the book when I became a contractor for the USCG. Having a military background already, I was interested in the military history of the USCG. This book has provided me with a glimpse into the mission of the USCG and its leadership style. There are many heart-warming stories of real life heroes that inspire one to the esprit-de-corp that the military resonates. If your looking for a turnkey book on leadership this is not it, but if you are looking for ways to inspire people, and to refine your own personal style than this book is definitely what you are looking for. It is food for thought. Hope you have found this review helpful. Tom

I thought that this book was definitely worth reading. It was a very easy read, and offered some useful insight. It did a great job characterizing the organizational culture of the USCG. After reading some of the other reviews, I feel it is necessary to say that this book was written by an person who oversaw an organization on a macro level. It is a book about executive level leadership, not functional level leadership. In total, it consisted of nothing more than a typical book about leadership - touchy feely advice...shoulds and should nots...yada yada yada. There were some unique ideas presented in this book compared to other leadership books. Again, it was a really easy read...definitely worth a couple bucks and the few hours it takes to read it.

This is an incredibly good book. If you really did not like it.... Re-read it! You missed something!If you think it is a primer on leadership, it is not. What it is... is a great book about an organization that serves incredible service to our country with very few people and very little money. Are people in the Coast Guard perfect? NO! And in spite of that, their HONOR, RESPECT, and DEVOTION TO DUTY help them pull together to make things work- often in spite of incredible odds!Anyone will learn something from this book. Most of us can learn a lot from it, if we are willing to draw the parallels from this agency to our own business. The lesson is Character are compelling. To succeed, we all need to put the right people in the right place at the right time. Seems simple, but in practice, is very hard to do!The book also provides analysis about today's Coast Guard Missions and their alignment with the purposes of the United States Government's purpose of being, as outlined in the preamble of the Constitution! The match between the two is startling! One can easily see why a Coast Guardsman is soooooo motivated as they are patriots and humantitarianists.Good read & good sailing!

As a 26-year veteran of the Coast Guard (retired in 2003) who has served on small boat stations, a 378' Cutter (USCGC GALLATIN), and District and Headquarters offices, as well as authoring a fiction novel, I have a far different take than some of the reviews about "Character in Action." I found the book to be an enjoyable read that espoused the type of dynamic leadership I suspect most people would appreciate in their organization. As one reviewer euphemistically stated, this book is "sufficient for someone who manages an office or a McDonald's." I would agree. But the reviewer stops far too short. The book is also sufficient for someone who manages a Fortune 500 company, a Federal agency, or anything in between. The truth is, the leadership qualities described in this book - from encouraging frank communication, personal empowerment, adaptability to change, and the sheer courage to do the right thing at the right time - would be appropriate, and in fact, paramount to any organization that wants to both succeed in business and in life in the 21st century. Are there flaws where leadership has failed to rise to the standards described in this book, as some reviews have taken great care to point out? You bet. But fortunately those are the exceptions rather than the rule. The anecdotal stories that precede every section in the book are clear examples, amongst hundreds of others that could be told, of Coast Guard men and women rising to the occasion under the most duressing times to complete a mission that many would not dare engage in. I highly recommend "Character in Action" to anyone who wants to tweak their organizational leadership styles, and to those who enjoy good robust stories of real life adventure.