Take Command

Lessons in Leadership: How to Be a First Responder in Business

By: Jake Wood

Narrated by: Bo Foxworth

What do elite members of the military, first responders in the disaster zone, and high-performing leaders in fast-paced, high-pressure, modern day organizations have in common?

The ability to have clarity of mind and purpose when surrounded by chaos. To operate at peak performance under risk. To be able to see clearly when others are blinded by fear, and act when others are paralyzed. To craft plans even with incomplete information, then execute those plans decisively - while still being nimble and adaptable enough to iterate as the terrain changes. To deliver in the clutch. To build teams with high impact, and then inspire those teams to follow you into the fire.

In this groundbreaking book on high-stakes leadership, Co-founder and CEO of Team Rubicon and former Marine Sniper Jake Wood, shows how to apply hard-learned lessons in leadership and teamwork from the battlefield and disaster zone to your professional life.

While most of our jobs don’t involve leading a tour of Marines through an ambush, or rushing into a relief zone just decimated by a hurricane, in today's fast-paced, hyper-competitive business environment, we are ALL on the front lines. And in an entrepreneurially-minded world where technology is constantly reinventing how we work, global competition is fierce, and industries are being disrupted overnight, success requires a new kind of leadership. This book is about how to become the kind of leader who gets results when the stakes are at their highest - how to Take Command.

©2014 Jake Wood (P)2014 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"A well-written, well-organized book that offeres a novel appraoch to the art of leadership" ( Success Magazine)

"An extraordinary book by an extraordinary leader. Jake Wood weaves together splendidly lessons from his experiences doing just that – taking charge in tough situations in football, in Marine sniper training, in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, and as co-founder of Team Rubicon…. The result is an exceptional book that is equal parts inspirational, informative, and instructive."(General David H. Petraeus, United States Army (Retired) )

"There are leaders everywhere. Parents. Entrepreneurs. Warriors. Executives. And people with big ideas. Wood relates to all of them with a humility and confidence that its uniquely American. If there is one book on leadership to read, it is this one. From his hometown to the battlefield of Iraq to Haiti and untold other natural disasters, to the boardroom and the factory floor, Wood gets it: the kind of leader you are shapes your outcome." (Christine Romans, CNN chief business correspondent)

TeamRubicon Meets Business

I've been a volunteer for TeamRubicon for several years, so that may taint my perception of this book... But I don't think so! The lessons may not be earth-shattering, but the way in which the information is presented helped me absorb the information far better than other management books. Anyone with a history of military and/or public safety experience will recognize the lessons and hopefully find new ways of applying those in the business world.

The Bible for planning

I am a customer house builder, and my business partner said that military is very similar to construction. Even though it had not so many reviews. I download it and I finish in three days. After I finish it, I realize how similar these two are I became a fan of planning and overall military history, now I feel that I have more control of my crew, steps to go, and overall project managing. Thanks Jake for your service and for his book.

Amazing

This book was very interesting and did a good job telling the story of the start of TR.

SO BORING!

This was really hard to get through and the guys voice did not help at all.

Nothing new and what’s up with the voice

If you read “Once a Warrior,” stop there. There was nothing new or glorious about this book. I got through chapter 4 before throwing in the towel.

The voice used sounded like a Text-to-Voice tool. That voice did Jake wrong.