Tag: USS BARRY

Commanding a ship is the simplest task in the world

“Commanding a ship is the simplest task in the world, even if at times it seems complicated. A Captain has only to pick good courses of action and to stick to them no matter what. If he is good and generally makes good decisions, his crew will cover for him if he fails occasionally. If he is bad, this fact will soon be known, and he must removed with the speed of light.”
Admiral Nimitz – per anonymous
The photo is of our CNO Admiral Gary Roughead and ADM Stavridis. CDR Stavridis relieved CAPT Roughead as CO, USS Barry. These two obviously picked good courses of action and stuck to them.

Destroyer Captain

Lessons of a First Command This memoir of James Stavridis’ two years in command of the destroyer USS Barry reveals the human side of what it is like to be in charge of a warship–for the first time and in the midst of international crisis.

By Adm. James Stavridis, USN,
Commander U.S. Southern Command

Check it out at http://www.usni.org/

I bought 12 copies of this book and Admiral Stavridis was kind enough to inscribe each one personally for me. This book is excellent reading for students of leadership. I am reading it for the second time. I don’t want to miss a single word. Very tough assignment to be a Commanding Officer of an Arleigh Burke destroyer. One man is responsible for about $1B worth of equipment and the lives of over 300 Sailors – the sons and daughters of America. They call him Captain.