Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A former Navy SEAL sniper turned media CEO and New York Times bestselling author teaches business leaders how to make the best decisions under pressure.
Webb learned all about performing while experiencing heart-pounding stress during his four deployments as a Navy SEAL sniper in the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Africa. After returning to civilian life, he started his first business venture--and failed miserably. He realized that his big mistake was neglecting to apply what he already knew about focus under pressure. By drawing on the lessons of his SEAL training and early business struggles, Webb went on to build a second business, a media network called Hurricane, which today has an audience of millions and a valuation close to $100 million.
Now Webb deconstructs the decision-making DNA of the most effective snipers, and shows you how to develop the same mental acuity in civilian life. His stories range from his own experiences to those of other Special Operations warriors and great entrepreneurs, like Solomon Choi of 16 Handles, Matt Meeker of BarkBox, and Betsy Morgan of The Huffington Post and TheBlaze. They illustrate seven hard-won principles of decision-making:
- Laser focus is not the same thing as tunnel vision. You need total situational awareness to stay out of danger and adapt to changing circumstances.
- Once the first shot is fired, nothing goes according to plan anyway, so don't get stuck in the trap of over-analysis. The key is to act decisively and adapt on the fly.
- Instead of avoiding difficult experiences, "embrace the suck" and understand that pain is temporary and learning is priceless. Facing challenging obstacles forces you to develop the skills you need to achieve your goals.
By following in the path of a generation of legendary snipers, you'll find the clarity of mind you need to make key decisions and accomplish your mission, whatever it takes.
Synopsis
A former Navy SEAL sniper turned media CEO and New York Times bestselling author teaches business leaders how to make the best decisions under pressure.
Over his four deployments as a Navy SEAL sniper, Brandon Webb learned all about performing while experiencing heart-pounding stress. After returning to civilian life, he started his first business venture--and failed miserably. He realized that his big mistake was neglecting to apply what he already knew about focus under pressure. By drawing on the lessons of his SEAL training and early business struggles, Webb went on to build a second business, a media network called Hurricane, which today has an audience of millions and a valuation over $100 million.
Now Webb deconstructs the decision-making DNA of the most effective snipers, and shows you how to develop the same mental acuity in civilian life. Drawing on stories from his own experiences to those of other Special Operations warriors and great entrepreneurs, like Solomon Choi of 16 Handles, Matt Meeker of BarkBox, and Betsy Morgan of The Huffington Post and TheBlaze, he teaches you how to have total situational awareness to stay out of danger and adapt to changing circumstances; to avoid the trap of over-analysis; and to understand that pain is temporary and learning is priceless.
By following in the path of a generation of legendary snipers, you'll find the clarity of mind you need to make key decisions and accomplish your mission, whatever it takes.
Synopsis
What do you do at work when a hundred crises seem to be happening at the same time? Do you pick just one priority or try to put out every fire? How can you stay composed, figure out what really matters, and act decisively? When former U.S. Navy SEAL sniper Brandon Webb transitioned to civilian life, he struggled to get his first startup business off the ground. He raised millions for his new venture, only to lose it all as problems spiraled out of his control.
In the wake of that failure, Webb realized that successful entrepreneurs need a skill he had already mastered: total focus. SEAL snipers define it as the ability to filter out noise and chaos so you can make life-or-death decisions under the extreme conditions of combat. If he could maintain total focus while staring through crosshairs at a man who might (or might not) be an Al Qaeda terrorist, surely he could do the same in the business world.
So Webb started over, applying total focus to a new startup, a media company called Hurricane Group. His approach was so effective that in just five years, Hurricane grew to have a staff of over fifty, an audience in the tens of millions, and a valuation of more than $100 million.
In this book, Webb teaches us to make better decisions under extreme pressure by emulating the habits of his fellow warriors, as well as other skills he learned on the job and from great friends and business leaders like Solomon Choi of 16 Handles, Matt Meeker of BarkBox, and Betsy Morgan of the Huffington Post and TheBlaze. For instance, you'll discover:
- The difference between total focus and tunnel vision is developing total situational awareness: the ability to spot opportunities and threats without getting distracted from your goal.
- You can overcome indecisiveness and hesitancy by accepting violence of action: a decision to move forward with an imperfect plan, knowing that even the best-laid plans go wrong.
- Entrepreneurs must learn to embrace the suck, refusing to quit when the going gets brutal, and recognizing that unexpected challenges may reveal your best shot at success.
By following the tactics and wisdom of a generation of legendary snipers and business leaders, you'll find the clarity of mind you need to accomplish your own mission--whatever it takes.