Business Monday: Business Lessons from Military Service – Bob Salvas 🇺🇸

– by Bob Salvas, contributing writer

I am a proud veteran of the US AIR FORCE.  I served as an enlisted person for 4 years in the military after graduating from high school.  I will admit that I hated it in the beginning but later in life I realized it was one of the best decisions I had ever made.  There are many life and business lessons to be learned from military service.  Here are just a few of the lessons that I learned:

Whether you have goals in life or in business, you should always have a big overriding goal…a mission (in military terms).  Make your plans on how to achieve that mission but be adaptable in how you get there.

“Be stubborn on vision, but flexible on details.” – Jeff Bezos

The military is full of Americans from all different backgrounds, races, religions, etc.  While diversity may not be a popular word today, the military understands (and businesses should as well) that a diverse team brings different viewpoints and problem-solving approaches, leading to better decision-making and more innovative solutions.

“Diversity creates change, which is the engine for innovation.” – Chad Foster 

One of the challenges of working with a diverse group of people (or any group of people!) is being crystal clear with communication.  Clear goals, expectations and the ability to provide and learn from feedback is a critical component to success of any kind.

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” — George Bernard Shaw

The military is known for its discipline, and it is a valuable lesson for business as well.  It is especially critical to those businesses who are solopreneurs.  Self-discipline becomes exponentially more important when you are your boss!

“The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself.” – Plato

Discipline combined with the mindset of continuous improvement leads to achieving more than we think is possible.  That in turn gives us the confidence to keep building on that success in the future.

“If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.” – Thomas Edison

* My best to you on this most sacred military day – MEMORIAL DAY.

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Bob Salvas is a business advisor, a professional development manager for the RI Builders Association, and the coordinator of 4th Monday Networking.  You can contact Bob via email: [email protected]