Colin Powell History

Army of One

If his name sounds familiar, it’s because the former lance corporal made history in 2004 when he came out — of the closet and against the Iraq war — on CNN and effectively ended his military career. Or maybe you saw the Showtime documentary a few years back, “Semper Fi,” which chronicled his fight for equality and peace. Even though Key’s multi-media piece was created several years ago and has played to bravos and ooh-rahs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, and even the boonies of Kentucky, you wouldn’t have seen the show in New York. An earlier attempt was thwarted because producers didn’t see a pro-gay, anti-war monologue as a moneymaker. Finally, Key’s time has come. JEFF KEY: Before 9/11, actually. I joined at age 34, and although the official cutoff is 28, I got a special waiver. To tell you the truth, I signed up in response to the oppressive homophobic culture in Alabama where I grew up and to my own homophobia. I was a miserable alcoholic. I tried to stop drinking when I was 23, beginning with a very bloody suicide attempt. It took eight years fighting to get sober, a pretty rough road. I was ready to reclaim those life dreams I once thought were impossible. JK: First I went back to college, got my degree in theater, and moved to California. After an audition one day, I thought, I’m really sorry I never did the Marine thing. I love this country very much, I identify with Marine Corps culture. It just so happened I lived across the street from a recruiting station. So I walked in there, a gay man in his 30s living in LA. I knew where the gym was — I was a lot more fit than most of the 19-year old kids who grew up on PlayStation. They had a pull-up bar, and I fired off a few to prove I wasn’t over the hill. Soon I got in my dress blues and took a personal pilgrimage to Ground Zero. I was looking for a bathroom and ended up in the basement of a church with a sea of construction workers who’d been cleaning up the wreckage of the Trade Center. Some former Marines came over and pumped my hand, asked me what I was doing there. I said I wanted to see Ground Zero from that little public platform, and they said, “Hell no you’re not. We’ll take you on a tour.” They took me to Fire Station 10 across the street.

The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell

Colin Powell is the first black secretary of state in U.S. history. Powell was born in New York City to Jamaican immigrants and attended City College of New York as a cadet in the Reserve Officers Training Corps. He served two tours of duty successfully in the Vietnam War from 1962-63 and once again from 1968-69 and then held important military and civilian positions before becoming national security adviser to President Ronald Reagan in 1987. In 1989, Powell was promoted to the rank of four-star general and was named chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff later that same year – the first black officer to hold the nation’s highest military post.

Colin Powell’s principles of leadership described in the book include the following:

Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership. Don’t be buffaloed by experts and elites. Experts often possess more data than judgment. Elites can become so inbred that they produce hemophiliacs who bleed to death as soon as they are nicked by the real world. Don’t be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard. Never neglect details. When everyone’s mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant. You don’t know what you can get away with until you try. Keep looking below surface appearances. Don’t shrink from doing so (just) because you might not like what you find. Organization doesn’t really accomplish anything. Plans don’t accomplish anything, either. Theories of management don’t much matter. Endeavors succeed or fall because of the people involved. Only by attracting the best people will you accomplish great deeds. Organization charts and fancy titles count for next to nothing. Never let your ego get so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it. Fit no stereotypes. Don’t chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team’s mission. Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier. Powell’s Rules for Picking People: Look for intelligence and judgment, and most critically, a capacity to anticipate, to see around corners.

RT Colin Powell is the biggest Jamaican in US History an undercover yard man even though he took the fall 4 the War on Terror

Colin Powell is the biggest Jamaican in American History, an undercover yard man even though he took the fall for the War on Terror.

My American Journey

The former Secretary of State recalls his youth, his military service, and his rise to the heights of America's political and military elite.

The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell

Describes the leadership principles developed by Secretary of State Colin Powell during his military career, and suggests ways that they can be applied in ...

Plan of Attack

Plan of Attack is the definitive account of how and why President George W. Bush, his war council, and allies launched a preemptive attack to topple Saddam ...

Colin Powell, American power and intervention from Vietnam to Iraq

This book explains Powell's diplomatic style and its place in the American foreign policy tradition and his involvement in the most important debates over ...

Colin Powell

A biography covering the childhood and military and political careers of General Colin Powell.