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It’s Our Ship: Book Review

by Phil Gerbyshak on August 6th, 2008

Recently I got a review copy of the audiobook It’s Our Ship by D. Michael Abrashoff. I really enjoyed it, as Mike read his own book, and I always enjoy hearing books read by their author. I got an unabridged copy, which I searched high and low to share a link to but I couldn’t find it. I can’t say how good or bad the abridged version is going to be, so instead I’ll link you to the hardcover book and encourage you to buy it.

I only review books that I really love, and this is another of those books. Mike’s conversational style was easy to learn from, and easy to relate back to my corporate life as a manager. If you’ve never been in the Navy, don’t worry, this book just uses the Navy as a metaphor. It’s trust that Mike talks about in abundance, and he teaches us how to build a better, stronger, more trusting culture with his 8 great sections in this book:

1. Ahoy - Welcome aboard our ship
Abrashoff describes one of the techniques he used on the USS Benfold to welcome new sailors and describes learning good and poor leadership in his experiences on the Benfold. He highlights the practices of developing a company “World Tour,” where new employees receive a “passport” with lists of to-do training and customer-service classes.

Leadership lesson: Make your new associates feel welcome from the first time they encounter you, be that in a letter, an e-mail, or however. The sooner you can make them feel like part of your team.

2. Buoy up your people - inspiring everyone to be their best.
Mike states, “A great leader defines excellence and then inspires his team to exceed it through training and staff development.” He then reviews several companies who have developed innovative training programs.

Leadership lesson: Create a great training program, and then keep developing your folks as often as you can.

3. No more aye-aye men (or women) - cultivate truth-telling.
Create a culture where honesty and integrity are encouraged and planted in every associate an your team. If the emperor has no clothes, nobody wins!

Leadership lesson: Reward folks who tell the truth, even if it hurts you.

4. All hands on deck - unifying a crew.
Quoting Mike: “Mindless rivalry leads to backstabbing, an ethos of every man for himself, and probably unit failure when danger threatens.”

Leadership lesson: Forcing folks to compete for no reason is useless. Create a culture of teamwork instead of ripping them apart with meaningless competition.

5. Foul weather doesn’t respect rank - creating a climate of trust.  Abrashoff discusses the importance of developing trust, pursuing excellence without arrogance, and treating all with courtesy and respect.

Leadership lesson: Treat folks equitably, not necessarily equally. Give everyone the courtesy and the respect they deserve, even before they’ve earned it, and soon, they will be more trustworthy.

6. Navigate by the stars - Clarifying what it’s all about.

Do you know the mission of your organization? Then you have to communicate, focus on what matters, and teach your organization’s core values.

Leadership lesson: Share the mission of your organization with your team, and tie the mission/vision to what you do every day.

7. Sail close to the wind - taking the right risks.

Good leaders calculate the odds so risks are minimized.

Leadership lesson: Risks for risk’s sake are useless. When you can take a risk that will help someone grow and you can manage the risk, then do it. If you can’t, it may not be worth it to do.

8. Fly your true colors - Lead by example and get results.

Leadership lesson: Know who you are, and who you’re not. Folks can smell a phone. Let your real self shine through, even if it’s not always 100% flattering.

I enjoyed It’s Our Ship because the lessons were relevant, and the stories were not just Navy stories, but also included stories from other companies Abrashoff learned about. I would strongly encourage you to add this book to your leadership library for 3 important takeaways that you can quickly do as a leader:

1) Ahoy – Welcome aboard – Learn about the welcome aboard Mike gave his sailors, and think about how you can implement that for your team.

2) Navigate by the stars – Clarifying what it’s all about – Focus on spreading the vision and connecting that to your day-to-day

3) Fly your true colors – Figure out who you are, what your style is, and then share that with your team. Be willing to be vulnerable and you can be a great leader.

Buy your copy of It’s Our Ship today!

Coming soon…an interview with Mike Abrashoff and me about leadership, management, and lifelong learning.

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POSTED IN: Phil Gerbyshak, book reviews