Sailing True North - Admiral James Stavridis

From one of the most distinguished admirals of our time and a former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, a meditation on leadership and character refracted through the lives of ten of the most illustrious naval commanders in history

In his acclaimed book Sea Power, James Stavridis reckoned with the history and geopolitics of the world’s great bodies of water. Now in Sailing True North, he offers a much more intimate, human accounting: the lessons of leadership and character contained in the lives and careers of history’s most significant naval commanders. Admiral Stavridis brings a lifetime of reflection to bear on the subjects of his study–on naval history, on the vocation of the admiral with its special tests and challenges, and on the sweep of global geopolitics. Above all, this is a book that will help you navigate your own life’s voyage: the voyage of leadership of course, but more important, the voyage of character. Sadly, evil men can be effective leaders sailing toward bad ends; in the end, leadership without character is like a ship underway without a rudder. Sailing True North helps us find the right course to chart.

Simply as epic lives, the tales of these ten admirals offer up a collection of the greatest imaginable sea stories. Moreover, spanning 2,500 years from ancient Greece to the twenty-first century, Sailing True North is a book that offers a history of the world through the prism of our greatest naval leaders. None of the admirals in this volume were perfect, and some were deeply flawed. But from Themistocles, Drake, and Nelson to Nimitz, Rickover, and Hopper, important themes emerge, not least that there is an art to knowing when to listen to your shipmates and when to turn a blind eye; that serving your reputation is a poor substitute for serving your character; and that taking time to read and reflect is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.

By putting us on personal terms with historic leaders in the maritime sphere he knows so well, James Stavridis has in Sailing True North offered a compass that can help us navigate the story of our own lives, wherever that voyage takes us.

Jim Stavridis and I served together for
years as Navy Combatant Commanders,
and he is a thoughtful, historically
grounded thinker and writer.His portrait
of the ‘voyage of character’ resonates
vividly in this turbulent 21st century."

“

Admiral William H. McRaven (Ret.)

Author of Make Your Bed and Sea Stories

In Sailing True North, James Stavridis, one of the nation’s most
distinguished admirals and a former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO,
has given us a timely and deeply revealing meditation on character as
it informs decision-making throughout naval history. A compelling
reflection on the lives of history’s most significant naval commanders,
and how their leadership choices can help us find the right course
to chart in our own lives. Great insights from a trusted and valued
colleague at NBC news, where we rely on his views not only
on security and diplomacy, but on leadership and character."

“

Andrea Mitchell

Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent, NBC News

If character matters, this is a ‘must read’ for those
who would live a full life. Admiral Stavridis and I served
alongside each other from the halls of NATO to the hills
of Afghanistan, and he is a thinker and writer
I greatly admire. In this new volume, he takes
us to sea with some of the most complicated
Admirals in history and shows us the challenges
of character with which we all wrestle."

“

James N. Mattis

General, USMC (Ret)
Former Secretary of Defense

Admiral Stavridis chronicles the stories of ten admirals
of historical importance and the inner voyage of each
to develop the qualities of personal character that made
them heroic. While the forge in their journeys was the sea,
Stavridis draws from their lives lessons on the importance
of character for personal self-worth and professional
success applicable for all of us. As always, Jim Stavridis
takes on a topic of enormous contemporary concern —
growing indifference in our society to the importance
of character — with creativity, honesty and power."

“

Robert M. Gates

Secretary of Defense 2006-2011

Admiral Jim Stavirdis is a scholar-sailor-strategist of
the first rank, a gift to his nation and to his times.
And this book is itself a gift, a lively, learned, and resonant
study of the things that matter most."

“

Jon Meacham

Author of The Soul of America

With these fascinating and timely profiles, Admiral Stavridis
offers lessons about character and leadership that
apply both at sea and on land. This study reminds us
that strong leaders are built, not born, and that before
we can inspire those around us we must first take a hard look
at ourselves."

“

Madeleine K. Albright

Former Secretary of State

No one is better qualified than Admiral James Stavridis
to write about leadership and the sea. A fascinating,
highly personal look at ten very different leaders.
Sailing True North is both a wonderful read and
a probing examination of human character."

“

Nathaniel Philbrick

Author of "In the Hurricane's Eye:
The Genius of George Washington and the Victory at Yorktown"

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Reviews

A review of Sailing True North in the Canadian Blog Book Marc
https://bookmarc.ca/2020/06/02/sailing-true-north-a-character-building-guide-in-these-troubled-times/

Posted June 28, 2020

Appearing at the Kentucky Author Forum, the Admiral discusses “Sailing True North”<

Recorded before a live audience at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts in Louisville. Interviewer Melissa Block of NPR.
https://wfpl.org/kentucky-author-forum-admiral-james-stavridis-on-sailing-true-north/

Posted January 29, 2020

A discussion of Sailing True North on “The Art of Manliness” podcast
https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/podcast-571-the-voyage-of-character/

Posted December 23, 2019

Interviewed by former CIA Acting Director Michael Morell on the “Intelligence Matters” podcast about Sailing True North, the value of alliances, and current national security events.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/transcript-admiral-james-stavridis-talks-with-michael-morell-on-intelligence-matters/
Posted December 4, 2019

Interviewed by Brian Vakulskas KSCJ radio Sioux City, Iowa on Sailing True North
Posted December 5, 2019
http://kscj.com/2019/12/05/admiral-james-stavridis-usn-ret-sailing-true-north-ten-admirals-and-the-voyage-of-character/

Review of Sailing True North in the Louisville Courier Journal..prior to the Admiral’s appearance at the Kentucky Author Forum on December 16th
Posted December 3, 2019
https://www.courier-journal.com/story/entertainment/books/2019/12/03/kentucky-author-forum-sailing-true-north-author-jim-stavridis/4230981002/

Review of Sailing True North on bobmorris.biz Blogging on Business.
Posted November 27, 2019
https://bobmorris.biz/sailing-true-north-a-book-review-by-bob-morris

Discussing Sailing True North and global hot spots on McLarty Associates podcast “All Encompassing.”
Posted November 25, 2019
https://all-encompassing-the-mclarty-associates-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/episode-3-leadership-is-a-wide-swinging-door-character-is-the-hinge-feat-admiral-james-stavridis-VHKrmHpf

How to be an ethical leader. Admiral Stavridis discusses “Sailing True North” in Tufts Now
Posted November 18, 2019
https://now.tufts.edu/articles/how-be-ethical-leader

PROCEEDINGS MAGAZINE
U.S. NAVAL INSTITUTE – OCT 2019 EDITION

The author brings these admirals to life, creating a flesh-and-blood portrayal of each and calling things as he sees them in terms of both their strengths and their flaws . . . Along the way, readers also are treated to the personal insights of the author, one of the most successful maritime leaders of our time . . . For readers who learn history through personal stories, this book will resonate as both a superb popular history and a nautical exploration of leadership virtues reminiscent of David Brooks’ The Road to Character. As someone who also believes there is much to learn from our seagoing history, I’m grateful for this book, particularly one written by a skilled writer whose own leadership journey likely still has a number of its own chapters yet to be written.”
https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2019/october/book-reviews

THE CIPHER BRIEF BOOK REVIEW

October 15, 2019

“Our tribal politics and overly politicized civic life, not to mention the series of failed presidencies that have dotted the political landscape since the end of the cold war, has withered trust in our institutions and leaders. That is why James Stavridis’ new book, Sailing True North: Ten Admirals and the Voyage of Character, comes along at such a propitious moment and should be required reading for all young people looking forward to a career in public life.”
https://www.thecipherbrief.com/column/book-review/setting-sail-in-search-of-true-character

KIRKUS

“[An] earnest mixture of biography, memoir, and pop psychology . . . readers will absorb some significant naval history . . . Stavridis, the former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO and current chairman of the U.S. Naval Institute, has done his research in the works of popular historians . . . [These] the biographies make good reading.”
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/james-stavridis/sailing-true-north/

MOR PRAISE AND PUBLICITY ABOUT SAILING TRUE NORTH