577: Former Submarine Commander L. David Marquet on How Leaders Make Better Decisions

577: Former Submarine Commander L. David Marquet on How Leaders Make Better Decisions

L. David Marquet, former nuclear submarine commander and author of Leadership Is Language, shares a precise, operational approach to leadership, one that replaces command-and-control with a language designed for clarity, ownership, and adaptability. Drawing on his experience turning the USS Santa Fe from one of the worst-performing submarines in the fleet to one of the best, David shows how seemingly small shifts in language can radically improve decision-making, learning speed, and execution.

David rejects the traditional leader–follower model in favor of a leader–leader framework, where decision rights are pushed “to the people closest to the information.” He explains how questions, statements, and the timing of communication directly shape whether teams think critically or default to compliance.

“What we say and when we say it changes what people do. Language is a leadership technology.”

Key Takeaways:
  • Replace Permission with Intent
    Moving from “Can I…?” to “I intend to…” changes accountability and ownership:
    “When people tell me what they intend to do, they’re already owning the decision.”

  • Protect Redwork and Bluework
    David distinguishes between redwork (doing) and bluework (thinking/planning) and stresses keeping them separate:
    “Mixing them degrades both. You want focused doing and focused thinking.”

  • Sequence for Thinking, Not Speed
    Meetings often reward quick answers over thoughtful ones. Asking the most junior person to speak first helps reduce conformity bias.

  • Use Language to Invite Dissent
    Adding uncertainty—“I’m not sure, but…”—creates psychological safety and surfaces crucial information that might otherwise stay hidden.

  • Leaders Design Systems, Not Just Give Answers
    The leader’s job is to build communication structures that distribute thinking and enable faster adaptation in changing conditions.

This episode is a practical blueprint for leaders who want to operationalize empowerment without losing control. By deliberately changing how they speak and listen, executives can create teams that are more resilient, accountable, and high-performing.

Get David’s new book here: https://shorturl.at/sv6QO

Distancing: How Great Leaders Reframe to Make Better Decisions

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Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach

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121: Strategy is in the details (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #6)

121: Strategy is in the details (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #6)

Hello everyone! This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a weekly newsletter where we distill the insights from all of the distractions, articles, and emails that you receive in your inbox every day. In this newsletter, we’re going to focus on four major themes from last week’s news.    To listen to the audio version of this newsletter, search for “Strategy Skills” in any podcast app. To get a written copy with links to mentioned articles sign up here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

30 Nov 202025min

120: Focus only on valuation is shortsighted (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #5)

120: Focus only on valuation is shortsighted (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #5)

Hello everyone! This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a weekly newsletter where we distill the insights from all of the distractions, articles, and emails that you receive in your inbox every day. In this newsletter, we’re going to focus on four major themes from last week’s news.    To listen to the audio version of this newsletter, search for “Strategy Skills” in any podcast app. To get a written copy with links to mentioned articles sign up here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

23 Nov 202028min

119: How to be a leader (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #4)

119: How to be a leader (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #4)

Hello everyone! This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a weekly newsletter where we distill the insights from all of the distractions, articles, and emails that you receive in your inbox every day. In this newsletter, we’re going to focus on four major themes from last week’s news.    To listen to the audio version of this newsletter, search for “Strategy Skills” in any podcast app. To get a written copy with links to mentioned articles sign up here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

16 Nov 202028min

118: How to build a pandemic strategy (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #3)

118: How to build a pandemic strategy (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #3)

Hello, everyone! This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a weekly newsletter where we distill the insights from all of the distractions, articles, and emails that you receive in your inbox every day. In this week’s newsletter, we’re going to focus on one overarching theme—risk—and you’ll see that theme running through all of the big stories this week. So let's see how this new Monday Morning 8 a.m. format goes. Every week we will look at 3-4 themes, or one theme and 3-4 subthemes. What are the big stories and what are the big implications. Let us know if you like or dislike the style. If you're enjoying the Monday Morning 8 a.m., I'd love it if you shared it with a friend or two. You can send them here to sign up. We try to make it one of the best emails/podcasts you get each week, and we hope you're enjoying it. Get written version of Monday Morning 8 a.m. with links to articles we mention: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

9 Nov 202022min

117: Interview with the former CEO of Dunkin' Donuts, Robert Rosenberg

117: Interview with the former CEO of Dunkin' Donuts, Robert Rosenberg

Robert Rosenberg served as chief executive officer of Dunkin’ Donuts from 1963 until his retirement in 1998. For over 35 years! Under Robert's leadership, Dunkin’ Donuts grew from a regional family business to one of America’s best known and loved brands. Robert received his MBA from Harvard Business School, and just weeks after graduating at the age of 25, he assumed the position of chief executive officer. Upon his retirement, Rosenberg had grown the Dunkin’ Donuts chain to over 4,000 stores worldwide with annual system-wide sales in excess of $2 billion. In his book, Around The Corner To Around The World: A Dozen Lessons I Learned Running Dunkin’ Donuts, Robert shares many of the stories behind this historic company and actionable business advice. Checkout out our newsletter "Monday Morning 8 a.m."

6 Nov 20201h 2min

116: What is Netflix’s real strategy? (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #2)

116: What is Netflix’s real strategy? (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #2)

Hi, everyone. This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a newsletter that goes out—as you guessed it—every Monday. You can listen to the audio version of this Monday Morning 8 a.m. episode by searching “Strategy Skills” in any podcast app! If you want to receive a written version of this podcast, with links to mentioned articles, you can sign up for it on www.firmsconsulting.com/promo   In this newsletter, we have one goal: to help you distill the insights from the noise out there. So here are the big themes we’re noticing in the news this week and the deep insights you should be extracting from those themes.

2 Nov 202032min

115: Tech, pandemics, growth, valuation (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #1)

115: Tech, pandemics, growth, valuation (Monday Morning 8 a.m. #1)

Hi, everyone. This is Monday Morning 8 a.m., a newsletter that goes out—as you guessed it—every Monday. You can listen to the audio version of this Monday Morning 8 a.m. episode by searching “Strategy Skills” in any podcast app or sign up for a written version here!    In this program, we have one goal: to help you distill the insights from the noise out there. So here are the big themes we’re noticing in the news this week and some of the deep insights you should be extracting from those themes.   www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

26 Okt 202021min

114: Design thinking. With IBM Director, Damon Deaner

114: Design thinking. With IBM Director, Damon Deaner

Damon Deaner is a director at IBM. In this interview, we focus on design thinking.  Get sample training episodes from our advanced strategy training programs: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

14 Okt 20201h 2min

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