Building Before You Lead

Why the unseen work before stepping into a leadership role may be the most important leadership you’ll ever do.

The Call to Step Up

As an officer in the U.S. Army, there are only a handful of moments where you truly command not just lead, not just manage — but carry the full weight of authority, accountability, and consequence. In a 20-year career, some officers only get two years of command. That scarcity breeds pressure.

I still remember where I was when I got the call. In a parking garage outside my office in D.C.

“Jason, congratulations. You received one of the most competitive Battalions in the U.S. Army, in Italy.”

It was my Brigade Commander on the line. His tone was sharp, proud, and serious.

I smiled. I said the right things. But inside, it hit like a wave: excitement… quickly followed by doubt. Am I ready for this? Am I the right fit?

The roller coaster started early.

Battalion Command is different. It’s the bridge between tactical execution and operational impact. Commanders aren’t just accountable for mission outcomes they’re responsible for every Soldier, every dollar, every decision. AR 600-20 makes it plain:

• Legal authority over discipline under UCMJ — including confinement, forfeiture of pay, and removal from duty.

• Rated on climate, not just performance — one of the few roles in the Army where leadership culture is a measured outcome.

• Total ownership of family readiness, unit health, and mission execution — all at once.

That’s not just leadership. That’s ownership.

And I felt it instantly.
What should have been pride felt more like pressure.

“I didn’t feel proud. I felt pressure.”

In the days that followed, I started building my plan. I needed to sharpen my readiness. Rebuild old habits. Reconnect with why I wanted this job in the first place.

Because no matter how competitive the position was… it was mine now.

And the next two years won’t just shape my career.
They’ll test my leadership at its core.

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The Private Prep No One Saw

No welcome party. No warm-up lap. The moment you get the call “You’ve got the Battalion” the clock starts ticking. You’re not in command yet, but the weight already shows up. You feel it in your spine. In the quiet. In the early mornings when no one’s watching.

I didn’t throw a party. I went inward.

I started pulling every thread I could find doctrine, org charts, past mission sets, turnover notes. I read leadership books like I was cramming for a final. Dug through command philosophies like a codebreaker, looking for any edge to get ahead of the friction.

But let me be clear: none of it made me feel “ready.”

You go into command with a kit full of tools, earned through hard leadership reps. But you quickly realize the tools aren’t used the same way anymore.

This isn’t about being the smartest, strongest, or most experienced in the room.
It’s about knowing when to press and when to listen. When to drive and when to develop. It’s about the tools you use and the ones you’ve ignored.

That was my first blindspot: the tactics I’d shelved because they made me uncomfortable. Emotional connection. Vulnerability. Trust-based delegation. Those weren’t optional anymore they were required.

And then came the doubts:

What if I’m not what they need?
What if they see through me?
What if I screw this up and it costs people something real?

So I picked up the phone. I called leaders who were in the job. People who had done it. Mentors I’d collected along the way. I needed their lens. I needed the gold they’d mined from the pressure.

Here’s what stuck:

• Leadership is lonely. Even for the steely-eyed killers. Especially for them.

• People First. People Always. Special Forces live by it: “Humans are more important than hardware.”

• Culture is contested ground. You inherit one and it won’t match the one you want.

• Lifelong learning is survival. Plug holes. Refine concepts. Stay humble or lose relevance.

There’s no ceremonial armor for this job. The prep isn’t public.
But it matters. The doubts, the questions, the seeking, they shape your edge.

And when the day comes and you take the formation…
The prep better show up.

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Removing the Blindspots

What got me here won’t get this Battalion where it needs to go.

This job isn’t about me it’s about we. And with that shift comes pressure. Every move, every message, every reaction will be studied. That’s why self-awareness isn’t a bonus, it’s a requirement.

What you don’t do is just as important as what you do.

Here are three blindspots I’m confronting head-on:

1. Emotional Connection to Decision Making

I was taught to be calculating to stay emotionally detached.
Mission first. Me last.

But over time, that became avoidance. I stopped asking what I felt and why. I ignored the subconscious signals. I buried emotion and drove on.

That won’t work anymore.

Leadership at this level demands emotional clarity, not just strategic clarity.
Soldiers need to feel your decisions, not just follow them.

“The most effective leaders are not just smart — they are emotionally intelligent.”
— GEN (Ret.) Martin Dempsey

2. Not Everyone Sees Hard Work the Same

My relentless drive has always been a strength. But it’s also a blindspot.
I assume others want to grind like I do; that they can.

But sometimes the path I forge leaves damage behind.
I burn out the willing. I overextend the formation.

I’ve learned that even the most motivated teams need recovery.
Pacing the formation matters more than pacing myself.

3. Fast Problem-Solving Can Kill Better Ideas

I process fast. I can build an 80% solution in minutes.
But that can become a trap.

If I always solve the problem first, I rob my team of creativity and buy-in.

This next role is about creating space for others to lead.
Their solution might be better. And even if it’s not, the ownership will be.

“The leader’s role is not to have all the ideas; it’s to create a culture where great ideas can happen.”
— Simon Sinek

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Reframing Readiness

No matter how many books you read or how many war stories you hear, your command won’t be their command. Different terrain. Different people. Different fight.

What’s liberating and a little terrifying is this:

Yes, you own every success and every failure.
But if you build a healthy culture, you don’t carry it alone. You create a resilient organism, a team that can withstand pressure, adapt, and win.

The tools you bring aren’t perfect. But they’re yours. And they’re enough — if you keep evolving them.

You won’t lead like George Washington. You won’t build like Steve Jobs.
You’ll lead like you. That’s the point.

For me, that means sharing the hard lessons. Offering them up so others can carry lighter. Creating an environment where leadership isn’t a posture it’s a presence.

Leadership is a paradox:
The best control is in releasing the reins.
You still hold them. But you lead with awareness not grip.

If you spend all your energy fearing the next failure, you’re missing the point.

Friction is the forge. You don’t fail until you quit.

Be humble. Be real. Be present.
Readiness isn’t an endstate. It’s a rhythm.

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The Takeaway for Future Leaders

We love titles.
President. Director. Commander. CEO.

Some earn them. Some are elected. Others are anointed by timing or luck.
But titles are just pressure points filled with your own internal expectations.

That’s the only real weight: the one you put on yourself.

Has there ever been a leader who was 100% loved?
I haven’t met one. Even the most respected leaders I’ve known had critics. Detractors. People who thought they weren’t enough.

Leadership isn’t a popularity contest.
It’s not about likes or applause.
It’s about building trust and that starts with you.

You have to extend trust first. And yes, you keep a short leash when someone violates it but trust must be your default posture.

You don’t get to choose who follows you.
But you do choose how you lead them.

~ If you wait to feel ready, you’ll never lead. ~

I’d love to hear your thoughts below. Share openly.

As I say everywhere I go: leave your ego at the door.
Let’s share. Let’s communicate. Let’s connect.