“Mr. fighter! "" is the most common response to any question asked by a Second Lieutenant (2ndLt) attending Marine Corps Basic School. The tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) of warfare, learned on a sand table, trained in the field, perfected through repetition and application of lessons learned: combined with the initiative and intensity required of a naval lieutenant, equals a recipe for success: or is it? Fully trained in the basics of warfare, the new Corps leader reports to operational forces and quickly learns that the response "Leadership, Sir" replaces the previous, all-important response, "War." Leadership is the common denominator of unit success and the missing link of unit failure. Leadership is not learned on a table of sand. Never has the weight of leadership been so heavy as in times of war. Ironically, much of this weight falls squarely on the shoulders of the most inexperienced leaders. The lieutenant, under the extreme stress of combat, confidently controls and directs the TTP executive....