Stefan Shirley > Recent Status Updates

French armies make a controlled retreat in an attempt to slow the German armies from taking over Paris.

Figure out how much you can rent out your property. Understand fair housing laws. Advertise using postlets.com. Cater the ad to the people you want to live in the home. Take amazing photos.

America says “a government can be neutral but no man can be.” Because of the sea blockade, Americans capitalize on trade and providing credits to the allied forces. While America is not actively in the war, they’ve become enablers. Meantime, British forces dominate the high seas. Germans begin to use U-boats and change the battle to underwater.

Freedom of the seas questioned with regard to trade. Blockades put in place and policy established across multiple countries to include the neutral United States of America.

The UK awaits a sea attack of its border by Germany. Inactivity causes stress for British sailors and leaders.

What if scenarios play out in order for Germany to end the war. It’s like a divorce between multiple counties. In the end, no one surrenders and the war continues.

Germany accuses civilians of sniper fire and murders everyone in their way ... all due to the “fear and horror of the franc-tireur.”

The Russian Second Army is destroyed and Russian leadership urge the Czar to make peace with Germany assuming that an alliance with the Allied Forces would be fatal. The offer was presented to the Russians but never accepted.

The Russians are enveloped. Some retreat while more than 92,000 become prisoners and 30,000 have been killed. Russia now faces threat of German invasion on homeland.

Germany pulls two Corps from the west and sends them to fight Russia. Russia becomes surrounded by German forces.

Hindenburg comes out of retirement to command the German Eighth Army with Ludendorff as his Chief of Staff. The Russian army is ill prepared, equipped, and trained to fight in the war. Even still, the war on the eastern front remains a stalemate.

Hoffman fired and Ludendorff takes over German and Russian fighting in the East. Russians are at a halt and Germans plan to attack the southern flank.

Russia attacks Germany but is not militarily prepared for the offense. Germany plans to draw Russian forces in, catch them off guard, surround them, and destroy their Army.

The Germans capture Namur and the French President questions their fate writing, “Now the future of France depends on her powers of resistance.”

Around 70 French Division (1.25M Soldiers) we’re fighting over a period of four days and lost 140K men.

General Lanrezac, Commander of the French Fifth Army, retreats and is the scapegoat for the failure of Plan 17.

Leadership Essentials — FCS (Fewer things done better; Communicating the right information to the right people at the right time; Speed and quality of decision making). In work, have one priority as the most valuable contribution you can make to the company.

Be — “Once the essence of Essentialism enters our hearts, the way of the Essentialist becomes who we are. ... you will find that you aren’t like everybody else. When other people are saying yes, you will find yourself saying no.” Essentialism helps a person to enjoy clarity, control, and allows them to enjoy the journey.

Focus — Figure out what’s important right now; not tomorrow, not next week. What will help you sleep tonight? Be present in the moment and find peace in accomplishing everything you want to get done.

Flow — Create productive routines that get at doing the hard things first. Switch them up as needed but stay focused on the end state.

The game of War chess continues. The first German is killed by the British sward.

French want to take the German center in an offensive attack. Germans execute the Schlieffen Plan. The Battle of Virton begins and many (both sides) lay dead from the fight. Nearly 50,000 French reservist refuse to fight.

The war continues.

August 20, the Fourth Army received orders to begin the offensive.

The German army rips through Belgium killing civilians and burning villages.

Create small wins. Start early and small or start late and big. It’s better to take the time early than to spend much more time later.

The French, British, and Belgium Armies are not communicating well under the Belgium chief of staff. Predetermined orders make the battle communication better. Allied forces new plan (Order #13 through Plan 17) is a victory by decisive battle through the German center.

Subtract by removing the “slowest hikers,” those who are holding you back from accomplishing the mission. Stop thinking about adding in order to produce more/better results when subtracting can be a better option.

The planning fallacy tells us that we’re not good at allocating enough time to accomplish our tasks. Add 50% to the time to ensure you have a buffer.

Setting boundaries before someone sets them for you.