Guerrilla Leader Quotes

“Lawrence as a leader of the Arab Revolt. Though many might argue that leaders are made, not born, Lawrence’s case suggests a delicate balance between nature and nurture in the development of any great leader. Leadership is perhaps the most important human imperative: without leaders—without purpose, direction, and motivation—society as we know it could not function. Leadership is a fundamental birthright that at one time or another we are all called upon to exercise, whether as leader or follower. Yet in both roles, personal character and professional competence are demanded.”
― James Schneider, Guerrilla Leader: T. E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt

“In the nineteenth century, a noted fellow soldier and countryman of T. E. Lawrence, Sir William Francis Butler, wrote: “The nation that will insist on drawing a broad demarcation between the fighting man and the thinking man is liable to find its fighting done by fools and its thinking done by cowards.”
― James Schneider, Guerrilla Leader: T. E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt

“But most of all, Schneider shows us that it was Lawrence’s extraordinary empathy that enabled his achievements. This ability to identify with others, to grasp their hopes and fears and understanding of events about them, was key in the sort of campaign he conducted. “In an insurgency, empathy plays an especially crucial role,” Schneider writes. “It places the leader inside the hearts and minds of his own men.” In an interesting aside, Schneider also observes that it enabled Lawrence to understand his superior, General Edmund Allenby.”
― James Schneider, Guerrilla Leader: T. E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt

“Like many good military leaders, Lawrence had an ability to grasp quickly the heart of the matter, the essential element. And like the best strategists, Schneider notes, Lawrence was a “master learner,” endlessly curious and reflective to a fault. Also, his background in military intelligence gave him an advantage in prosecuting a campaign of irregular warfare, in which information usually is more important then action.”
― James Schneider, Guerrilla Leader: T. E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt