The Strategy of Play with General David Petraeus
General David Petraeus, a retired four-star Army general and former Director of the CIA, has navigated complex environments from battlefields to boardrooms, and the innermost circles of U.S. national security.
This article distills his masterful tactics into lessons that civilians can apply in their own situations where strategy, foresight, and a bit of boldness are required.
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Playing a video game is like stepping into a new world, filled with different players, scenarios, challenges, and opportunities.
I've often thought of life and the concept of getting ahead, as the 'game of life.' It requires you to use strategy, skill, and form alliances with the right players in order to make progress, reach the top ranks, and ideally, win.
Though war is not a game, and indeed is a tragic byproduct of human conflict, there are people who have had to lead through war and their tactics can now be studied, quantified, and leveraged in game-like scenarios.
General David Petraeus is a retired four-star Army general and former Director of the CIA, with a long list of accolades and history-changing accomplishments. He is now a Partner with the global investment firm KKR, and the Chairman of the KKR Global Institute, which he established in 2013. He is also the Kissinger Fellow at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs.
Having served over 37 years in the U.S. military, with six consecutive commands as a general officer, five of which were in combat, General Petraeus knows more about what I refer to in my upcoming book as 'The Strategy of Play' than most people on the planet, and is likely the only person alive today who commanded two wars at the height of their intensity.
Strategy in this context, refers to the approach someone takes to playing the game of life based on knowing what it takes to win, while adapting their decisions based on the arena in which they play in.
This article extracts key lessons from General David Petraeus's distinguished career. It translates his experiences in high-stakes environments into practical strategies. These lessons will be helpful for anyone aiming to improve their strategic thinking, enhance their performance, advance their career trajectory, and improve their leadership abilities.
Understanding and Mapping the Ecosystem
Historians have written extensively about General Petraeus’s tactics, detailing his every move. Nevertheless, my objective was to distill his tactics into methods that civilians could use in their careers, communities, corporate boardrooms, or any other aspect of life.
My first task was to uncover how someone who has commanded international coalitions in combat operations (not once, but twice), determined how to maneuver through complex situations involving so many people and factors.
When I asked General Petraeus about his approach to understanding and mapping an ecosystem to create a strategy, I was captivated by the complexity of his example, and then taken aback by the simplicity of his advice:
"In the case of a conflict, you have to first understand the nature of the enemy forces, of your forces, of the country in which you're fighting, all the different dynamics within it, the tribes, the religious sects, the ethnic groupings, the political parties, the other components of society, the physical terrain, the human terrain, the neighborhood, all of this."
Adding to the complexity, General Petraeus also emphasized the importance of simultaneously understanding the "organizational architecture in which you're functioning," including any organizations your organization is part of.
In other words, to play the game effectively, you must know your people and who they are accountable to. Only then can you craft the right strategy to achieve your goals.
General Petraeus's guidance on how to do this includes an intellectual construct for Strategic Leadership, and quite simply: decency. Note: I'll dive into his 4 tasks of strategic leadership in a future article, however you can learn about it in this series from the Harvard Belfer Center, or purchase his book Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine.
"One general principle is, try to be a decent human being, try to observe the golden rule and do unto others as you'd like them to do unto you" remarked General Petraeus. His emphasis on decency surprised me initially. Then I quickly remembered this is a recurring theme amongst leaders I have interviewed.
Successful leaders tend to have a proprietary method or expertise, guided by a moral code.
It's like a racing video game - before starting the race, you choose the type of vehicle (your expertise), but you steer by making quick decisions throughout the race (your moral code).
The Rules Of The Game
Continuing with our video game analogy, understanding the game before playing can significantly improve your performance as opposed to figuring it out as you go. This knowledge can easily determine if you win or lose.
For instance, General Petraeus understood his arena and knew that diplomacy in war and national security was not the same kind of diplomacy in a traditional sense. He candidly stated, "Diplomacy without force, candidly, is like baseball without a bat, and the two are best used together."
Wanting to understand what that approach looked like, I asked General Petraeus about a time when he faced a complex problem and used diplomacy to effectively navigate it. Essentially, how did he use his knowledge of the arena to win the game?
I was privileged to hear General Petraeus's first hand account of his experience as Commander during the surge in Iraq - an incredibly complex and challenging period in which he had to lead despite not being "fully embraced by the leaders above him in uniform" as well as having a "very skeptical congress."
The surge strategy General Petraeus proposed was a significant deviation from the previous approach, advocating for an increase in U.S. forces, taking responsibility for security back from the Iraqi forces, and a much deeper involvement within Iraqi communities to establish security and encourage reconciliation, essentially to “live with the people,” as that was the only way to secure them.
Initially, the Iraqi Prime Minister did not welcome this strategy and made demands counter to it. However, General Petraeus believed in the surge approach and went ‘all-in.’
General Petraeus told the Iraqi Prime Minister that if he took his demands to the President (George W. Bush), he would not support him and would instead take his surge strategy "back to Washington," effectively getting his way when the Prime Minister backed down and allowed Petraeus to implement the new approach.
His risky all-in bet proved successful.
According to metrics from that time, as a result, Iraq was pulled out of a civil war and violence was reduced by over 85%. This provided Iraq with a new opportunity, which they capitalized on for the next three and a half years until the final US combat forces left.
As General Petraeus concluded his story and I marveled at his strategic finesse, he commented "I don't know how much of that was diplomacy and how much of that was a bit more forceful persuasion, but you try to always have a comprehensive, integrated approach to these kinds of issues." Despite his humility, General Petraeus clearly knew how to play the game and did so effectively.
Just as a power-up in a video game provides a needed boost, General Petraeus cited a powerful bonus tactic: having the right people on your side. In his case, it was the President of the United States, as well as the Secretary of Defense and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. While that might seem like an easy win, having the right people on your side is a key tactic in momentum-building and should be prioritized early in your strategy.
How To Qualify
While General Petraeus is incredibly skillful, not everyone has the opportunity to even play in the arenas that he has played.
When I asked asked about what it takes to attain positions like him, General Petraeus responded candidly:
“Whether folks like it or not, life is a competitive endeavor. You don't actually get a t-shirt or a trophy in the real world just for showing up, as in little kids soccer. You get it for excellence, and you should strive for excellence. I mean, none of us should be proud to be average. I don't want to be led by somebody who is satisfied with just being the middle of the pack. But you should strive to be the best team player as well.”
It is no surprise that to get ahead, we must be good at what we do. The point that General Petraeus made was that in order to reach the pinnacle of a field, one must consistently strive to be the best in that field - not just good or great, but the very best.
This reminded me of a book that significantly influenced my career, High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard. Brendon conducted research on successful leaders and identified six habits they embody, which he refers to as the HP6. The underlying message of the book and his research is that the most successful people are intentional about wanting to be excellent. Not just good or great, but excellent.
"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity" General Petraeus said poignantly at one point in our conversation. And he had worked very hard to be prepared for the numerous opportunities that came to him throughout his career, but especially in the wars of the post-9/11 era.
Hearing that anecdote, and knowing that he had a new grandson, I asked what advice he would give his grandson when he one day starts his career. General Petraeus was quick to remark: "It would be not to try to make a name for himself, but just try to be the best that he can be – once again, individually and as a member of a team. And a name will come along if he achieves that."
Being A Team Player
While General Petraeus touted the importance of competition and the prioritization of individual excellence, he insisted that being a team player was equally important.
The most enlightening parts of my conversation with General Petraeus were the anecdotes he shared. These stories illustrated how he earned his top-tier titles.
One story about a physically demanding course also served as an indirect lesson in leadership for him:
"In one of the courses that I went to as a young lieutenant in the US Army's Ranger school, which was regarded as the toughest course in the Army, I was number one in the course overall. But I also received another award that was given based on peer ratings.” General Petraeus added that earning both of those awards, plus one other award, meant a great deal to him.
In regards to his ability to be the best while also scoring the highest with his peers, General Petraeus advised "that is a combination that I think is something you should really strive to achieve because it recognizes and validates the idea that you don't get number one by climbing over the backs of your fellow Ranger students. You do it by being the best team player you can be, as well as the best Ranger you can be individually."
Then, General Petraeus went on to say that how you achieve that balance of individual excellence with being a team player is by proactively "contributing and trying to shoulder more than your share of the load."
We Are Always In Play
From my conversation with General Petraeus, it’s clear that to make strides in the game of life we must strive for excellence while always being attentive of our surroundings. This includes considering not only our own path, but also how we foster success in others.
Whether it's interacting with our clients, investors, team members, service providers, or community leaders, we are all participants in various arenas.
If you are tasked with leadership in some form, it can be easy to slip into a 'lone wolf' mentality or the ‘roll up my sleeves and get it done’ attitude in order to make progress quickly.
Nonetheless, it's crucial to remember that our advancement is linked with the progress of those around us. Being both the best and a team player may require additional effort, but it's worthwhile in the long run.