What Navy SEALs Can Teach Us About Project Leadership
What Navy SEALs Can Teach Us About Project Leadership
You can learn and apply these principles, too.
👋 Hey, Kyle here! Welcome to The Influential Project Manager, a weekly newsletter covering the essentials of successful project leadership.
Today’s Overview:
Navy SEALs are the most elite warriors on earth. How do they get there? By building an unbreakable mindset.
After hearing three SEALs speak and interviewing one on my podcast, I’ve seen how their insights on discipline, leadership, and mindset can transform project leadership.
These (10) SEAL-inspired frameworks have completely changed my approach to leadership—and they can change yours too. Here’s how.
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10 Things the Navy SEALs Can Teach Us About Project Leadership
Filed under: Leadership & Managing People
Navy SEALs are the most elite warriors on earth.
Their name—taken from the first letters of each environment they work in, SEa, Air and Land—reflects their incredible effectiveness in every context.
How do they get there?
By developing an unbreakable mindset.
Project management may not be as punishing as SEAL missions, but there’s a lot we can learn from their principles.
Every time I’ve spoken with or listened to a Navy SEAL, I leave sharper, more motivated, and ready to lead.
After hearing three SEALs deliver keynotes and even interviewing one on my podcast, I’ve been able to see firsthand how their insights on discipline, leadership, and mindset can transform how we lead projects.
Here are 10 SEAL-inspired leadership frameworks to elevate your project leadership:
1. Full Benefit
Navy SEALs have a saying.
When something sucks, they look at each other and say: "FULL BENEFIT."
It’s an instant mindset shift.
Hiking and it starts pouring rain?
Driving and your car breaks down?
Working on tough project?
FULL BENEFIT.
LESSON: Every adversity is an opportunity.
To grow
To learn
To evolve
To get stronger
To become better
These moments forge us if we let them.
The next time you're facing something hard, welcome it.
Work through the process. Learn the lessons. Reap the full benefit.
2. The only easy day was yesterday.
This SEAL motto reminds us that every day will bring new challenges.
In project leadership, each day presents new obstacles—unexpected setbacks, delays, and roadblocks.
But the mindset you bring matters. If you wake up expecting challenges and face them head-on, you’ll be equipped to overcome anything thrown your way.
It’s not supposed to be easy. That’s why it’s worth it.
3. BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front)
SEALs use BLUF to communicate effectively in high-stakes situations: Bottom Line Up Front.
As a project leader, BLUF saves time and minimizes confusion. Start every update or decision with the key takeaway.
Your team doesn’t need every detail; they need the bottom line and next steps.
Clear, concise communication wins the day.
4. Always be the new guy.
No matter how experienced they are, SEALs emphasize staying curious, humble, and open to learning—like the “new guy.”
In project leadership, arrogance can be your downfall. Approaching problems with a beginner's mindset allows you to ask better questions, discover fresh solutions, and build stronger relationships with your team.
Never assume you know it all. Stay curious and humble.
5. Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast.
I must of heard this SEAL saying a dozen times at LCI Congress a couple weeks ago.
In high-stakes environments, rushing only leads to mistakes. Moving methodically and smoothly under pressure is far more effective than charging ahead recklessly.
In projects, this principle applies to timelines, processes, and decision-making. Slow down to check quality, remove bottlenecks, and make thoughtful adjustments. A smooth approach leads to faster, more reliable outcomes.
Composure wins in the chaos of projects.
6. The 40% Rule
SEALs believe that when you think you’re at your limit, you’ve actually only tapped into 40% of your potential.
You still have 60% left in the tank.
For project leaders, there are days when stress, fatigue, and frustration make it seem impossible to keep going.
But the truth is, there’s more to give. Resilience comes from knowing you can always go further. Push yourself—and your team—beyond the perceived limit.
When you feel spent, keep going. The real potential lies just beyond that 40% mark.
7. Precision Planning.
When Navy SEALs approach a mission, they rely on: “PRECISION PLANNING.”
The goal? Anticipate every unknown.
List all possible issues, risks, constraints.
Talk through each unknown as a team.
Map out your moves in advance.
SEALs make all of their critical decisions when they have ample time and zero stress. Then, when the pressure hits, they simply act out the decision tree they’ve already mapped out.
As a project leader, you should know your response before it’s needed. Be prepared for situations like:
Uncovering a concealed condition
Facing an external delay
Managing an internal delay
Handling a change request
This way, when chaos hits, you and your team can react with full confidence, without missing a beat.
LESSON: It’s not about how well you can plan. It’s about how well you can identify the unknowns and create plans to adapt.
8. No plan survived first contact with the enemy.
Preparation always beats planning.
Helmuth von Moltke once said, "No plan survives first contact with the enemy," and Mike Tyson echoed it: "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face."
In projects, things will inevitably go off-script. Planning is based around the expectation of order. Preparation is based on the expectation of chaos.
Plan for order and you’ll be destroyed by chaos. Prepare for chaos and you’ll thrive in any condition.
9. All in, all the time.
In the SEAL teams, just being good isn’t enough. To make it, you need to give everything—every day.
Project leaders face the same demand. Whether managing stress, leading a team, or pursuing a big goal, you have to show up fully.
It’s all or nothing. Mediocrity won’t get the job done.
Be all in. All the time.
10. Constant forward motion
It doesn't matter:
How you feel
What's happening
What others are doing
The current circumstances
Bad luck you may be facing
Nothing.
When things get difficult, focus on maintaining forward motion. Even if it’s the tiniest step imaginable.
I’m feeling this in multiple areas of my life right now, and this little mental tool has helped greatly.
Remember: If you’re reading this, you made it through the last tough time. You’re still here.
You'll make it through this one, too.
Progress doesn’t have to be fast. Just keep moving forward.
TL;DR
These SEAL-inspired frameworks have completely changed my approach to leadership and life.
Here’s a quick recap:
Full Benefit: Turn adversity into opportunity.
The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday: Embrace daily challenges.
BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front): Lead with the answer.
Always Be the New Guy: Stay curious and humble.
Slow Is Smooth. Smooth Is Fast: Prioritize flow over speed.
The 40% Rule: Push beyond perceived limits.
Precision Planning: Plan for the unknowns.
No Plan Survives First Contact With The Enemy: Be prepared to pivot.
All In, All the Time: Fully commit.
Constant Forward Motion: Keep progressing, no matter what.
Until next week,
Kyle Nitchen
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Good article. I have just finished reading Rob Roy's "The Navy SEAL Art of War", and I recommend it.
So, I was a SEAL, for 13 years. Some of these sayings may be fun to repeat and translate to the civilian world but the truth is, every single one of them has a consequence—and not for the better. Being “All in, all the time”, for example, means there’s no moderation; it’s one extreme or the other. If that’s true then we’re no better than our enemies. Moving forward constantly suggests rest and renewal are nuisances, hindrances to excellence. Neither could be further from the truth. I want to thank you for your patriotism, but not everything we do should be done. We do things that, in a very small snapshot of life, works well—until it doesn’t. Just something to think about.