The Four-Point Field Order

Fight Your Fear and Win
by Don Greene, Ph.D.

(Page 2 of 2)

What fostered my own determination was Ranger School, the two-month course in commando tactics that West Pointers are obliged to complete after graduation.

Ranger School was fifty-eight days of pure torture. We experienced every imaginable physical deprivation — no food, no rest, no dry clothing, no fires, no shelter — while patrolling hill and dale to engage aggressor forces. Typically, these patrols would begin with a jump out of an airplane or helicopter at dusk. We had military maps to help us gauge our location once we were on the ground. Whoever was designated as the patrol leader was given the mission and twenty minutes to come up with a game plan — what the army calls a Five-Point Field Order.

It always followed the same structure. It's such a useful way to transform the impossible or overwhelming into a plan of action that to this day I apply it to every challenge that threatens to immobilize me — although I've condensed the process somewhat, into a Four-Point Field Order. Here's how it goes:

1. Assess the situation. Dropped in a swamp or jungle, our first job was to send out a party and note key terrain features and landmarks so that we could find our location. Once we knew where we were, we could get a handle on the situation.

2. Determine the mission. It was usually an enemy outpost fifteen or twenty miles away across swampland, through dense forest, over mountains. We were to capture the enemy village with a minimum of casualties and free the captives by 0800 hours.

3. Figure out the execution and logistics. We had to come up with a strategy, a detailed plan by which we would accomplish the mission. We needed to factor in the enemy, major obstacles, and the time we planned to arrive at our attack position. We attended to details such as who would carry the mines, when we would eat (if at all), when we would sleep (never), and what our intermediate checkpoints were — where we'd assemble if we got split up.

4. Prepare for contingencies. Our mission was nonnegotiable. But we did formulate alternate strategies so that no matter what we encountered, we had a plan to enable us to move forward and stay on track. If we got cut off from one path by an assault, we had another one mapped out. We were ready for all contingencies so that no matter what, we'd accomplish the mission.

Now let's discuss these points as they apply to you. First: Have you assessed your situation? You can't go anywhere or accomplish anything until you figure out where you are. Only then will it become clear what kind of journey lies ahead, what kind of challenges you face, what kind of time frame you're working with. Do you know where you stand? Do you know where you're going? Do you know what you're up against?

If you completed the Seven Skills Survey, this work is already finished. You have gotten your bearings. You know where you stand in terms of what you have and what you need for the journey. You have a sense of your weaknesses, a firmer idea of your strengths. Great. We can move ahead to step two in the field order: Determine the mission.

You doubtless have many missions, but let's start with one that's limited in scope and duration. I can presume, since you're reading this book, that you want to groom yourself better for success. Let's say the survey has helped you identify two areas — courage and resilience — that need work. You're not a risk taker. Whether for reasons of nature or nurture, you've always played it safe, fearful that if you tried, and failed, you'd never recover. You probably can't see yourself becoming a risk taker anytime soon, either. But you may already see how your innate conservatism has held you back. Your play-it-safe strategy has peaked in terms of upward mobility. Your career, your life, and your satisfaction have all plateaued.

Your mission, then, should you decide to accept it (not that we were given this choice in Ranger School), is to find and take small steps past your comfort zone. Your goal is to change your reflex: to act on desire rather than allow fear of failure or fear of the unknown to paralyze you.

How are you going to achieve that?

We thus come to the execution phase of the field order. You need to figure out a strategy by which you can attain your goal, as well as a reasonable time frame and the tools to implement it. This book is in fact your method, your route. Since each chapter explores a factor in the success equation, you need to read up on the factors you're missing — let's say they are courage and resilience. The discussion in each chapter will help change your mind-set, which is the first leg of the route. The training exercises will help you build your courage muscle, toughen your skin, and provoke the fighter within you. Taken together, they'll inch you toward your goal — provided your timing is right. I can't stress enough how timing can affect the outcome of your mission; don't undertake this regimen until you have the energy, time, and freedom to apply yourself. You need time to read, time to jot down some notes, and time to perform the prescribed exercises on a daily basis. You'll need a minimum of three weeks for the exercises to help you acquire each skill.

Which brings us to the final step: contingency planning. Life is full of interruptions — children home sick, a broken ankle, a parent in need of full-time care, a new boss, a new project at work — but that doesn't mean you get off track with this program. Pick out a feasible time to resume your work if you have to suddenly put the program aside. Don't allow your goals to be jeopardized just because your schedule changes.

Copyright © 2002 by Dr. Don Greene, Ph.D.. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

About the Author

Don Greene, Ph.D., was a nationally ranked high school diver who graduated from West Point. He served in the U.S. Army's Special Forces as a Green Beret and went on to train the San Diego Police S.W.A.T. Team in counterterrorism. Dr. Greene was the sports psychologist for the U.S. Olympic Diving Team, the World Championship Swimming Team, Golf Digest Schools, and the Vail Ski School. He now lives in New York City, where he specializes in mentoring people in a wide variety of professions through everyday and extraordinary stress: financial traders, attorneys, professional athletes, performing artists, salespeople, and more. His previous book, Audition Success, was the all-time #1 bestseller at the Juilliard School bookstore.