Brandon W. Jones

Col. Joe Dowdy was a strong leader of principle. Although he was pressed to change his principles, he was unwavering. His leaders pressed him to go faster than he was comfortable with to invade Baghdad which would put his soldiers’ lives at risk. He felt the lives of his soldiers were just as important as his mission. Because of this belief, he was forced to take a slower pace when invading Baghdad. His leaders were very against this approach. He was, however, not willing to lower his standards in order to meet their demands because he knew his soldiers would die.

He is a great example to follow. Although he was ridiculed and even relieved of his duty because of his approach, he had his priorities straight and followed his instinct even with extreme pressure. By standing firm in his approach, he was able to both accomplish the mission and save the lives of his people.