The Beginning of the Next 250

by Ron Hewett

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After major holidays like Christmas, Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July, and we finish our celebrating, feasting and travel, we sit back and take a deep breath and exhale. A lot went on. Now what? Especially this Fourth of July, there was a huge celebration around the United States and we might feel an even steeper post-holiday decompression. But can we really walk-away from the 250th Anniversary of the founding of our nation so quickly?

I think we all have read countless articles and editorials about the significance of the first 250 years of our democracy and how we as a nation will embrace the next 250. As leaders, this is a great time to be circumspect and decide what we each can contribute to kick off. For those involved in leadership development, I actually believe we have a personal obligation to stimulate conversations about how we can improve as leaders and inspire those we interact with on both professional and personal levels to share our perspectives.

Author Introduction

I spent half of my 50 years of leadership opportunities cataloging what I read in journals, magazines, and experiences participating and observing leadership situations. There were many successes and significant failures. A day doesn't go by that we don't read about or observe such behaviors. I began to fold it all into my concept of Perpetual Leaders. With all these examples, where do you start to restore some faith in how we are to proceed as leaders to lead business and communities embarking on the next 250 years?

I recently had a fortunate encounter with a lecture series by David Brooks of The New York Times, a conservative commentator speaking to audiences at Yale University. One particular lecture focused on restoring faith in the American Dream. He spoke of it in terms of our society reducing humiliation by preventing people from being unseen. He struck a chord.

In Perpetual Leaders: Powering the Cycle of Success I built a model of leadership that relied on leaders fully understanding and practicing what I call the Four Responsibilities of a leader. No surprise, they are Listen, Include, Act and Follow through. My model's path fits the overall concept we teach at Academy Leadership — go from knowing to doing.

Interview with the Author

On the 10th anniversary of being with Academy Leadership Ron Hewett has published a book called Perpetual Leaders: Powering the Cycle of Success. It is available on Amazon in a variety of formats. Because of its relationship with his work, we wanted to learn more about his project.

With such a crowded field of leadership books, why did you write this book?

I felt I had a story to tell of leadership I had observed and practiced and wanted to share with other leaders who were looking for coaching that they would put into effect immediately. I wanted to give them something they could use from day one and every day of their professional career. I wanted to help them bridge the gap quickly between knowing and doing.

Tell us something about your experiences.

It started a long way back. I have had 50 years of leadership experience in both the military and corporate, but in graduate school in the early 1980's studying for a master's degree in management science, in addition to my course work, I had a chance to read and study management and leadership journals and other impactful writings. When I went back to the fleet and later to the Pentagon for more senior leadership positions, I continued to gather more observations and experiences. When I retired from the Navy I went into the education field and eventually into consulting. I had some great opportunities including corporate team training where I was able to overlay my previous experiences with the learning material that we presented, and I continued to learn in these settings.

What is the significance of the title, Perpetual Leaders: Powering the Cycle of Success?

Because of my experiences, I believe that anytime two or more people set out to accomplish something together there is an opportunity for leadership. Essentially, everyone can be a Perpetual Leader. There are opportunities every day all day. Whether arranging carpools for work or school, working on a project team, designing a building, working out a corporate or municipal budget, or designing a sales campaign, we have opportunities for leadership. You don't necessarily need titles. Everyone can play a part.

What makes this book unique?

Over the past 25 years, as I entered the education and consulting field, I began to discern patterns of actions that groups of leaders employed while solving problems. At first, I described them as common denominators because they showed up during the problem-solution. Then I began referring to them as responsibilities because you faced failure if you left any of them out of the process.

There are four of them:

I began referring to them as the Four Responsibilities of a leader.

Isn't that fairly intuitive?

The Four Responsibilities may sound simple, but if you completely understand each responsibility and practice them consistently, your probability of a successful problem-solution increases significantly.

Can you give me an example?

The first responsibility is Listen. Numerous surveys of bosses and the people that work for them show that about 75% of the bosses believe they are good communicators. Yet, only about 25% of the people who work for them will agree. Listening is a communication skill. We spend many of our educational years learning to write properly yet only use that skill a portion of the workday. However, did you ever take a listening course to sharpen that communication skill? My book goes into detail to support the need for leaders to fully understand that responsibility as well as the other three.

So, what is the Cycle of Success?

I make the argument that the Four Responsibilities of a Leader need to be performed in order: Listen, Include, Act, Follow-through. This is a natural rhythm. Staying in this rhythm puts you on the Cycle of Success because as you are in the final stages of solving the problem, you get back to listening. The cycle repeats as you tighten your solution. With complete understanding of the Cycle and its impact on the solution, you begin to sustain success as a team and organization.

Is there a connection here with Academy Leadership?

Indeed. During my 10 years with Academy Leadership I began to see the connection of our Energize2Lead® Survey to the Cycle of Success. (Check the book)

Final thoughts?

I encourage readers to see how the variety of surveys and profiles available out there match up with the Four Responsibilities. Read Perpetual Leaders, understand the Four Responsibilities, check their surveys, and get better at the Responsibilities.

Originally Published July 2026