When the original, hard-cover edition of this work appeared in November 1950, it opened with a brief preface: "This manual for leadership has been prepared for use by the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy and the Department of the Air Force, and is published for the information and guidance of all concerned."

The note was signed "G. C. Marshall." Gen. George C. Marshall was then serving as secretary of defense. Some years earlier, while serving as Army chief of staff, he had inspired the undertaking due to his personal conviction that all American military officers share common ethical and moral ground. Individual services were commanded by men of integrity, honor and great leadership. The newly created Department of Defense, however, was a harness that chafed at the historical autonomy of the services.

This version, while holding with the purpose outlined and adhering to the broad philosophical guidelines provided by the original author, Brig. Gen. S. L. A. Marshall, has been modified by the experience of the past 38 years. During that time, we have experienced triumph and disaster. The nation has moved from a naive optimism where anything is possible to a more mature reality where most things are possible, if we are willing to pay the price.

This book is based on the firm conviction that our nation is always at least on the threshold of greatness and is worth whatever it takes to maintain our ideals. It is about the love of duty and the knowledge that there is no higher calling than that of an Armed Forces officer. Old fashioned concepts of service, of loyalty, of duty and of being better than you think is possible are included because they work and apply in a complex and volatile world that sometimes seems to lack a foundation for action.