What's your opinion of this interesting take on leadership from the great field marshal Erich von Manstein?

Asked by stanleybmanly (24153

) August 14th, 2014

I divide my officers into 4 groups. There are clever, diligent, stupid and lazy officers. Usually 2 characteristics are combined. Some are clever and diligent. Their place is on the general staff. The next are stupid and lazy. They make up 90% of every army and are suited to routine duties. Anyone who is both clever and lazy is qualified for the highest leadership duties, because he possesses the intellectual clarity and the composure necessary for difficult decisions . One must beware of anyone who is stupid and diligent. He must not be entrusted with any responsibility because he will cause only mischief.

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3 Answers

He sounds like a total sociopath. What a nightmare it would be to work under someone like that!

snowberry (27648

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There are a couple of potential parallels here.

1) The Passover Seder, in which there is mention of the four sons, and how each of them would be taught about the Exodus and the Passover holiday: Seder explanation

2) The second would be the Myers-Briggs Personality tests chart wherein the world is divided int four persoanlity types (and combinations of types)

So von Manstein, the old Nazi general, either observed the Seder (unlikely) and learned from it, or he studied personality testing – Myers-Briggs, for example – and applied it lessons.

In any event, he was a convicted mass murderer, regardless of his personnel management policies

But the more macro picture—he wasn’t the first, and won’y be the last, to classify people into four categories. He was just nastier than most.

elbanditoroso (33149

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