Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!

You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you…I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!

– Excerpt from Gen. Eisenhower’s Order of the Day, June 6, 1944

Eighty Years ago, 175,000 American, British, and Canadian soldiers, sailors, and aviators attempted to open a second front against Nazi-occupied Europe with the largest amphibious assault in history. In his Order of the Day, Eisenhower plainly expresses his trust in the troops under his command.

However, trust is risky.

While copies of this message were being handed out to the troops the night before the attack, Eisenhower was scribbling a very different note. It was brief and direct. It was a message he hoped he never had to send. Here it is with his original edits:

Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and the troops have been withdrawn I have withdrawn the troops. This particular operation My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.

Sometimes you can do everything you can to ensure others have the competence and dependability to be successful, and they can still fail. A truly trustworthy leader can wholeheartedly trust others AND be prepared to accept responsibility for their failures.

You can see by Eisenhower’s edits this is precisely what he did. He removed passive voice and vagueness. In their place he seized fierce, unquestionable ownership for whatever went wrong.

By the end of D-Day—at the cost of over 4,400 lives—155,000 Allied troops controlled 80 square miles of French coastline. The Normandy Landings had succeeded and it marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany.

Eisenhower would never have to send the second note, but the fact that he wrote it gives us a window into his character—and an example to follow.

Reflection: How prepared are you to absorb the failure of those you trust?