Great military ideas are actually extremely simple. ... Greatness lies in freedom of intellect and spirit at moments of pressure and crisis, and in willingness to take risks. Hans Delbruck History and Art of War, 1900 [1] Battle is ultimate to which whole life's labor of an officer should be directed. He may live to age of retirement without seeing battle; still he must always be getting ready for it exactly as if he knew hour of day it is to break upon him. And then, whenever it comes later or early, he must be willing to fight--he must fight. Major General C. F. Smith [2] This article was developed from a presentation given by author to Brigadier General Training Course at Fort Leavenworth in late November 2000. -- Editor Successful senior leadership in any institution, including military, depends on attributes differ markedly from skills needed in middle management. Generalship is perhaps most important thing about military leaders, aspect of our leadership which should make us uniquely valuable to our institution and to nation. Duty as a general is different from what goes before. Flag officers are more visible; subordinates can defer and waffle because of one's rank and not necessarily stand on quality of one's ideas. The elements of decisions made at senior level are more abstract. One often receives conflicting guidance. One usually has less personal control over events. And in spite of all that, senior leaders are more fully accountable and more personally so for results than they were in their duties as more junior officers. There seems to be no real conclusive body of thought on what makes a good general. So as a start point, study of leadership attributes of generals, past and present, should be useful. Historians and commentators alike usually cite character as essential ingredient of enlightened senior leadership, especially of military leaders. When one attempts to break character down into its essence, one finds it defined as a set of qualities, the complex of accustomed mental and moral characteristics and habitual ethical traits marking a person. But what is essence of person compels him or her to exhibit those traits? And how do aspiring military leaders develop kind of character? From reading history, from walking many battlefields with scholars to recreate dilemmas of command of those bloody grounds, and from watching a number of flag officers good and bad, some common characteristics emerge define successful generalship. One of most important things a soldier does is to prepare himself for time when nation calls, when he is thrown into a situation in which his decisions and his ability to drive execution affect national interests. Soldiers as a group are interested in advancing their own professional development. If one agrees self-development is one of essential aspects of personal growth of military leaders, we must get characteristics of generalship right. These characteristics are windows to warrior's s soul, traits one must develop in oneself in order to know, to be, and to do as a general. When crucial test comes for a senior military leader, whether in peacetime or in war, it is too late then for preparation. Flag officer s face decisions risk careers, if not lives, and national treasure along with national interests. A better understanding of link between what historians term as character and instincts honed over years of service should highlight qualities will help senior leaders to prevail in the hour of day, to paraphrase C. F. Smith's words, that fight breaks upon you. The list of essential characteristics of generalship starts with force of intellect, from which derive elements of decision and execution--competence, intuition, and will. …