One man I greatly admire and respect is former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. My reason is pretty simple.  Mr. Rumsfeld embodies a true public servant.  He was elected to Congress; accepted top level jobs in various administrations, served two tours as Secretary of Defense, and was successful in the private sector as the CEO of a pharmaceutical company.

Perhaps equally important, he started compiling a list of rules back in 1974.  He periodically updated it and made it available to the public.  I keep a copy of it and refer to it often.  It reflects the wisdom of a man who experienced considerable success and took on challenges in the public and private sector.  Oddly enough, I am not aware of anyone one else in the public or private sector that compiles a list like this and generously makes it available to citizens.

One other aspect I like is when he uses a quotation; he attributes it to the source.  No small footnotes buried in the back of the document, he tells you where he got it right after the actual sentence. That probably seems minor, but as a writer and former debater, I greatly appreciate it.

You probably know most of Mr. Rumsfeld's rules. However, it is well organized and easy to read.  Some of the entries are humorous. And some are very serious. You will note on the first page the last revision was September 10, 2001. Please be sure to read Mr. Rumsfeld's introduction paragraph on the second page.

For those in the private sector, I suggest starting on page 9. On that page Mr. Rumsfeld notes lessons learned in business.  Of course his rules noted elsewhere in the attachment also apply to business.  The rules under the heading “Doing the Job in the White House” certainly apply to working in most public and private sector organizations.

 

The section titled “Life” is not his rules, but rather quotations he found over the years and covers a multitude of subjects. 

Whether you agree with Mr. Rumsfeld or not, his rules are excellent advice. The rules are written simply and the PDF is well organized. 

http://www.cornerbarpr.com/images/home/rumsfeldsrules.pdf

Greener Pastures

Jim Zumwalt, my friend and the city manager of Manassas Park, announced his retirement earlier this month. It is well deserved. Jim has been a public servant for over 40 years. 

When I think about a true public servant, I picture Jim.  He continually amazed me with his breadth and depth of knowledge and constructive ways to solve challenges. Jim definitely possesses the winning combination of intellectual curiosity, extensive experience, and wisdom. 

Give Jim a white board with different color markers and you were off to a very fast start. He loved to sketch out the problem on the white board.  Jim is not talkative, but when he speaks people at the table listen. He kept conversations focused and he dissected each challenge from a number of directions.  It was common for Jim to listen to an issue. And then watch him lead a discussion that ranged from translating it into policy and finally exploring the mechanics of implementation.  He made it look so easy and as I have seen and learned, it is very taxing and difficult.

City management loses a true professional.  He was as I wrote earlier, a public servant. And now, Jim can pursue more noble and personal interests.

http://www.cityofmanassaspark.us/index.php/news/599-city-manager-position