The US Marine Corps is one of the best fighting organizations in world history. Most people don’t know it, but the Marines Corps was almost eliminated twice in its history: once in the 1890’s and again after World War II.
Why is the Marine Corps still around and why is the Marine Corps so successful? A big reason is that Marines tell a great story.
In the late 1800’s, the Marine Corps was just a few thousand strong. It’s mission of guarding Navy ships was largely obsolete. It was not a highly respected organization. In a time of tight military budgets, it would be easy to eliminate the Marines.
In response, the Marine Corps used its strengths—sharp looking uniforms, discipline and good public relations—to create a powerful story, and then they lived up to it. Marines then told their story internally by living that story in customs and traditions. Marines told their story to the American public through close relationships with the press. The Marines went from largely irrelevant to a top military organization with a compelling story and brand.
There is a lot we can learn from the story of how Marines use their story.
Facing irrelevance in the 1890’s, the Marines won the first land battle in Cuba in the Spanish-American War. Newspapers, hungry to give news of the war, celebrated the Marines in headlines across the nation. The Marines were gaining attention. They leveraged that to recruit better Marines.
In World War I, the Marines invited the press to go with them into combat. Newspapers responded with enthusiastic stories about Marine heroism at the Battles of Belleau Wood and Chateau Thierry. Journalists wrote that German troops called the Marines “Teufel Hunden” meaning “Devil Dogs”. The Marines used their public relations prowess to get outsized attention compared to the Army.
The Marines leveraged that reputation and their story going into World War II. The Marines emphasized honor, toughness, and discipline. They recruited eager young men who wanted to “See Action” and be the “First to Fight”. The press headlined Marine valor in some of the toughest battles of the war at Guadalcanal, Tarawa and Iwo Jima. The photo of Marines raising the American flag over Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima was the most famous picture of the war.
How important is story? After World War II, powerful leaders like Eisenhower, Truman and Marshall tried to eliminate the Marine Corps. Inspired by the Marine Corps story, the American public and Congress not only denied them, but wrote the existence of the Marine Corps into law.
The Marines emphasized creativity, always doing more with less, of winning battles with honor, courage and commitment. The Marine Corps was a way of life. Serve four years and be a Marine forever.
Marines added to their story with their record in Korea, Vietnam, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.
Marines tell and re-tell their story relentlessly until it is branded deep in the minds of Marines. They teach the Marine Corps story in the classroom. They tell stories of Marines winning the Medal of Honor on marches and runs. They reinforce the story physically in places like the Marine Corps Memorial in Washington, DC.
Marines tell their story to recruit people who want to be part of a great story. They tell the stories to inspire Marines to higher performance. They tell stories to continuously strengthen the Marine culture. They tell stories to remember fellow Marines we have lost.
Marines literally wear their story. All Marine officers have a Mameluke sword that remembers the 1805 Battle of Derna in the war against the Barbary pirates. All Marine officers and non-commissioned officers wear a red stripe on their trousers remembering the 1847 Battle of Chapultepec in the Mexican-American War. The high collar on Marine dress blue uniforms recalls the leather collars Marines wore aboard ship to protect their necks from enemy swords. Marines, past and present, put Marine Corps stickers on the back windows of their cars. They greet each other with “Semper Fi”, a reference to the Marine Corps motto, “Semper Fidelis”, always faithful.
The Army has soldiers and the Air Force has airmen, but the Marine Corps has Marines. “Marine” is a title you have to earn by completing Bootcamp or Officer Candidate School.
Storytelling has embedded the Marine Corps brand deep in the American psyche.
In the movie series, Equalizer and Equalizer 2, Denzel Washington plays the hero, Robert McCall. A big mystery through both movies is McCall’s background. Late in the second movie, a camera shot in McCall’s closet captures the left side of a Marine Corps dress blue uniform. The movie producers knew that the Marine Corps brand is so deeply embedded in the public that a five second camera shot could fully communicate McCall’s background and character.
Finally, Marines live their story in their customs, traditions and celebrations. Every November 10th, Marines around the world get together to celebrate the Marine Corps Birthday. The celebrations range from formal ballroom celebrations to informal gatherings in fighting holes or dive bars.
When possible, the celebration involves a message from the Commandant and the cutting of a birthday cake. The first piece of cake goes to the oldest Marine present, honoring Marines of our past. The second piece of cake goes to the youngest Marine present, honoring the future of our Corps.
At a recent celebration, I saw a 96-year-old Marine hand the second piece of cake to a 17-year-old Marine born in 2002.
Every Marine has two birthdays: the day that Marine was born and November 10th.
As we lead organizations, we can learn a lot from the Marines about the power of story. Create your story. Tell your story relentlessly, inside and outside. Wear your story. Create customs and traditions that live your story.
A powerful story won’t just make your organization perform better; it is a gift to your team. People want the story of their life to be part of a larger, meaningful story. Give them the gift of story.
Watch the Commandant’s Birthday Message below to see how Marines tell, celebrate and live their story yet again. There’s a lot of great lessons in it.
November 10th, 2020 is the 245th Birthday of our Marine Corps. Happy Birthday, Marines!
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