Strength Through Struggle

Jim Collins | The Stockdale Paradox

Jim Collins
January 9, 2024

This speech by Jim Collins for The Drucker Institute talks about The Stockdale Paradox, which is rooted in the story of Admiral James Stockdale, who was the highest-ranking United States military officer in the “Hanoi Hilton” prisoner-of-war camp during the height of the Vietnam War. Tortured over twenty times during his eight-year imprisonment, Stockdale lived out the war without any prisoner’s rights, no set release date, and no certainty as to whether he would even survive to see his family again. How? How does someone deal with the facts of their situation when there’s seemingly no reason to hope for a happy ending?

We can all endure anything if we know it’s going to come to an end, but what if you don’t know IF it’s ever going to come to an end, and you certainly don’t know when? – Jim Collins

Acknowledgements

Thank you Jim Collins for your thought-provoking speech and thank you to the Drucker Institute for amplifying his message by creating this video. This content was not created by Boulder Crest Foundation or our partners. It has been added to our PTG Resource Library given the value it provides for our PTG community.

About the Author

Jim Collins