--- title: "1 Seal Team Quotes By William H. McRaven" description: "1 Seal Team quotes by William H. McRaven. Plus more from William H. McRaven and more Seal Team sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10b/william-h-mcraven-13570_army_in-life-you-will-face-a-lot-of-circuses_2174296.jpg" --- > [“In life you will face a lot of Circuses. You will pay for your failures. But, if you persevere, if you let those failures teach you and strengthen you, then you will be prepared to handle life’s toughest moments. July…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/in-life-you-will-face-a-lot-of-circuses-you-will-pay-for-your-2/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10b/william-h-mcraven-13570_army_in-life-you-will-face-a-lot-of-circuses_2174296.jpg) ## More by William H. McRaven > [“By 2003, I found myself in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now that I was a one-star admiral leading troops in a war zone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/by-2003-i-found-myself-in-combat-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-now-that-i/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/if-you-want-to-change-the-world-start-off-by-making-your-bed/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [As ISIS begins to gain momentum beyond where they already are, it really does create - but you see the surge of refugees and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/as-isis-begins-to-gain-momentum-beyond-where-they-already-are-it/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [I am not running with Hillary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/i-am-not-running-with-hillary/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“The common people and the great men and women are all defined by how they deal with life’s unfairness: Helen Keller, Nelson Mandela, Stephen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/the-common-people-and-the-great-men-and-women-are-all-defined-by-how/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [ Following is one of the most underrated aspects of leadership… I have seen many a good \[military unit\] underachieve, because someone...thought the commander was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/following-is-one-of-the-most-underrated-aspects-of-leadership-i-have/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“After the war, Manor returned to New York University and finished his degree in 1947. Later that year he became an instructor at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/after-the-war-manor-returned-to-new-york-university-and-finished-his/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [Petraeus is the finest general I have ever worked for; Holly Petraeus is a great American hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/petraeus-is-the-finest-general-i-have-ever-worked-for-holly-petraeus/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [Nighttime frequently increases alertness, and each mission should consider the ramifications of a night assault. Several of the most successful special operations were conducted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/nighttime-frequently-increases-alertness-and-each-mission-should/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“for every failure, for every mistake, there were hundreds of successes: hostages rescued, suicide bombers stopped, pirates captured, terrorists killed, and countless lives saved.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/for-every-failure-for-every-mistake-there-were-hundreds-of-successes/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“In life you will face a lot of Circuses. You will pay for your failures. But, if you persevere, if you let those failures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/in-life-you-will-face-a-lot-of-circuses-you-will-pay-for-your/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“It is easy to blame your lot in life on some outside force, to stop trying because you believe fate is against you. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/it-is-easy-to-blame-your-lot-in-life-on-some-outside-force-to-stop/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“You cannot paddle the boat alone. Find someone to share your life with. Make as many friends as possible, and never forget that your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/you-cannot-paddle-the-boat-alone-find-someone-to-share-your-life-with/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [“Making my bed correctly was not going to be an opportunity for praise. It was expected of me. It was my first task of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/making-my-bed-correctly-was-not-going-to-be-an-opportunity-for-praise/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) > [I think ninjas are probably quieter than SEALs, but we are better swimmers, and also better with guns and blowing things up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-mcraven/i-think-ninjas-are-probably-quieter-than-seals-but-we-are-better/) [William H. McRaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-mcraven/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seal-team/william-h-mcraven/#itemlist", "name": "1 Seal Team Quotes By William H. McRaven", "numberOfItems": 1, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In life you will face a lot of Circuses. You will pay for your failures. But, if you persevere, if you let those failures teach you and strengthen you, then you will be prepared to handle life’s toughest moments. July 1983 was one of those tough moments. As I stood before the commanding officer, I thought my career as a Navy SEAL was over. I had just been relieved of my SEAL squadron, fired for trying to change the way my squadron was organized, trained, and conducted missions. There were some magnificent officers and enlisted men in the organization, some of the most professional warriors I had ever been around. However, much of the culture was still rooted in the Vietnam era, and I thought it was time for a change. As I was to find out, change is never easy, particularly for the person in charge. Fortunately, even though I was fired, my commanding officer allowed me to transfer to another SEAL Team, but my reputation as a SEAL officer was severely damaged. Everywhere I went, other officers and enlisted men knew I had failed, and every day there were whispers and subtle reminders that maybe I wasn’t up to the task of being a SEAL. At that point in my career I had two options: quit and move on to civilian life, which seemed like the logical choice in light of my recent Officer Fitness Report, or weather the storm and prove to others and myself that I was a good SEAL officer. I chose the latter. Soon after being fired, I was given a second chance, an opportunity to deploy overseas as the Officer in Charge of a SEAL platoon. Most of the time on that overseas deployment we were in remote locations, isolated and on our own. I took advantage of the opportunity to show that I could still lead. When you live in close quarters with twelve SEALs there isn’t anywhere to hide. They know if you are giving 100 percent on the morning workout. They see when you are first in line to jump out of the airplane and last in line to get the chow. They watch you clean your weapon, check your radio, read the intelligence, and prepare your mission briefs. They know when you have worked all night preparing for tomorrow’s training. 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