The example John McCain set as a selfless leader

Whether or not you agree with all his politics—I don't—or question some of his decisions—I do, such as why he placed Sarah Palin on the 2008 Republican Presidential ticket—I think many if not most of us would agree that U.S. Senator John McCain demonstrated true heroism during the Vietnam War.

I consider his actions back then heroic and a template for how he's lived his life since.

Some context. McCain's father and grandfather were both four-star admirals in the Navy; in fact, they were the first father-son pair to achieve four-star rank. Talk about pressure!

On the other hand, John McCain, despite a high IQ, was not quite at the top of his class at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, finishing 894 out of 899 in his class. He also admits he had some disciplinary issues.

But he became a Navy flier and, on October 26, 1967, his Skyhawk dive bomber was shot down. He was seriously injured and taken prisoner, and for 5-1/2 years was tortured alongside other American captives at the horrific Hanoi Hilton, including a two-year period in solitary confinement.

Ironically, between 1968 to 1972, his father, John S. McCain, Jr.—pictured here after his son's release—was commander of all U.S. forces in the Vietnam theater.

During the months of June and July, 1968, McCain’s North Vietnamese captors offered him his freedom on several occasions, even claiming that President Lyndon Johnson had ordered him home.

Each time, McCain said no. An excerpt from his first-person narrative in U.S. News:

“I knew that the Code of Conduct says, 'You will not accept parole or amnesty,’ and that ‘you will not accept special favors.’ For somebody to go home earlier is a special favor. What they wanted, of course, was to send me home at the same time that my father took over as commander in the Pacific. This would have made them look very humane in releasing the injured son of a top U. S. officer. It would also have given them a great lever against my fellow prisoners, because the North Vietnamese were always putting this 'class' business on us. They could have said to the others, 'Look, you poor devils, the son of the man who is running the war has gone home and left you here. No one cares about you ordinary fellows.' I was determined at all times to prevent any exploitation of my father and my family.

"But the primary thing I considered was that I had no right to go ahead of men... who had been there...years before I 'got killed'—that's what we say instead of 'before I got shot down,' because in a way becoming a prisoner in North Vietnam was like being killed."

McCain was in such bad physical and emotional shape that it would have been much easier for him to say yes and leave—especially since he knew the torture that lay ahead should he say no. But in that one decision to remain behind, besides doing his duty, he proved he was a true leader who was selfless vs. selfish—self-aware vs. self-centered.

In essence, although a Navy flier, his actions epitomized the Army's "Soldiers Creed": Never leave a fallen comrade behind.

Being more selfless and less selfish is important in the business world as well, where real leaders make decisions based on the specific situation, their expertise, and advice from others—rather than "rule" from their gut alone.

Real leaders also respect their team's hard work and contributions, and don't swoop in to change everything at the last minute just because they can—often resulting in a lesser product.

And like McCain, real leaders don't turn their backs on subordinates by leaving them alone in the field to fend for themselves with murky, uninformed orders. Rather, they lead from the front, give clear and rational direction, and roll-up-their-sleeves to help achieve the objective.

Many, many people are called to lead, but not all possess the qualities and temperament it takes to lead successfully. But those who become true leaders, like McCain, understand and respect the fact that the greatest resource is the human resource—in essence, YOUR TEAM.

Meghan McCain's Tweet concerning her dad's diagnosis of brain cancer is beautiful and moving.

I hope with all my heart that this Great Warrior wins this battle, too. We share a hero in TR and I know that, like his hero, McCain's as tough as nails.

Godspeed, Captain McCain.