You Don’t Find Purpose When It’s Easy- You Find it in the Fire

July 27, 2025 by Mike Manazir – (4-5 minutes)

If You Ever Lost Your Why…This Story Will Help You Find It

September 1981. SERE School. Warner Springs, California.

Thrown to the dirt. Locked in a box. Slapped, interrogated, broken. It was all part of the training.

And it changed everything.

Before I took my first official flight in a Navy jet, I had been tested beyond my physical, emotional, and mental limits at SERE School—Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape. What started as a voluntary decision made among cocky young Ensigns quickly became one of the most searing, formative experiences of my life. And in the box—War Criminal 36—I discovered a lesson that would stay with me for the rest of my career.

Pain will pass. But purpose stays.

I had been prepared for the hard cell. I could brace for being thrown, slapped, slammed into walls. I’d trained for that kind of resilience. What I wasn’t ready for was the soft cell—a calm voice, a candy bar, a fake document, and a pencil. In a moment of fatigue, I signed something meaningless… only to hear my name broadcast across the camp as a “confession.” I had failed my fellow prisoners—and it devastated me. I was in a plywood box, rocking back and forth, sobbing.

Why? Because deep inside, I knew the job I’d signed up to do required more. I had committed to lead. To serve. To protect others. And I’d failed. But from that moment of failure, I found something powerful: clarity of purpose.

I learned that true leadership—leadership that lasts—is rooted not in perfection, but in passion. Passion for something bigger than yourself. Passion for people. Passion for purpose.

That lesson fueled me for the next 36 years.

From the flight deck to the Pentagon, through victories and losses, that early experience shaped my commitment to always lead with purpose and passion. I saw it again and again in the best leaders I served with. When a leader knows why they’re doing what they do—and cares deeply—it radiates. And teams respond.

In high-performing teams, purpose is the glue. Passion is the fuel.

When I hear the national anthem today, I don’t just hear a song. I see that cold desert morning when we were all on our knees. Dirty, exhausted, emotionally spent. Guards screaming at us to pay respect to their [fictional] flag and anthem. And then—the Stars and Stripes rises. Our anthem plays. And all of us broke down – the emotional power of our experience embodied in the red, white, and blue rising to the top of the pole. We stood tall in reverence, crying, not because we survived the week, but because we were reminded of who we are and what we’re fighting for.

That’s what purpose does. It re-centers you. It connects you. It gives meaning to the suffering and fuel for the mission.

Leadership Lesson: Lead with Purpose and Passion

“Pride and passion for our purpose creates an unbreakable bond within a team. It raises the standard of performance and expectation. It makes teams soar, while feeding the soul of each member.” — Mike Manazir, Chapter 4, Learn How to Lead to Win

If you’re struggling with motivation… if your team feels disconnected… if you feel like you’re just going through the motions—stop. Reconnect with your purpose. Reignite your passion.

Find work you love, for a cause you believe in, with people you enjoy. That’s when everything changes.

Three Questions to Reflect On:

What is the deeper purpose behind the work I do every day?
Where has my passion faded—and how can I reignite it?
How can I lead in a way that inspires others to give their very best?

Explore Resources:

P.S.

If this message stirred something in you—share it. Forward it to a friend, colleague, or your leadership team. Better yet—let’s talk.

Let’s raise up a generation of leaders who know how to Lead to Win.at the foot of my bed. But what I really learned was how to earn trust—by learning to follow first. That’s what leadership is all about.

It’s not power. It’s not prestige. It’s service—to the mission, to the team, to something greater than yourself.

Explore Resources:

Leadership starts with follower-ship. Let’s build leaders who earn trust—by giving it first.

Mike Manazir
Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Author of Learn How to Lead to Win

P.S. Know someone who’s starting their leadership journey?
Forward this to a friend.
Or better yet—send them the book.

Let’s raise up a generation of leaders who know how to lead from their heart; who know how to Lead to Win.

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