The Men of Iron Minute

by Chad Zueck | Director of Content Creation

Tragedy Strikes

Most Americans have heard of Robert E. Lee. He was the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States during the Civil War. This daunting and regretful time in American history has brought Lee’s life, service, and commitment to the South into the crosshairs of cultural mouthpieces. Robert E. Lee is a well-known military tactician and famed West Point Military Academy graduate. Still, most people don’t know of Lee’s tragic upbringing and his father’s choices that made growing up tumultuous.

Lee’s father, Henry Lee (AKA Light Horse Harry), was a Revolutionary War hero who rose to Major General’s ranks. His father had a warrior ethos, and, in his confliction, he wrote to a fellow general, “I wish… to make my way easy and comfortable.” This led him to leave what he knew best, soldiering and leadership. After resigning from the Army, Henry Lee could not resign himself from being a soldier. Lee took his soldier-esque mentality and recklessly jumped from business venture to business venture, leaving him flat-broke. At that time, if you could not pay your debts, you went to jail, and that’s precisely what happened to Henry Lee. When Lee got out of jail, he cowardly sailed to Barbados to avoid repaying his debtors. Henry Lee never saw his son again. Robert E. Lee was approximately seven years old.

Observing a man’s life can help us avoid tragic endings by avoiding what the man did to bring on the collapse. Henry Lee left what he was uniquely gifted to do to get wealthy and lazy.

A maxim that drops out of this tragic tale is this – Rewards follow performance, and you will perform the best in a job you are passionate about and uniquely gifted to do.

Do something.
Dare greatly.
Be a better man.

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