By 
The French Foreign Legion was founded in 1831. Their spiritual home and former training centers are in former French colonial North Africa, although they now train primarily in the south of France. What made them the legendary force they were and still are? What success lessons can we learn from them?
Recently, twelve volunteers chose to do a four-week Legion-style basic training in the desert of Western Sahara. They were under the harsh but experienced and encouraging regimen of three former legionnaires, Chef Sergeant Peter Hauser, Sergeant Glenn Ferguson and Corporal Richard Sutter.
Their experiences were filmed by Channel 4 TV and can teach us a lot about motivation and success. I also spoke with Sergeant Glenn Ferguson and learned more about what motivated him and the other Legendary Legionnaires.
He joined the Legion at the age of 19. He was motivated first by fear of punishment and then by pride. He hated failing at anything and could also appreciate the pride of an elite group. One of his favorite sayings is:
“You will never be the best if you have to constantly lower the bar for the weaker elements to join”
Throughout the programme, the three former legionnaires were keen to have some of the volunteers ring a bell as a symbol of their desire to leave the group. They wanted to eliminate the weakest elements. Legionnaires with low standards can have their fellow legionnaires killed.
Elite groups don’t have time to tolerate the weak or half-hearted. They only want members who are willing to give 100% of their effort. They would rather the ‘losers’ (lazy, unenthusiastic people) not join. Another saying by Sergeant Glenn Ferguson puts it well:
“If you didn’t get to be the best, then stay with the other losers”
In the modern world, where everyone should be encouraged to join everything, this seems very old-fashioned and elitist, but keep in mind that this saying makes sense even today. It’s not saying you have to be the best before you join.
You just have to want to be the best. This leaves room for the less talented as long as they have the right attitude. Any weakness will soon desert them as they endure the pain of the Legion’s harsh training regimen.
As the Sergeant commented on his sheltered suffering on the TV show:
“Pain is the weakness that leaves your body”
Several of the volunteers began the training as ‘the weak ones’ but ended up as ‘the strong ones’. A former legionnaire commented on the program that when he joined the legion he believed that he couldn’t do anything. When he left after five years, he believed that he could do anything. Such belief is a key element in any success.
I was a teacher for over 30 years in London comprehensive schools. Everyone is accepted in these schools, whether they are ‘weak’ or ‘strong’. Everyone is given the opportunity to learn. Unfortunately, a minority is not just ‘weak’; they don’t want to become ‘strong’ or they are too lazy to become ‘strong’ and they don’t want anyone else to be ‘strong’.
When these lazy and disruptive students drop out of school, the rest progress much faster and can even enjoy their education. A hint of the French Foreign Legion’s attitude towards the lukewarm and disruptive could well improve our overall system.
Every now and then a ‘loser’ shows up in my martial arts classes; they don’t want to work hard except for the parts they enjoy and distract others. I don’t care about his ability or lack of it. The key factor is his attitude. Fortunately, the government does not force me to support these students. I can ask them to leave or give them a chance to improve.
I usually give them a chance, but if their attitude doesn’t improve, I’m glad when they go. I don’t want the enthusiastic majority of the class to miss out on the opportunity to focus and make rapid progress. Training with like-minded people is the fastest path to success in any company.
The French Foreign Legion doesn’t usually give bums a second chance. They are immediately out of your ear or quickly disciplined into accepting the rules.
I was impressed by the French Foreign Legion ‘appetizer’. This took the form of 10 pull-ups before dinner. The volunteers found this as difficult as most of us.
Sergeant Glenn Ferguson explained that this ‘snack’ was important in battle. There is no use being able to travel miles on foot and then not be able to climb over a wall when you arrive at the site of battle. Upper body strength is essential for a soldier. One of the sergeant’s favorite sayings makes the point:
A man who cannot pull his own body weight is a loss of oxygen.
I especially liked the ‘snack’ exercise because it involves a daily effort at a precise moment. Any consistent daily effort produces impressive results. Holding the drill before a meal or treat is also a great idea. Having an immediate reward after some action makes it easier to perform the action. Daily effort is a key factor in any success story.
Chef Sergeant Peter Hauser, who had served in the Legion’s elite parachute regiment around the world, taught the volunteers the Legion’s weapons and tactics.
The volunteers were in similar territory (in the Western Sahara desert) to which the Legion in the 1960s was the last line of defense when France’s colonial empire collapsed.
Simon Murray was a legionnaire from 1960 to 1965. He described the vast amount of equipment a legionnaire had to carry:
“It’s a hard life because you’re on six days of rations. You were probably carrying 40 kilos and you have 4 hand grenades, you have 200 rounds of ammunition, you have a sten gun, you have a couple of water bottles, you have a shovel, you have your sleeping gear and half a tent You are quite heavy and very often you go uphill and a long, long, long time Hard work and often the men were completely done and collapsed and then the sergeants would kick them and move them forward and they started yelling at them. You might have a fever, you might have this, that, and the other. Nobody gave a shit.”
The ruthless attitude of the sergeants admitted no excuses and excuses are one of the main causes of failure in any company. Sergeants like Sergeant Glenn Ferguson believed in pushing men past their limits. Most success stories contain this element of stretching your boundaries and overcoming your limitations. One of the sergeant’s favorite sayings is:
“If you’re never shown that you can push your limits, you’ll never know how far you can really go.”
Near the end of the 4 weeks, the volunteers had to do a standard 8km Legionnaire run in 60 minutes with an ill-fitting 12kg pack on their backs. They had to walk two hours to get to the start of the race after a night on duty. Will, one of the volunteers, had very sore ankles but with the help of Corporal Rutter, he made it through.:
“You can do it – little steps. One in front of the other. Come on Will – one last push – you can do it. Come on, one last little push; you can do it; come on. Come on Grit your teeth! You’re there!
Will just arrived with ten seconds to spare. He attributed his success to Corporal Rutter’s help, but the corporal blamed it on him. “If you go deep into yourself, you can do it, it’s a mental thing, it’s all in your mind.”
Once again, this kind of attitude and the encouragement that goes with it leads to success and achievement. I believe that taking small steps in anything is a big factor in achieving success.
The main reason Legion recruits drop out is because of foot problems caused by frequent long marches and runs. Why do some continue and others leave?
Bobby, one of the remaining four volunteers, gave a reason:
“It seems that positive people are still here. It shows that a smile and a good nature can help you get through most things.”
On their last day, the four successful volunteers took on the kepi march. The night before the march they are told Camerone’s heroic story. During the Franco-Mexican War in 1863, the Legion retreated to a country house called Camerone, where they were surrounded by 2,000 Mexican soldiers.
When the legionnaires fought to the last three men without surrendering, the Mexican captain let the three surviving men go with their weapons and wounded comrades. He said:
“What can we do with men like you? You have shown so much courage.” This esprit de corp is what the volunteers at the Kepi march would need.
Will liked Kepi’s departure to give birth. “At that point it’s very painful but then you forget about all the pain and you think it would be a good idea to have or do another one.”
A former Irish legionnaire who appeared briefly on the TV show commented that kepi marching is difficult, but that’s the way it is. “If it wasn’t difficult, you wouldn’t be there. Blisters came out and then blood came out.”
Sergeant Glenn Ferguson described the actual march over the Pyrenees: “112 miles in 3 1/2 days; 18 hours a day of walking. You walk on these bloody stumps that were your feet. You know they’re in bad shape.” because you can feel it (the sergeant’s description was more colorful) but you keep walking and in about ten minutes your brain just shuts down and you move on. In the end they had to cut off your boots, a lot of blood and a lot of blood. of skin”.
Finally, the remaining three staff members and four volunteers, Bear, Bobby, Will and Loic finished the march and reached the Atlantic sea. Loic liked the symbolism of traversing the desert and then landing in the sea. They all ran to the Atlantic to celebrate.
Later, the four were presented with the white kepi as a souvenir. They would not be allowed to use it, but they could keep it to remember their experience. Only true legionnaires could wear the white Kepi.
Loic had learned that at the end of the day he could live a very simple life in a filthy bed with a cold shower and that the materialistic issues that bother us mean absolutely nothing.
Bear, the leader of the volunteers, commented:
“We did not find the Beau Geste and the romantic myths of the legion. We only found pain, but out of that pain came pride and honor. Whatever you say against the legion, you must realize that for people who pass through she gives a great sense of pride. And the legion’s strength is that it gives people family and pride and a second chance. It builds good things through hardship.”
The following key success lessons can be learned from this account:
Surround yourself with enthusiastic and hard-working people who want to be the best. Drive out the lazy and unwilling.
Take daily steps to get stronger in every way.
Push yourself beyond your imagined limitations
Keep smiling and stay affable.
Accept pain and difficulties as a path to strength
Recall past achievements by yourself or others.
Encourage each other and, if necessary, take small steps to reach your goals.
Don’t get carried away with excuses