Person
Every book Jocko Willink recommended on podcasts
Jocko Willink appears on interview podcasts to discuss military history, leadership principles, extreme ownership, and personal discipline. As evident from his podcast discussions, his reading list is heavily weighted toward military history, operational tactics, leadership memoirs, and historical accounts of high-stakes conflict. Willink has strongly recommended Colonel David Hackworth's military memoir About Face, citing it as a crucial text that had a massive, transformative impact on his own leadership perspective and military career. Expanding into intelligence history and tactical innovation during wartime, Willink has recommended John Lisle's book The Dirty Tricks Department, which details the founding of the OSS and the unconventional tactics used during World War II, as well as the author's subsequent work detailing the transition from the OSS to the CIA. Furthermore, Willink's own children's book, Way of the Warrior Kid, has been discussed on programs through listener feedback, highlighting how its core lessons on discipline and personal growth have positively impacted adult readers facing life challenges. Through these recommendations, Willink emphasizes lifelong learning, tactical literacy, and the study of historical leadership under pressure.
Books recommended by Jocko Willink
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About face
About Face by David H.
Recommended“yeah the main one is about face which is sitting right here there you go this is written by colonel david hackworth”
Where to get it
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John Lyle catalogue
The John Lyle catalogue compiled by John Lyle presents historical documentation and insights into specialized operations.
Recommended“M you know who you should have on the show? A guy called John Lyle. So he wrote a book called The Dirty Tricks Department. It was a a book about the founding of the OSS and the insane tactics that they used in World War II to try and stop World War II.”
Where to get it
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The Dirty Tricks Department
The Dirty Tricks Department by John Lisle is a historical non-fiction work detailing the origins and daring operations of the Office of Strategic Services during World War II.
Recommended“But he's got another one coming out which is the OSS came into the CIA and then I think this one is the the transitions through that.”
Where to get it
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King Henry V
King Henry V by William Shakespeare is a classic historical play exploring leadership, warfare, and the responsibilities of monarchy.
Discussed“So King Lear versus rules of engagement both of them need to be disassembled and reassembled”
Where to get it
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The Rape of Nanking
The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang details the atrocities committed by the Japanese military in the Chinese city during the late 1930s.
Discussed“no actually the first one where I really realized myself was we did another one called The Rape of Nanking”
Where to get it
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Way of the Warrior Kid
Way of the Warrior Kid by Jocko Willink is a children's fiction book designed to teach young readers resilience, discipline, and leadership through the story of a bullied boy who transforms himself over the summer.
Discussed“and the book I read was way of the warrior kid which is which is a kids book”
Where to get it
Books Jocko Willink wrote
- Extreme Ownership
- Way of the Warrior Kid
- Mikey and the Dragons
- Final Spin
- The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win
- Discipline Equals Freedom
- Marc's Mission
- Leadership Strategy and Tactics
- The dichotomy of leadership
- Untitled Jocko Willink Non Fiction
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| How To Build Unstoppable Confidence - Jocko Willink - #949 | Modern Wisdom | 2025-06-02 | 2 |
| #197 – Jocko Willink: War, Leadership, and Discipline | Lex Fridman Podcast | 2021-07-05 | 1 |
| Confronting Jocko Willink On Motivation BS | Ep. 15 (Full) | The Jordan Harbinger Show | 2018-04-29 | 3 |
Other mentions (29: passing, ad reads, own books)
“I wrote a book called Extreme Ownership, which is about like taking ownership of what's going on.”
“Way of the Warrior Kid. Yeah.”
“I wrote a kid's book called Mikey and the Dragons. And the the story is, spoiler alert, the kid he's he he's uh his dad is the king. His dad dies. The kid now has to defend the village from the dragons.”
“I wrote a kid's book called Mikey and the Dragons.”
“I wrote a kid's book called Mikey and the Dragons.”
“So I read a bunch of kids books and one part of those kids books or one series of kids books called Way of the Warrior Kid.”
“And I ended up writing the first book in in in the series which is called Way of the Warrior Kid.”
“There was another book that was called that is called Mikey and the Dragons.”
“There was another book that was called that is called Mikey and the Dragons. Right. Right. Which I think is one of your favorite children's books of all time if I remember correctly.”
“There was another book that was called that is called Mikey and the Dragons. Right. Right. Which I think is one of your favorite children's books of all time if I remember correctly.”
“And they're doing push-ups and they showed him this book that they read called Wave the Warrior Kid. He picks up the book and says, "What? I got to make this into a movie."”
“I wrote a book called Mikey and the Dragons that came just boom, I just instantly had this idea. Boom, I wrote the book.”
“I wrote a book called Mikey and the Dragons that came just boom, I just instantly had this idea. Boom, I wrote the book.”
“The movie is called The Way of the Warrior Kid. Yeah. Okay. And it's the same title as books. Same title as the books.”
“I wrote another I wrote a novel called Final Spin, which uh which now has been optioned to a movie.”
“You know, the first book I wrote called Extreme Ownership, right? The opening chapter is about this terrible situation that took place, a fracture side, a friendly fire incident that I was in charge of, right?”
“if someone wants to start some [ __ ] with you you're absolutely better off just swallowing your ego and getting the [ __ ] out of dodge i that's the warrior kid books”
“I wish I had the lessons from extreme ownership when I was a kid I wish I had the lessons from the discipline equals freedom”
“I wish I had the lessons from the discipline equals freedom Field Manual I was a kid absolutely”
“and then the last line said the book I read was the way of the warrior kid which is you know aimed at kids but the lessons in there are completely universal and applied to your whole life”
“and so that's that one Mikey and the Dragons is about facing your dragons and little kid that's scared of everything and he finds a book under his bed and it opens it up quickly”
“and so that's that one Mikey and the Dragons is about facing your dragons and little kid that's scared of everything and he finds a book under his bed and it opens it up quickly”
“I wish I had this when I was a kid I wish I had the lessons from extreme ownership when I was a kid I wish I had the lessons from the discipline equals freedom Field Manual”
“I wish I had this when I was a kid I wish I had the lessons from extreme ownership when I was a kid I wish I had the lessons from the discipline equals freedom Field Manual”
“and then the last line said the book I read was the way of the warrior kid which is you know aimed at kids but the lessons in there are completely universal and applied to your whole life”
“and so that's that one Mikey and the Dragons is about facing your dragons”
“psychological warfare was the number one spoken word album for like 11 months on iTunes and it only got kicked out when discipline equals freedom Field Manual”
“and I got another book and other kids book coming out called Mark's mission It's you can pre-order it right now”
“and I got another book and other kids book coming out called Mark's mission it's you can pre-order it right now”