The Need to Lead: A TOPGUN Instructor’s Lessons on How Leadership Solves Every Challenge

‘This book will change the way you think about leadership’ – Admiral William H. McRaven, author of Make Your Bed

The powerful third book in the phenomenally successful Extreme Ownership series, with a foreword by Jocko Willink.

Leadership is a universal requirement for success, no matter the environment. This undeniable truth is something Dave Berke learned first-hand as a Marine Corps officer, fighter pilot, TOPGUN instructor, ground combat leader and now chief development officer at Echelon Front, the training company founded by ex US Navy SEALs Jocko Willink and Leif Babin.

By adopting the right leadership mindsets and behaviours, we gain the capacity to solve problems, support the people around us and amend our mistakes. How do we develop these necessary skills? By embracing the principles imparted to Berke from each humbling moment in the cockpit:

Everyone is a leader: Leadership isn’t about rank, title, position or function. The more people see themselves as leaders, the more they want to contribute to the team’s success.

Every problem we face is a leadership problem: Whatever the challenge, good leaders take action. How we lead becomes the most critical factor affecting the outcome.

Leadership is a skill: Good leaders aren’t simply born. Leadership can be learned, which means every single person in the world can get better at it if they choose. This book is their guide.

Through compelling stories from TOPGUN training and combat to the boardroom and at home, Berke gives you the necessary tools to succeed.

• Publication date: 1 October 2026
• Page count: 288
• Dimensions: Height 195 mm; Width 131 mm; Thickness 20 mm
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan
• Format: Paperback
• ISBN-13: 9781035090754