A distillation of World War experiences was prepared in 1939 for the Infantry Journal under the, supervision of Colonel George C. Marshall. It follows, then, that the leader who would become a competent tactician must first close his mind to the alluring formula that well-meaning people offer in the name of victory. To master his difficult art he must learn to cut to the heart of a situation, recognize its decisive elements and base his course of action on these. He must realize that training in solving problems of all types, long practice in making clear, unequivocal decisions, the habit of concentrating on the question at hand, and an elasticity of mind, are indispensable requisites for the successful practice of the art of war. The leader who frantically strives to remember what someone else did in some slightly similar situation has already set his feet on a well-traveled road to ruin.
Every situation encountered in war is likely to be exceptional.
The schematic solution will seldom fit. Leaders who think that familiarity with blind rules of thumb will win battles are doomed to disappointment. It is more valuable to be able to analyse one battle situation correctly, recognize its decisive elements and devise a simple, workable solution for it, than to memorize all the erudition ever written of war. The American Army's call for the use of imagination, backed up by a knowledge of history, may well be what accounts for its repeated successes. A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1973.