The Principle of Draw and Drag
- Lucas Franco de Siqueira
- Feb 8, 2016
- 4 min read
The war in Afghanistan is on! Taliban leader Ahmad Shah has killed many US Marines as well as villagers and refugees that attempted to help Americans. US Navy SEALS are ordered to locate the Taliban leader and execute him; then a four-man SEAL team is sent into the Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan. Familiar with this plot yet? Have you watched the movie or read the book named Lone Survivor? If not, I am not going to ruin your future entertainment experience by describing the end of it or anything of the sort. However, the sniper Marcus Luttrell and his real story are crucial in the description of the principle "Draw and Drag".
What Is The Principle of Draw and Drag?
It is a law of battle taken from the Navy SEALS' training regimen; it was applied by the considered American hero Marcus Luttrell in a life or death scenario. His story became famous through his nonfiction book from 2007 that later in 2013 was turned into a Hollywood film success.
Marcus Lutrell survival is justified by the use of this principle among other efforts. The principle is understood by readers and authors such as Jamie Gilbert as the main lesson taken from the sniper's inspirational story. That is because it can be applied to life management and personal development.
It is based on the idea of staying focused and faithful to a process regardless the difficulties, while not letting comparison or outcomes become harmful distractions.
How Luttrell Brought The Principle to Light?
After many things going wrong in the mission Operation Red Wings, the team was outnumbered, injuries started to cease the ability to fight back, and then three Navy Seals were assassinated. At that point, the sniper Marcus Luttrell is pushed at the bottom of a rock crevice after the impact of a rocket-propelled grenade. He is exhausted mentally and physically, and he has a broken leg and many other injuries. By luck or by God's hand he lands in a spot that allows him to hide from the Taliban soldiers, and then the principle of "Draw and Drag" is used to its fullest. As a Navy SEAL Luttrell had learned that regardless of the difficulties he had to keep moving to stand a chance of surviving; however, he could not even walk in that particular moment.
Luttrell in that miserable and scary scenario acted in a way that would impact the lives of millions of people in the world later on, not just Americans! He decided that he would draw a line and drag himself across the line, and then after passing that line, he would draw another line and drag himself again, and then again, and then again, again, again. Until without realizing, he had dragged himself for more than twenty miles and now stood a chance of survival.
Ok, I have to ruin the ending of the movie to those that have not watched yet, but do not be mad at me! You will still watch it and still love it. So, after dragging himself for more than twenty miles while paralyzed from the waist down (not portrayed in the movie), Luttrell is found by an Afghan Villager named AbiSuliman, who decides to protect his guest from the Taliban soldiers.
Unlike the brief moment of "asylum" in the Afghan's house showed in the movie. In reality, The American had to be moved from house to house in the village for four days until the US Forces could rescue him. The villagers decided to protect the "guest" because of a code of honor of the community.
Why Is This Principle Important And How Can We Relate To It?
Luttrell makes us take a deeper look at our present life perspective and expectations. We can often be thinking about how fast we should be getting rewards, how fast we should be in a different position, or how quickly we should accomplish something. That mindset almost always directs our perspectives to outcomes instead of being committed to a process and keep moving forward day in and day out.
The Navy SEAL simply focused on the process of moving forward regardless of how slow or hard it felt at those terrible moments in Afghanistan. He probably did not compare his speed to the soldiers running around him and thought "This is pointless, I can't even walk." He also probably did not focus his energy on a goal, such as making it to the closest village or urban area because he had no idea how far he was from one! And even if those thoughts crossed his mind trying to discourage him, he kept moving.
The main reason for me to "ruin" the end of the movie here is to point out how we do not know what is possible when we are faithful to the process of keeping moving forward. I firmly believe that as we keep being consistent day in and day out, regardless of how hard it is to fight discouragement at times, surprising and significant moments will be placed in our lives. They will remind us of how valuable it is to give our best in the journey.
Draw and drag, draw and drag, draw and drag. Do not compare your process to others, everyone has a different journey. Do not focus on outcomes because you have no idea if they are close or far away from you. Do your best to keep growing regardless of how you feel every day. Worthy moments will come as you continually become better.
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