Carry the Fight on One Knee

What Ulysses S. Grant Teaches Us About Leadership in Adversity

In Of Providence, the Stoic philosopher Seneca wrote:

“Unbroken prosperity cannot bear a single blow; but he who has waged an unceasing strife with his misfortunes has gained a thicker skin by his sufferings, yields to no disaster, and even though he fall yet fights on his knee.”

There is something indelibly human - and undeniably powerful - about that image: a warrior, bruised and battered, still fighting from his knees. It’s a portrait of resilience, a quiet defiance that refuses to surrender even when every reason says otherwise.

We’ve all been there, haven’t we? Bent but not broken by hardship. Knocked down by failure, setbacks, criticism, or sheer exhaustion, but still inching forward.

When I was younger, I was told that hard times “build character.” At the time, all it built was misery. But over the years, I’ve come to realize what that phrase truly means. The key is simple, and impossibly hard: don’t stop. Yield to no disaster.

Find a way forward. Carry the fight on one knee if you must.

At the RF Factor, we talk often about the relentless spirit of leadership: resilience, tenacity, and what we affectionately call “stick-to-it-iveness.” But these aren’t just motivational buzzwords - they are the lived traits of people who refuse to quit when things go sideways. And perhaps no American leader personified this mindset more than Ulysses S. Grant.

The Reluctant Warrior

Grant didn’t chase greatness. In fact, he didn’t even want to attend West Point.

He wasn’t the top of his class (he was 21st out of 39), and when given his first commission, it wasn’t in the cavalry - where his talents lay - but the infantry.

Even though James Longstreet - later a Confederate General - was a year ahead of him at West Point, the two quickly became close friends, with Longstreet serving as Grant’s best man at his wedding.

While Grant was considered modest, quiet, and unassuming, there was something about Grant that others noticed: he finished what he started.

In an 1885 interview with the New York Times, shortly after Grant’s death, Longstreet said, “He was the truest as well as the bravest man that ever lived.”

During the Mexican War, Grant didn’t just move supplies as a quartermaster. He rode toward the front, into the danger, and earned respect for his courage.

Yet, after the war, his life took a darker turn. He resigned from the Army, endured professional failures, struggled financially, and battled personal demons. For six long years, he floundered in obscurity, but never gave up trying to find his way.

When the Civil War erupted, Grant’s path back to the Army was neither immediate nor easy. But when he finally returned to uniform, something in him had hardened. He had a head for operations and logistics, but more importantly, he had steel in his spine.

Resilience in the Crucible

At Shiloh, a brutal battle that stunned the nation, Grant’s leadership was tested under fire - literally. As Union troops reeled, Grant remained calm and focused. When his subordinate William T. Sherman said, “Well, Grant, we’ve had the devil’s own day, haven’t we?” Grant replied, cigar in hand, “Yes. Lick ’em tomorrow though.”

That moment defines leadership in crisis. Grant wasn’t pretending it wasn’t hard. He simply chose to keep going anyway. And when the press turned on him, when rivals whispered about his past, when friends doubted, and even when he doubted, he stayed.

Why? Because leaders don’t abandon the mission. They adapt. They flex. They fall if they must - but they fight on their knees if that’s all they have left.

The Long View of Leadership

Grant’s victory at Vicksburg is a masterclass in this kind of tenacious, adaptive leadership. His campaign was marked by setbacks, false starts, and bad terrain. But each time a plan failed, he crafted another. He never wavered from his goal, but he was flexible in how to achieve it - a hallmark of great leadership.

President Lincoln soon appointed Grant to General-in-Chief. There he supported and empowered subordinates like Sherman and Sheridan. He didn’t micromanage - he trusted. He communicated clearly, stayed focused on outcomes, and gave his people room to maneuver.

Yet, Grant’s critics, to include First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, decried him as “Butcher Grant”, a drunk, and worse. Professional and political rivals leaked to the press accusations of his drinking, and rumors of him seeking political office against Lincoln.

Critics from both the North and the South dismissed him as an unsophisticated Western rube, downplayed his successes, and judged him no match for his new opponents, Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia.

But as Longstreet warned the South, “That man will fight us every day and every hour till the end of the war.” And he did. Grant fought with competence, character, trust, and communication - and those are the same cornerstones every modern leader must strive to build.

Call to Action: Lead Like Grant

Leadership isn’t about perfection. It’s about persistence. It’s about staying calm in chaos, adjusting when things go wrong, and seeing the mission through - especially when it hurts.

If you’re leading right now, in business, in service, or in life, ask yourself:

• Are you clear on your end state, but flexible in your path to get there?

• Are you relentless in follow-up, but gracious with others as they struggle?

• Are you willing to carry the fight on one knee if that’s what it takes?

Resilience isn’t glamorous.

Tenacity doesn’t always come with applause. But those who lead like Grant - quietly, steadfastly, from the front - are the ones who leave a mark that matters.

So when the world knocks you down - and it will - remember this: You are not beaten yet by a damn sight.

Stand if you can. Fight on your knee if you must. But don’t you dare stop.