Jack Reacher's Rules

Hurry up and wait.

“Hurry up and wait was the real MP motto. Not Assist, Protect, Defend.”

Never volunteer for anything. Soldier’s basic rule.

Confusion and unpredictability are what you should expect.

If in doubt, be flippant.

When the Navy says three hours, it means three hours. One hundred and eighty minutes, not a second more, not a second less.

The soldierly way to kill people is to shoot or stab or hit or strangle. They don’t do subtle.

Confront your enemies.

“Back in the day.”

“Delta is full of guys who can stay awake for a week and walk a hundred miles and shoot the balls off a tsetse fly, but it’s relatively empty of guys who can do all that and then tell you the difference between a Shiite and a trip to the latrine.”

Almost any place is serviceable; there is always somewhere worse to compare it with.

First you check, then you double-check.

Eat every time you can, sleep every time you can.

>>TWO WAYS TO GET PROMOTED

Let them think you’re just a little dumber than they are.

Raise a glass to “bloody wars and dread diseases.”

If in doubt, go formal.

Preconceptions get in the way.

“With manpower like the Army has, you can find a needle in a haystack. You can find both halves of the broken needle. You can find the tiny chip of chrome that flaked off the break.”

In the Army you learn how to sleep anywhere, anytime.

Initiative in the ranks usually ends in tears. Especially when live ammunition is involved.

The military and civilians will always remain a mystery to each other.

“I guess I don’t understand the military.”

“Well, don’t feel bad about it. We don’t understand you, either.”