What If Anger Is the Answer?
What if Anger Isn't The Problem?
Modern leadership teaches us to suppress anger — to smooth it over, soften it, or eliminate it entirely. But history, philosophy, and lived experience tell a different story.
In this book, former Marine Corps Major and tech founder Michael LeBlanc explores anger not as a destructive impulse — but as a moral force that, when disciplined, helps leaders defend standards, protect teams, and act with courage under pressure.
Blending combat leadership experience, classical philosophy, and real-world failures, What If Anger Is the Answer challenges the belief that emotional neutrality is the highest form of leadership.
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Excerpts from the book
Prelude: A Letter to My Son
Dear Michael,
To become a man, some things need to be wrestled out, things that only come alive in your own struggle against whatever demons you take on as your enemies. I can’t fight those battles for you, nor would I want to. It’s in those fights that you’ll decide who you’ll become.
It seems like the further you go back in history, the easier it was to become a man. Without civilization, you couldn’t survive without turning from a boy into a man. You couldn’t live without learning…
Not a war story
We were eating goat for lunch again. Staff Sergeant Williams and I were at the Afghan Army chow hall, a large tent that managed to feel like an elementary school field trip to Afghanistan. I smiled in conversation with the Afghan soldiers, moving the goat around on my plate to look like I was eating.
Gunshots. This time from just a few tables away. Afghan soldiers ran out of the chow hall, some screaming. Chaos erupted all round, like a starter pistol had gone off. Everywhere was confusion…
Peanut butter
I didn’t understand why Socrates had a third part in the soul until I’d finished a hard training course called The Infantry Officer Course (IOC) in the Marines. IOC was about pushing your body to the limit. We’d go without food and without sleep. We’d run 20 miles one day then carry 200-pound packs the next.
It was brutal. After I graduated the course, I felt entitled to a reward. Just after IOC ended, I went to Virginia Beach to attend a relaxed classroom course. For three months, I’d get 8 hours of sleep each night in a hotel room and…
Book FAQ
Is this book about controlling your temper?
No. It is about understanding when anger is appropriate and how to discipline it so it serves reason and values instead of appetite or ego.
Is this a military book?
The stories come from military experience, but the lessons apply to leadership, business, parenting, and relationships.
Is this an anti-empathy or "toxic masculinity" book?
No. It argues that suppressing anger weakens empathy and loyalty. Proper anger protects what we care about.
Is this book philosophical or practical?
Both. It combines classical philosophy with real-world leadership decisions under pressure.