We have some suggested titles for Admiral McRaven’s new children’s book

Without further ado, here are some other book titles McRaven might want to consider using, if not for this one, then maybe for a follow-up in a series about Skipper the SEAL.

• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, We Blew a hole in your compound Wall Fish
• Everyone dies. That’s why we have SEALs
• The Very Hungry Military Working Dog
• The tango, the helo, and Cairo the working dog
• One Shot, Two Shot, Head Shot, You Shot
• Oh the Places You’ll Hide from the United States Military
• Liberty’s Web
• 1 SEAL, 2 SEAL, Red Squadron, Gold Squadron
• Why did Geronimo die? A book about the bin Laden raid.
• Where The Terrorists Are
• Curious Rob O’Neill, the Curious SEAL
• Goodnight, Moon and Hello, Nightvision
• No Easy Day in Whoville
• Goodnight, Boom.
• Oh, the Places You’ll Blow Up
• Big Bad Abbottabad
• Waiting for DEVGRU
• These Seals Don’t Have Flippers
• Everybody Shoots: The story of the Bin Laden raid
• The Hardy Boys: SEAL Team 6
• Curious Osama
• The Little Black Hawks That Could
• Go The F*ck To Sleep
• Osama Bin Laden and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
• Goodnight Goon
• Everyone poops (their pants when special operations forces arrive)

McRaven’s actual upcoming children’s book, Make Your Bed with Skipper the Seal, builds off his 2017 bestseller Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life… And Maybe The World. It may be tempting to crack jokes about how making your bed couldn’t possibly be all that important; something every single parent reading this, and a bunch of instructors in the military would likely disagree with. The adage is a frequent refrain of McRaven’s — he’s harkened back to that simple act many times over the years, and views it as a stepping stone toward making oneself an effective and impactful member of a team.

And for kids, the message is just as useful: “Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that the little things in life matter,” McRaven said at the University of Texas at Austin 2014 commencement address. “If you can’t do the little things right, you will never be able to do the big things right.”

Presumably, his upcoming children’s book, much like his previous book on leadership, will continue to drive home that theme when it comes out in October 2021.

“When my three children were young, I always took time to read to them,” McRaven said in a recent interview with the Associated Press.”I found that stories of adventure and overcoming challenges helped shape their character and inspired them to be their very best,” he continued. “I hope that ‘Make Your Bed with Skipper the Seal’ is just such a book!”

But as much as we here at Task & Purpose agree that “make your bed, kid” is an excellent framework for a children’s book, and just good guidance in general, we think McRaven may have missed out on a golden opportunity.

Feature image: Task & Purpose photo composite showing U.S. Navy Adm. William McRaven as he speaks to enlisted personnel during an all-call at the Commando Hangar on Hurlburt Field, Fla., Jan. 31, 2012. (Task & Purpose photo illustration/U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Gustavo Castillo)