That was the question posed by Jim Collins when he spoke at West Point to a group of 36 people-- 12 U.S. Army generals, 12 "Fortune" 500 CEO types and 12 leader

That was the question posed by Jim Collins when he spoke at West Point to a group of 36 people-- 12 U.S. Army generals, 12 "Fortune" 500 CEO types and 12 leaders from the social sectors. Specifically, he asked them, "Where’s America? Is America at an inflection point? And if so, which way? Because great nations -- Athens, 500 BCE, Rome, Egyptian Old Kingdom, Egyptian New Kingdom, Minoans of Crete have fallen." This question was the inspiration for his fascinating book, "How the Mighty Fall" -- you can watch his interview with Charlie Rose on this here: http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/10565 http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/10565 He said his research team found 5 stages of decline that were common among all the great enterprises that fell. He said the first stage is hubris, but you can go through the first 4 stages and still recover before reaching the fifth and final stage, which is capitulation or death.