Class of 2024 cadets arrived at Washington Hall adorned in their full-dress uniforms with some female cadets outfitted in evening gowns as they eagerly awaited the start of the Yearling Winter Weekend Banquet Friday at the U.S. Military Academy.
Traditionally, the academy celebrates what yearlings (sophomores) have achieved so far as they look forward to the rest of their 47-month experience at West Point.
During this event, cadets conducted a fallen comrades observance giving a toast in honor of Soldiers who paid the ultimate price for the Nation’s freedom.
Additionally, retired Gen. Stephen Lyons attended the banquet as a keynote speaker and imparted wisdom to the cadets on potential hurdles they will encounter and how to deal with them when they commission as second lieutenants.
“...Tonight I came to pay my respects. My assigned task from your class president was to talk about living honorably, dealing with adversity and resilience, and I know that the class of 2024 knows something about all of those topics, being the COVID-19 pandemic cohort,” Lyons said as he gave his speech. “In fact, your motto, ‘Like None Before, Class of 2024’ will always be a fitting tribute to your time here at the academy.”
Lyons used examples from his experience, providing what he called ‘a bit of old Soldier advice’ on observing the best and worst aspects of leadership throughout his 38 years of service.
He noted the significance of vision, sacrifice, attitude and balance and how these four concepts can help young leaders center themselves when dealing with any tasks or obstacles that may impede their progress throughout their career.
Vision, according to Lyons, is a personal conviction to the leader who wishes to find success in any endeavor they pursue. In other words, vision essentially focuses on a young leader’s vision for greatness.
Next, Lyons addressed the meaning of sacrifice and how it corresponds with future leaders serving their subordinates. In conjunction with sacrifice, he also spoke on the gravity of truth.
“...In the United States Army, military leaders are expected to sacrifice themselves for their troops,” Lyons said. “There are plenty of examples of leaders derailed by hubris, temptations and, in today’s highly divisive information environment, we must never, ever become a part of activities that betray public faith through deceitful rhetoric. Always be truthful. So, this brings me to my third point, and that is attitude.”
Lyons said how we respond to adversity and rebound in the face of failure has everything to do with attitude. He mused over the idea of how some people who are born with so much achieve so low.
Conversely, he addressed how some people born with so little accomplish so much.
“Why do some people encounter an obstacle and see it as an opportunity, and why do others get discouraged? It has a lot to do with attitude. The famous pastor, Charles R. Swindoll, is famous for saying, ‘life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.’”
Furthermore, Lyons said, in reference to balance, that the best measures of leadership success and leadership greatness have less to do with rank, position and salary than most people think.
“Each of you are extraordinarily gifted, or you wouldn’t be here. But you and your team will be comprised of humans. No matter how high-tech we get, leadership always comes back to people. This is where balance and resilience come in,” Lyons said. “Optimal performance requires us to balance mental, physical, social and spiritual fitness. You must take care of yourself to be able to take care of others and remember, have fun while you’re doing it.”
As the event concluded, cadets stood and roared with cheer and applause at the sage advice from Lyons as the master of ceremonies presented him with a gift from the academy.
“We were created to live lives of adventure. There’s something inside of us that inspires us to the challenge,” Lyons said. “We longed for honor, recognition and a chance to do something impressive, something great, to change the world. That’s who you are. That’s who this Class of 2024 is.”
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