#55 The Best Decision I’ve made so far. My first year as a West Point Cadet. w/ Ryan Leclair

Teach Me to Fish "Helping Leaders better understand what drives People"

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Today’s episode is with Ryan Leclair. She will talk about her first year at West Point, how it measured up to her expectations, the first two weeks of “Beast”, what she has learned so far, and what she is looking forward to the most in her second year. She’ll tell a few stories and hint at what’s driving her and her teammates.

Key discussion points include:
•Expectations vs. Reality (3:32-4:40): Ryan shares that her expectations for West Point were largely met due to prior conversations with family members who attended, but she didn't have many specific expectations, preferring to just be ready to start. She also mentions that Beast, while difficult, was not as bad as people had hyped it up to be.
•Beast Barracks (Basic Training) (6:35-8:42): Ryan details the rigorous routine of Beast, including early mornings (4:45 AM), physical training (PT), and briefs. The first half focuses on teaching cadets how to be a cadet, including memorizing rules and getting uniforms, while the second half involves army training like land navigation and FTX (Field Training Exercise). She was surprised that they didn't expect cadets to know anything beforehand, only to try their hardest (9:07-9:16).
•Volleyball and Academics (9:26-11:35): Ryan explains how being on the volleyball team meant leaving Beast early for practices and traveling for games, which significantly impacted her ability to attend a full week of classes during the first semester.
•End of the First Year (14:00-15:56): The end of the academic year involved term-end exams (finals) and "grad week," which focused on drilling and packing. This period saw a significant slowdown in academic work as everyone prepared for their summer training, transitioning into their roles for the next year.
•Field Experiences and Leadership Lessons (16:48-26:07, 27:06-30:07): Ryan recounts a chaotic but fun FTX experience involving a surprise "attack" and defending a house. She learned that summer trainings are primarily for leaders to develop their leadership style (27:33-27:56). A key takeaway from a 101st Airborne Division soldier was the importance of leaders "going to bat for your guys" (28:17-29:02), emphasizing that soldiers will have their leader's back if they know their leader cares about them and the mission.
•Advice for Future Leaders and Cadets (35:05-35:50, 39:37-41:17): Ryan shares advice given to her: don't expect to change everything immediately in the army; instead, observe, do your job, and communicate with your soldiers. Her main advice for those considering West Point or military

Why Teach Me to Fish?

Catch someone a fish, feed them for a day.
Teach them to fish, feed their family for life.

Our purpose is to help Leaders better understand what drives People to serve. In any organization, the core of recruiting and retaining talent revolves around leadership. And not just average leadership, but motivated, values-based, inspirational leadership.

Our Pursuit here is to get a little bit better every day.

Progress = Small Victories and stacking habits.

Habits like Getting up early, working your butt off, learning something new, Being positive and Surrounding yourself with phenomenal People.

Thanks for investing some time for yourself and thinking about the kind of People and experiences in your life that inspire you to be the best version of yourself.

I hope these conversations spark some ideas on what you can do to inspire People too.
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