Entry 21: Not Goodbye, See You Soon

Date: May 21st, 2021

What I did this week: Last Friday was a tough but fun day. After meeting with Harris to discuss my DRiV and EQi 260 results, I proctored my final…final. I had some time to sneak away to the ELDP graduation to see the next crop of fresh-faced TACs and catch up with my TC professors. It was so awesome to see some stellar leaders walking across the stage, and to see Davyd in particular, who was a rock star lieutenant I served with a few years back.

I went from there to grab the family and headed to our Department farewell event, where I was officially sent off with an amazing little ceremony. It was truly a sad day and I’m so thankful to have been part of the BS&L team here at West Point. So many remarkable leaders have helped me along the way, and I’m so thankful for my time serving in this organization. In his special way, COL Spain made everyone feel good about saying farewell by saying: “This is not goodbye, it’s see you soon.” So much of my growth has come directly from him, and this one will stick with me as well.

           This week I had some amazing conversations with some outstanding people. On Monday I met with Richard, and he gave me some tremendous advice in how to leverage my skillset to set myself apart for future opportunities. I also had a chance to talk with Kim at Accenture to learn more about the organization and explore potential fits for my experience. I had an awesome chat with LTG(R) Mayville, my former Division Commander from when I was in Afghanistan. He was so kind with his time and seeing his path and work with the organizations he supports was inspiring. I also had the chance to meet with Bryan from Seton Hall, and he’s also an Army Baseball Alumni! He’s doing some amazing work in the leader development space and it was a blast to learn more about his journey. I cannot tell you enough how impressive the Buccino Leadership Institute is and more industry leaders need to know about the stellar people coming out of this program.

           In between all of this, I cleared post and got ready for Friday pack out. I also had the chance to say goodbye to the rugby team at the annual end of season banquet. The team has come so far and I cannot wait to see them continue to climb and get better every day. They have a rock solid culture and they are destined to be even better next season. They also gave me a very nice going away gift, and I’m so thankful for the honor to work with the program these last few years.

I happened to run into my old boss, Adisa King, which was completely random! It was good to catch up and hear about his next assignment in Hawaii. This was an awesome week full of a lot of different emotions, but time to get to work for the move!

What I’m reading and learned: I finished the Power of Vulnerability and started Thinking Fast and Slow. I’ve listened to a couple of podcasts from Dr. Kahneman (and we use some of his work for our course text), so it’s been fun to read the source material. 

Self-reflection(s) of the week: West Point has been an amazing assignment, and so much of what I’ve learned here I plan to carry forward to my professional career. Interestingly, the bulk of my growth I’ve found post-Cadet time, given that I’ve had the opportunity to reflect and understand where I’ve come from. I want to figure out a way to continue to give back to the Academy, and I think I have some unique ideas I’ll start working in a few months.  

Did I succeed in my previous goal(s)?: I did, and was even able to complete some extra stuff to prep for the pack out of our house hold goods three days earlier than expected!   

Goals for next week: Pack the house, enjoy McKinley’s dance recital, eat myself into a coma at MEATFEST 2021, have an amazing 5th birthday for McKinley, spend quality time with my mom and our friends before we leave. I’m not committing to anything other than moving next week so we can get on the road! 

Inspiration, passion, or excitement of the week: Two things. First was my mom getting to see Maddie, who she hadn’t seen for over a year due to COVID. Also seeing McKinley give grandma the biggest hug ever was so amazing. Second was something that COL Marson said in his speech to the rugby team: “You are above no man, and no man is above you.” That has been rattling around in my head since he said it, and I plan to keep that quote with me.

Gratitude: Thanks to Richard for having a 20+ minute networking meeting with me and teaching me more about outplacement firms and the power of transition coaching. Thanks to Kim for taking the time to talk to me more about Accenture. Thanks to LTG(R) Mayville for being so gracious with his time and talking Big Red One shop with me. Thanks to Bryan for his work in developing leaders and our discussion. Thanks to the Army Men’s Rugby Team, especially the graduating firsties and Coaches Sherman and Sumsion. Thanks to the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership, especially Everett Spain, Brian Reed, Todd Woodruff, Russ Lemler, Travis Tilman, Jason Bogardus, Ed Hudelson, Jordan Terry, Kim Cowan, Brian Gaudette, and Jess Gathers for their incredible support over the last year. So many others have helped me along the way in the department, and I am so thankful for the honor to have worked among some true giants.

Zach