A retired U.S. Air Force General delivered an inspiring commencement speech at Harvard University, urging graduates to lead with humility, integrity, and a commitment to serving others. His message emphasized that true leadership is not about power or status, but about responsibility, character, and making a positive impact on society. The speech resonated with students as they prepare to enter a rapidly changing world and take on future challenges.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome, everyone. Greetings.
00:02And I do want to say one thing, though.
00:04I got to clear up something that Tom just mentioned
00:07about the kids.
00:09I think Milo set the standard
00:11because he was going to go to the Air Force Academy
00:13until he found out I was going to be the superintendent.
00:18And then Zoe said,
00:20Dad, not doing it.
00:22So they settled for second best.
00:25Sorry, sir. No, no.
00:28Actually, they couldn't have made a better choice.
00:31They couldn't have made a better choice.
00:33And I want to thank you, President Garber, sir,
00:35for your leadership at Harvard through turbulent times.
00:40Your steadfastness has helped this institution continue.
00:43So thank you, sir.
00:45Thank you, sir.
00:54I also want to thank Tom, Nick, Jim, first for having me here.
01:00I know it was hard for you, Tom.
01:02You're the leader and you brought an Air Force guy in,
01:04but here I am.
01:05But I certainly appreciate this.
01:08It's such an honor, especially with Zoe being in this graduating class.
01:12But really, thank you for allowing me to be here.
01:15But more importantly, thank you for producing the next generation of leaders.
01:20And what you have done, you and your cadre have done,
01:23is immensely, immensely important to our country.
01:26So thank you all.
01:27Let's give them a round of applause.
01:39I also want to congratulate and thank all of the families here.
01:45These are some young people that have had dreams and aspirations throughout their whole lives.
01:50But I always say, if you see a turtle sitting on a fence post,
01:54you know it didn't get there by itself.
01:57Just wait for it.
01:58You'll get it.
01:59We'll get it.
02:01But you have helped them in ways that we can't even imagine
02:06and that we can't even measure.
02:08But congratulations for some amazing, amazing young people that are about to serve our country.
02:17I blew it out.
02:18Okay, there we go.
02:20Mostly, though, I want to congratulate you because they're about off your payroll.
02:24We're all getting a pay raise.
02:26This is good.
02:27This is good.
02:30So congratulations to you all, though.
02:33This is a great achievement.
02:35But then the group that we're all here to honor,
02:38I have to say thank you for stepping up to serve,
02:43stepping up to be a part of something bigger than yourselves
02:46and being a part of two amazing institutions in our country's history,
02:51Harvard and our armed forces.
02:53And you are special, special people.
02:55And it's an honor for me to be here in front of you.
02:57But I wish, I wish that I had the opportunity to serve with you.
03:03But congratulations to you.
03:04Let's give them a huge round of applause.
03:05Oh, my gosh.
03:15Thank you, chocolate and greens.
03:20Tom mentioned it in his remarks, though.
03:23They're about to take an oath of office that is a commitment to something so big
03:30and so important to our country.
03:32They're committing to our Constitution,
03:35the fabric that makes our country what it is.
03:38It has woven us over centuries
03:41and it will continue to weave us into the future,
03:44but only because people like them
03:46are willing to take an oath
03:47and willing to commit
03:48and willing to sacrifice to something bigger.
03:51And so I am just honored to be a part of this,
03:54but I will say it was exactly 40 years ago today
03:58that I took the oath of office to join the Air Force
04:02and it is exactly 40 years ago tomorrow
04:04that I graduated from the Air Force Academy
04:07and I remember it like it was yesterday.
04:10And whether you stay and serve for four years
04:13or 40 years, your service is very much appreciated.
04:17I urge you to enjoy it.
04:19I urge you to make sure that when you look back on it
04:23that your memories are about the things that you did,
04:26the differences that you made
04:27and the people that you touch,
04:29but enjoy it.
04:3040 years went so fast, so fast.
04:33I know I don't look like it,
04:35but it seemed like yesterday.
04:36It really does.
04:38But when I think about Harvard's history
04:41with the Armed Forces,
04:42there aren't many schools that can say
04:45that they've had graduates that serve
04:48in every conflict that our country has ever been a part of,
04:53have fought in every war,
04:56took the first oath of office in 1789
05:00and have continued right up to this group right here.
05:04It's pretty incredible.
05:06And I did some reading about it
05:08and there was one graduate that really struck me
05:10that I want to talk about.
05:12And I talk about 40 years ago for me,
05:14but let's go back 75 years
05:17to a graduate from Harvard.
05:20His name was Sherrod Skinner.
05:24Sherrod Skinner was,
05:27he was a graduate here.
05:28He was from Michigan.
05:30He lived in Connecticut.
05:31He had a twin brother here,
05:32David Skinner.
05:33And when Sherrod graduated,
05:36he commissioned into the Marine Corps.
05:39He commissioned,
05:40and in July he completed his training
05:43and he was shipped off in 1951.
05:46Actually graduated in 51.
05:49He went to training in 52
05:50and then he went to fight in the Korean War.
05:54Now Sherrod was an artillery observer
05:57and he was immediately put in charge,
06:00I mean months after graduation from Harvard.
06:03He was put in charge of an outpost
06:05that was on the front lines
06:07at a critical point
06:08in the front line in the Korean War.
06:12And one of the situations that he faced early on
06:17was in his outpost,
06:19the enemy knew that it was a critical place
06:23and they mounted a massive attack
06:25against that point in the line.
06:28And Lieutenant Skinner
06:30was in charge of this outpost
06:32and he was told hold the line
06:34until reinforcements come.
06:36He hadn't been a lieutenant that long.
06:39Months.
06:40But he knew what that meant.
06:42He knew what hold the line meant.
06:44He knew what his oath meant.
06:46And he knew how to lead his men
06:48to hold the line.
06:51And when the enemy came forward,
06:53he directed the attack,
06:55he directed machine gun fire,
06:57he directed mortar fire.
06:59Eventually though his lines of communication
07:01were cut off.
07:02And he couldn't have any more artillery fire.
07:04So now it was up to he and his men
07:07to hold the line.
07:09They continued to fight.
07:11He continued to command from his bunker
07:12even to the point
07:14where he had to leave his bunker
07:16on several occasions
07:18to bring ammunition
07:19to the machine gunners,
07:21to bring grenades
07:22to some of the soldiers,
07:23to continue to direct the fire.
07:26He was wounded twice.
07:27He refused, refused medical attention
07:30so that his men could be treated.
07:34And eventually they were out of munition.
07:37Reinforcements hadn't arrived.
07:39They were cut off from communications
07:40and the enemy had broken through the line.
07:43They fell back into the bunker.
07:46They defended as long as they could.
07:48Finally he told his men,
07:50feign death.
07:51Play dead.
07:52It's our only hope.
07:54They all played dead.
07:55The enemy came into the bunker.
07:57They looked in.
07:58They saw a bunch of marines
08:00laying on the ground.
08:02And when they left to ensure
08:04that there were no survivors,
08:06they threw a grenade in
08:08just to finish the job.
08:11And when they did,
08:13Lieutenant Skinner
08:14saw that grenade
08:16land between him
08:18and two of his men.
08:20And without hesitation,
08:22he jumped on that grenade.
08:24He took the explosion himself
08:26to save his men.
08:29Lieutenant Sherrod knew
08:31what it meant to hold the line.
08:33He knew what it meant
08:34to commit to something
08:35bigger than himself.
08:37As a result,
08:38that was on October 26th, 1952,
08:44three days before his 23rd birthday.
08:46He was 22 years old.
08:49A year later,
08:50he was posthumously received
08:54the Congressional Medal of Honor.
08:56One of 18 from Harvard,
08:57but the one that struck me the most.
09:0022 years old.
09:02A year in the military.
09:05And led with everything that he had.
09:08And gave everything that he had.
09:12And when I hear stories like that,
09:14I ask myself,
09:16what would I do?
09:18Could I do that?
09:20I ask myself,
09:22what were the values
09:22that were instilled in him
09:25that made him do
09:27what needed to be done
09:29to hold the line?
09:33And I study leadership.
09:35I look at other leaders.
09:37I try to learn from other leaders.
09:39And there's three values
09:40that I think had to be
09:42ingrained in him.
09:43And if they weren't,
09:44he certainly demonstrated them.
09:45The first being integrity.
09:48Integrity means that you
09:52execute and exhibit actions
09:53that are in alignment
09:55with your morals
09:57and your ethics
09:57and your beliefs
09:58and your commitments.
10:00That your actions
10:01and who you profess to be
10:03are in alignment.
10:05Lieutenant Skinner did that that day.
10:07He showed integrity
10:09without question.
10:10Integrity.
10:12The other one is humility.
10:14Humility doesn't mean
10:15that you think less of yourself.
10:17It means that you think
10:19of yourself less.
10:21And if there's not an example
10:23of thinking of yourself
10:25less than dying,
10:27than dying for your teammates,
10:29I don't know what is.
10:32He certainly had humility
10:34ingrained in him.
10:36And excellence.
10:39He was less than a year,
10:41less than a year as an officer.
10:44And he knew how to lead.
10:46He understood what it meant
10:47to hold the line.
10:49He understood what it meant
10:50to give everything he had,
10:52but really to execute his job
10:54to the fullest.
10:56In a short time,
10:58these things were ingrained in him.
11:00Excellence doesn't always mean
11:02that you're the best
11:04or that you're at the top,
11:05but what it means is that
11:06you're always, always
11:07elevating performance.
11:08You're always getting better.
11:10You're better today
11:11than you were yesterday.
11:12You're better this year
11:13than you were last year.
11:14You're better this time
11:15you did an action
11:16than you were
11:17the last time you did it.
11:18It's about being better.
11:20There is no end to better.
11:22And I have no doubt
11:24that Lieutenant Skinner
11:26continued to get better
11:27because he became
11:29so, so incredible
11:32in such a short time.
11:35Integrity, humility, excellence.
11:37Those are the values that he had.
11:39But I will say this too.
11:40Values don't mean anything
11:43without action.
11:45And there's a quote by Lao Tzu.
11:47He's a Chinese philosopher,
11:49500 B.C.
11:50And most of us
11:51have probably heard that.
11:52Your thoughts become words.
11:55Your words become actions.
11:57Your actions become habits.
11:59Your habits become character
12:01and your character
12:01is your destiny.
12:04His thoughts translated
12:06to destiny
12:07like no other story
12:08I've heard.
12:10And his actions
12:12were exactly
12:13what his thoughts
12:15had instilled within him.
12:17And when I think about those,
12:19what are the thoughts
12:19and the actions?
12:20Because we know
12:21what the words
12:21and the thoughts were.
12:22Integrity, humility,
12:23and excellence.
12:24And so,
12:25what I want to tell you
12:26is the way that I see
12:28the actions and the habits
12:29coming from those words
12:30for integrity,
12:32it's about living honorably.
12:35Live honorably.
12:37Do the right thing.
12:38Even when nobody's looking.
12:40Live honorably
12:41in accordance
12:42with your own beliefs
12:43and your own moral standard.
12:46Live honorably.
12:47That's what integrity is about.
12:49When we talk about humility,
12:51humility isn't,
12:53like I said,
12:53thinking less of yourself.
12:54It's about lifting others.
12:57Lift others before yourself.
12:58We've all been a part
12:59of organizations
13:00where people climb
13:01on the backs of others
13:02to get to the top.
13:04But it's about lifting
13:05your teammates
13:06to be their best possible selves.
13:08Helping them to grow
13:10and to learn
13:11and doing everything
13:12that you can.
13:13Imagine if everybody on a team
13:14was committed to helping
13:16everyone else on a team,
13:17how great that team would be.
13:19Lift others.
13:21Those are the actions
13:22and habits of a humble person.
13:24And excellence.
13:26I mentioned it's about
13:27getting better every day,
13:29elevate performance.
13:31Elevating performance
13:32is about a mindset.
13:34It's not necessarily
13:35about the, you know,
13:37the things that you do
13:37or the levels
13:38that you achieve,
13:39but it's about every day
13:41saying,
13:42I'm going to be better today
13:43than I was yesterday
13:44in everything that I do.
13:45Elevate performance.
13:47Live honorably.
13:48Lift others.
13:49Elevate performance.
13:50Those are the actions
13:52of a man,
13:53of a woman,
13:54of character.
13:55Now,
13:56I want to give you
13:58one more example.
13:59And it's a personal one.
14:02So,
14:03in 2008,
14:05I was deployed
14:06to Iraq for a year.
14:08And,
14:08um,
14:09left my family,
14:10uh,
14:11and went,
14:11and I was part of the,
14:13I deployed with the army.
14:15Imagine that.
14:17And I was part,
14:19I led a team
14:19of about 45 people
14:21called the Joint
14:22Interagency Task Force.
14:24And I worked
14:24for Multinational Force
14:25Iraq.
14:26And it was,
14:27without a doubt,
14:28the hardest year of my life.
14:30I will never forget it.
14:31But it was also
14:32one of the most meaningful
14:33of my life.
14:35And,
14:35I led my team,
14:37and I was committed
14:38to the same kinds of values
14:40that we just talked about.
14:41I put everything I had
14:44into leading my team,
14:45into lifting others,
14:46into living honorably,
14:47into elevating our performance,
14:48and making us better and better.
14:50And,
14:50when it came time for leave,
14:52I even let my team go first.
14:54I said,
14:55when everybody else is done
14:56with their leave,
14:57then I'll go.
14:58And so,
14:58it was about
14:59eight and a half months
15:00into my deployment
15:01when I finally got to take leave.
15:02And I got to go home.
15:04And I remember going to the airport,
15:07Baghdad International Airport.
15:09And when I got there,
15:11um,
15:12you know,
15:13I told myself,
15:14I said,
15:14man,
15:14I have been leading
15:16hard for a long time.
15:18It's time to take a break.
15:20And I started my leave
15:22right then
15:23and right there.
15:24And I walked into the airport,
15:25I checked in
15:26to get on my plane,
15:27and the airman
15:28at the operations desk said,
15:30Colonel Clark,
15:31I was a colonel back then,
15:33Colonel Clark,
15:33you're the senior ranking officer
15:35on the airplane,
15:36so you're the chalk commander,
15:39meaning,
15:39I was in charge of everybody
15:41that was getting on that airplane.
15:44And I was like,
15:46no,
15:47I'm not.
15:49There's got to be someone else.
15:51He said,
15:51sir,
15:51not only are you the senior ranking,
15:53you're the only officer
15:54on the airplane.
15:55You're in charge.
15:57So I took the list,
15:58I looked down at,
16:00I got everyone together,
16:01and then I said,
16:02and I,
16:03and the next senior ranking person
16:05was a tech sergeant
16:06on the list.
16:08And I said,
16:09hey,
16:10come here.
16:11I got a job for you.
16:14And I gave him the list,
16:15and I said,
16:17you're going to be responsible
16:18for everybody on this list.
16:21And I want you to make sure
16:23that we're communicating,
16:24and that everybody's
16:25taking care of you.
16:26God,
16:26he's like,
16:27yes sir,
16:27I got it.
16:28And he took it,
16:29and he owned it.
16:30He led.
16:31He was being a leader.
16:32I was delegating.
16:35Right?
16:37So we go,
16:39and we're all waiting,
16:40and everyone's sitting
16:40on the ground outside.
16:43And then the ops airman,
16:45he comes up to me,
16:46and he says,
16:46hey,
16:47Colonel Clark,
16:48I got some bad news.
16:50The plane is broken,
16:51and you guys are going
16:52to be delayed.
16:52And I was like,
16:53are you kidding me?
16:55Come on.
16:56He's like,
16:56sir,
16:57there's nothing I can do about it.
16:58It's just the crew
16:58says it's broken.
17:00And being a pilot,
17:01it's not good to fly
17:02broken airplanes,
17:03but I was like,
17:05okay.
17:06And so I sat there,
17:07and I thought,
17:07oh,
17:07I better tell the tech sergeant.
17:09So I went,
17:09and I told him,
17:10hey,
17:10let everybody know
17:11the plane's broken,
17:12and we'll be off
17:13in a little while.
17:13So he goes,
17:14and he does his duty.
17:15Well,
17:16then it keeps,
17:17the time is just dragging on,
17:20and I'm just getting
17:21so impatient.
17:22And I go to the ops airman
17:23probably four times,
17:25and I said,
17:26when's the plane
17:26going to be ready?
17:27What's going on?
17:28And he finally got to the point,
17:30he was just like,
17:31sir,
17:31I don't know.
17:32I think he was getting
17:33a little bit scared of me,
17:34and he was certainly
17:35a little bit tired of me
17:36bothering him
17:37and pestering him
17:38so that I could go home
17:40to my family.
17:43And I didn't even tell
17:46the tech sergeant
17:47as I was getting
17:48this information.
17:49I just let everybody
17:51sit outside,
17:52and I did my thing.
17:54Well,
17:55the last time
17:55that I went to the tech sergeant,
17:57I said,
17:57hey,
17:58what's the status?
17:59Tell me where the plane is.
18:00What are we doing?
18:01And he said,
18:01hey,
18:01sir,
18:02you know what?
18:03There's a distinguished
18:04visitor lounge
18:05for colonels
18:06and above
18:07that you could go sit in.
18:09Do you want me
18:09to take you there?
18:10I was like,
18:11oh,
18:11that sounds good.
18:12So I go in this little room.
18:14They have cookies
18:16and soda.
18:18There's a TV
18:19playing the Armed Forces Network,
18:20and I just sit there,
18:22and I am fat,
18:23dumb,
18:23and happy
18:24watching TV,
18:26just relaxing.
18:27It was even a little bit
18:28air-conditioned,
18:29as much as you can get
18:31in Baghdad,
18:31and I just sat there
18:33for a long time,
18:36and the airman was right.
18:37I stopped bothering him
18:38because I was good.
18:40Me.
18:41I was good.
18:42And so then,
18:43he comes in,
18:44finally,
18:44and he says,
18:44hey,
18:45Colonel Clark,
18:46the plane's ready,
18:47and I was the first one.
18:48I put my helmet on,
18:49I put my vest on,
18:50and my battle rattle,
18:52as we call it,
18:52and I line up,
18:53and I'm standing at the door,
18:55and I realize,
18:55wait,
18:56I'm standing here by myself,
18:58and so I went
18:59and told the tech sergeant,
19:00I said,
19:00hey,
19:01the plane's ready.
19:02Can you let everybody else know?
19:04And he was like,
19:05yes, sir,
19:05got it,
19:05and he went,
19:06rounded everybody up,
19:07and we got on.
19:07We lined up,
19:08and I was first one in line.
19:10We walk out.
19:11We go to the C-130.
19:12The back's open.
19:13We got on really quickly,
19:15and we all sat down,
19:16and we took off,
19:17and we flew,
19:17and we landed in Mosul,
19:18and that was one stop to Kuwait,
19:21and then home,
19:22and I was like,
19:23man,
19:23one step closer.
19:24We land in Mosul,
19:25and the crew tells us
19:26as we're getting off the plane,
19:27we're broken.
19:29We're going to be here
19:30a little while.
19:31So I told the tech sergeant,
19:33hey,
19:33we're broken.
19:35Make sure everybody's
19:36taken care of,
19:37and we walk in.
19:38We get to the ops desk.
19:40Guess what my first question was?
19:42Where's the lounge?
19:45They stuck me in the lounge.
19:47Better cookies.
19:49Better soda.
19:51TV.
19:52And I just sat there.
19:54I just sat there,
19:55and I enjoyed my time.
19:58Then,
20:01the ops desk,
20:03they come in to the room,
20:05and they tell me,
20:06Colonel Clark,
20:08plane's fixed.
20:09Well,
20:10plane's not fixed.
20:11We have a different plane for you,
20:12and we're going to be able
20:13to get you to Kuwait
20:14so that you and your team
20:16can go home,
20:16my team.
20:18And so I made sure this time
20:20that I told the tech sergeant,
20:21I said, hey,
20:22we're going to go.
20:23We're going to go on a different plane,
20:24so let's get everyone lined up.
20:25So we line up,
20:27and I'm first one in line again,
20:30and we start walking,
20:31and we get out to our C-130,
20:33and it's all buttoned up.
20:35It's all meaning closed.
20:36All the doors are closed.
20:37And I said,
20:37why is this the one?
20:39It's closed.
20:40And he said,
20:40yes, sir,
20:41this is the one,
20:41but we're going to enter through the front.
20:43And I was like,
20:43well,
20:44that takes too long.
20:45Why can't we?
20:46He's like,
20:46sir,
20:47I'm just the ops desk airman.
20:49That's the crew's call.
20:51I was like,
20:51fine.
20:51So we walk out there,
20:53and we go on the front,
20:54and normally I would give a fist bump
20:56to the load master
20:57as I'm walking into the plane,
20:59but I was just like,
20:59hey,
21:00why didn't you guys have the back opened up?
21:01We could have already been on here.
21:03I don't understand.
21:04And he's like,
21:05sir,
21:05please,
21:05if you could just have a seat.
21:07So I kept,
21:08you know,
21:08I was like,
21:08fine.
21:09And I walked,
21:10as soon as I walked by him,
21:11and I looked back
21:12to the back of the plane,
21:14and there's two coffins,
21:17flag draped.
21:20And as soon as I saw them,
21:22I just felt this,
21:25like,
21:26sense of dread.
21:27Like,
21:28what a jerk I am.
21:32What a poor leader.
21:37What an anti-everything
21:40that I said I would be
21:42that I was that day.
21:46And when I was the first one on the plane,
21:50that meant that I got to go
21:51all the way to the back
21:53and I sat right with those two coffins
21:57right in front of me.
21:59And I got to do some thinking.
22:02And I got to think about myself
22:05and what kind of leader I had been that day
22:08and my choice to not lead that day.
22:11I thought about the people
22:14that were in those coffins
22:20that gave everything.
22:22Everything.
22:24And I couldn't make it through
22:25one more day of leadership.
22:28One more day of helping people
22:31to be their best.
22:35And I made that choice.
22:38And I sat there and I said,
22:40never again.
22:43Never again
22:44will I choose not to lead.
22:47And it was a long trip.
22:50And when I got home,
22:52I told Amy the story
22:54and I said,
22:55I can't even believe how I acted.
22:56I can't believe
22:58that I couldn't go
23:00one more day
23:02to be the leader
23:03that I said I was going to be.
23:06Live honorably.
23:08Lift others.
23:10Elevate performance.
23:12Was not a part
23:13of my value set that day.
23:17And so I tell you this
23:18to say every day,
23:22every day you make a choice.
23:24We all do.
23:26But don't ever think,
23:28don't ever think
23:29that your choices don't matter.
23:32Make the right ones.
23:34You choose your attitude,
23:35you choose your values,
23:37and you choose to lead
23:38or not to lead every day.
23:40And when you don't,
23:42sometimes you remember
23:43it for the rest of your life.
23:46You got two examples today.
23:50You got Lieutenant Skinner
23:53and you got Colonel Clark.
23:56We both made choices.
24:00Use those examples
24:02to determine
24:02how you're going to lead
24:03for the rest of your time
24:05in the military,
24:06for the rest of your life,
24:08because leadership
24:09is not confined
24:10to the military.
24:11Leadership is everywhere you go,
24:14every stop you make,
24:15every time you meet someone,
24:17you have the chance
24:18to live honorably,
24:20to lift others,
24:22to elevate performance
24:23with integrity,
24:25humility,
24:25and excellence.
24:27Choose your values
24:28and live them every day.
24:31And I just want to thank
24:33these young folks
24:34because I know
24:35they've already made a choice
24:37to be a part of the armed forces.
24:40And now my charge to you
24:43is choose to lead
24:45every day.
24:46Every day.
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24:54and never miss an update.
24:58Download the One India app now.
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