Seniors Francis Ahmed and Brooks Mencke Represent Seton Hall at the McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference
Part 1 Written By: Francis Ahmed
To say that I spent the weekend learning and growing significantly understates the transformation that took place within Brooks and I this past weekend at West Point Academy. We applied and were accepted to be the Seton Hall representatives at the 2016 McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference. Kyle Packnick, who had this privilege the previous year, was quick to congratulate us, and tell us that this would change us in extraordinarily dramatic ways, and be one of the best weekends of our lives.
He was right. Brooks and I had the incredible opportunity to be pushed and challenged to take down our walls and confront the leaders within ourselves so we could gain a better understanding of who what leadership means to us. Colonel Banks, Department Head, Department of Behavioral Sciences at West Point, referred to these vulnerable talks and expressions of self as ‘intentional and purposeful tears of our leadership muscles.’ He explained that when you are trying to grow bigger and stronger, you tear your muscle; you make yourself uncomfortable. Too little, however, and you won’t get much out of it, and too much and you’ll injure yourself. During the week Brooks and I tore muscles as we learned about ourselves and our leadership.
The exceptional panel of world leaders whom we were so grateful to hear and learn from were hand-selected to build, shape and hone the conference participants into highly effective and confident future leaders. Those selected to join the conference were brought together with similar intent. This student body, referred to as “student fellows,” immediately connected with one another under the common bonds of leadership, service and intellectual curiosity.
Throughout the weekend we had informal networking sessions with fellow students and the Conference lead speakers, known as “Senior Fellows,” which forged a strong sense of community and friendship. We shared our ideas and quickly developed personal and professional relationships we knew would go far beyond the weekend. We spent our days learning together in rich and highly interactive panel discussions revolving around the theme of “From Failure to Inspiration and Change”. We had the unique opportunity to learn from people: the U.S. Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs, the Administrator of U.S. Small Businesses, the McKinsey Global Managing Director and other renowned and exceptional world leaders. The learning and inspiration we experienced is far too great to adequately capture in a blog post. Our key takeaways from this weekend, however, were: failure can open you to golden opportunities you didn’t previously see; every type of leader has a purpose that they can unlock value out of; and most importantly, each of us has the power to change the world, for better or worse.
I am so grateful, honored and proud to have represented Seton Hall University, and I hope that Brooks and I can continue this exceptional relationship with the Senior Fellows, the Student Fellows and West Point Academy’s students and faculty to allow future Seton Hall students to experience what we were so fortunate to have endured.
Francis Ahmed (Left) and Brooks Mencke (Right)
Part 2 Written By: Brooks Mencke
On Thursday, March 31, 2016, Francis and I departed South Orange with our sights set on the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point. That weekend, we represented Seton Hall University, the Stillman School of Business, and the Gerald P. Buccino ’63 Center for Leadership Development at the 4th annual McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference (MCLC). Here, over 84 senior fellows, student fellows, USMA cadets, and other invitees from over 20 countries gathered to learn and grow as leaders of character.
This year’s conference was guided by the question: How do leaders and organizations process failure and adversity to learn, grow, and generate inspiration in order to make personal and organizational changes that are beneficial and align with their values and vision? Reflecting on that question, the conference focused on exploring the importance of growth, maintaining order at all levels, processing and thriving from trials, and identifying goals and defining success.
In listening to in-depth panel discussions, meeting in informal breakout groups, hearing accomplished presenters speak, and gathering socially, Francis and I immersed ourselves in an incredibly transformative experience. Attending the conference, and representing Seton Hall, was a tremendous honor. I am grateful to have learned so much from individuals with such unique perspectives. The following quotes represent the words which impacted me most during my time at West Point’s MCLC:
- “Intelligence is learning from your mistakes. Wisdom is learning from the mistakes of others.”
- “In your life, do you see stop signs or do you see possibilities?”
- “Leadership is about championship. It’s about how you champion people and get there together.”
- “A mentor is someone who knows the song in our hearts and can sing it back to us when we forget the words.”
- “The death of a dream can be the birth of a destiny.”
- “Be interesting- being a full-blooded person is important.”
- “You have to have the mindset of lifelong learning. If you rest, you rust.”
- “Don’t allow society to define success for you. Create your own purpose.”
- “You can be competent, but if you fail in character, then you fail in leadership.”
- “Be kind. Be curious. Be committed.”
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