Remarks today by USAFA Board of Visitors member Dan Clark, a motivational public speaker who is also on the STARRS Board of Advisors:
For all of my colleagues, I mentioned to the cadets last night as we had a chance to gather at the superintendent’s home for that beautiful reception. Thank you sir. To remind them that what they do on a daily basis is an ordinary miracle to them. They’re dressed the same and they show up and perform at this highest level.
That they just think is normal. Then when we can come from the outside world, especially as a civilian who’s never served in the military and see how extraordinary they are, I wanted to remind them about that. I congratulate you, sir.
As an author, as a songwriter, we all know that the hook is what sells the song. You know, my buddy Tim Nichols wrote “Live Like You’re Dying” for Tim McGraw. If I could put it in a nutshell, something that I wanted to go on public record is my observation of the superintendent’s intent. It’s a quote: “It’s better to build a fence at the edge of the cliff than it is to park an ambulance at its base.”
So I compliment you, sir, on your focus on warfighters, on your focus on preparation, so that with these critical thinking skills, we can perform. I played football for 13 years and I was paralyzed in a tackling drill, paralyzed for 14 months, went to 16 doctors, 15 of whom told me I would never get any better.
So now you know why my comments are always about the intangibles. When we can follow the superintendent’s guidance and passion on preparation as a football player, as an athlete, once the game starts, the coach is stuck on the sideline. So I’ve been invited to speak in the locker rooms of professional teams and NCAA teams. As a motivational speaker, we have an ego not quite as big as the head coaches, but where the real benefit occurs is when the coach and the motivational speaker leaves the locker room and it’s peer on peer.
To understand how amazing these young cadets are and the understanding of everything that you’re teaching and training. I just wanted to go on record to say that as a focus on a hook, may I just remind everybody the discipline is to teach, not to punish. You can’t increase a person’s performance by making them feel worse. Humiliation immobilize their behavior.
So if we can always keep that humanitarian side in our decisions, not pointing any fingers, just as a reminder. The three years I was a junior in high school almost killed the whole faculty. Everyone that knew me growing up about seventh grade would be my senior year. When I was given that second chance, it changed my life forever. And I wouldn’t be here today if I hadn’t had some compassion and leadership to not just weigh the facts, but to weigh the possibility of learning that life lesson that would change my stars forever.
We are a united board, which is so cool. We have a Republican, we have a Democrat, and they’re not partisan. They’re focused on truth and not just on who is right but on what is right. And we all know that once we get our why right and our why is bigger than our why not? We can accomplish everything that we need to accomplish just for the benefit of the cadets.
It’s an honor for me to be here. Had a chance to serve all over the country and be involved downrange multiple times, and it’s all because of the training that you focus in on. And I honor you, sir. We love you. I love America, God bless us.
Entire meeting video below.
In the public comments section towards the end, two USAFA parents highlighted what they considered unfair treatment of their sons in two different cases to which the Superintendent disagreed. This may be what Dan was referring to when he talked about compassion and second chances.
Dan Clark is the founder and CEO of an International Leadership Development Company; a High Performance Business Coach; New York Times Best-Selling Author of 37 books; University Professor; a Primary Contributing Author to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series; International Podcaster; Gold Record Songwriter; and an Award Winning Athlete who fought his way back from a paralyzing injury that cut short his football career. Dan was inducted into the National Speakers Hall of Fame – and has been named one of the Top Ten Motivational Speakers In The World. Dan has spoken to over 6 million people, in all 50 states, in 71 countries, on 6 continents, to more than 6000 audiences including most of the Fortune 500 companies, Super Bowl Champions, NASA, and to our Combat Troops in Iraq, Afghanistan, Asia and Africa. Dan has appeared on over 500 TV and radio shows and featured in news articles and magazine. Dan’s extraordinary life includes soaring to the edge of space in a U2 Spy plane; flying fighter jets with the Air Force Thunderbirds; racing automobiles at Nur-burg-ring and sailboats in Australia; serving on the Olympic Committee and carrying the Olympic Torch in the Winter Games; and keynoting the United Nations World Congress. Dan received the United States Presidential Medal presented by President Ronald Reagan; the United States Distinguished Service Medal presented by the U.S. Department of Defense; was the national recipient of the prestigious Air Force American Spirit Award; and was named Utah Father of the Year. His website
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