U.S. Air Force Academy’s 15th Annual National Character and Leadership Symposium

“Takers eat well, givers sleep well,” sums up Congressman Zach Wamp’s keynote address to the U.S. Air Force Academy’s 15th Annual National Character and Leadership Symposium hosted by the USAFA’s Center for Character Development in February 2008.

“I bring greetings from East Tennessee to you all. We are grateful for your commitment to our country and freedom, to preserving our way of life and for you stepping up and answering your country’s call,” Zach said. “Takers eat well, givers sleep well. Public service comes in lots of shapes and sizes. The philosophy of public service is that you give more than you take. We will be measured in our life’s work by how much we give. The more you give, the more you get. My hope for each of you is that you lead a life where you sleep well with the confidence in knowing you are answering God’s call.”

Congressman Wamp outlined four points of leadership: submission, courage, love and tenacity: “It’s not the submission that is related to surrender. It’s the submission that’s related to genuine humility. About 50 percent of success in my life has been because of courage – the courage to try things, to step out and to fail. The kind of love that I’m talking about is the kind that overcomes fear. The men and women in our Armed Forces understand this kind of love and are willing to lay down their life for people they will never meet because they love their country. And if courage is 50 percent of success, tenacity is 40 percent. This is the kind of perseverance where you never let go, never quit. Tenacity makes up for a lot of things. The other 10 percent of success includes your advantages and your intellectual capacity, but those things aren’t as important as courage and tenacity.”

Effective leadership can be watered down or destroyed by three things that Zach shared with the cadets: comfort, convenience and cynicism. Public service is where responsibility and freedom meet, and is necessary to preserve our way of life for future generations. “Our character is made through our adversity. It’s even developed through our mistakes. We need leadership in this country like never before,” said Congressman Wamp. “We are a great nation and we are a good people. We give, we go and we do. The United States is an experiment in freedom, democracy and self-determination. It works because people volunteer to standup and serve their country and put it all on the line.”