Have you ever met someone you instantly knew was going to make waves in the world?

2015-01-20T11:31:22-05:00

This year, I had the pleasure of visiting with our class of 2014 Commencement speaker.

A 20-year Army veteran and recent graduate from the Grantham online master of business administration-project management program with distinction, retired Sergeant First Class Charles Lamp is a man of vision, conviction and promise.

Lamp didn’t let difficult situations define his reality. He simply found ways around the seemingly insurmountable obstacles. He knew that his lifestyle and circumstances required the innovative and creative methodologies not available at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. For Charles, Grantham was that solution.

With great power comes great responsibility: “My education has always been very important to me,” said Lamp, “It ensures that I can take care of my family, myself and make a difference in every opportunity I come across since retiring from the military.”

I love that, during his commencement speech, he addressed the audience as future managers and leaders. It was as if he didn’t even acknowledge there was a chance his cohorts wouldn’t want to be in those positions. He reminded them that, with the power of their accredited online degrees, came a new responsibility.

Seeing beyond today: One thing that makes Lamp successful is that he was acutely aware of the changing world around him. Instead of fighting the inevitable change of expectations in his industry and hiring managers at-large, he lowered his head and got to work!

“I completed 20 years in the Army…[where it] used to be if you had on-the-job training or skills, you could get the job.” he said, “Nowadays, you have to have the diploma. There is no hiring manager that is going to pick you up. I knew that and had to push myself a little harder.”

The real keys to the kingdom: Lamp’s charge to his class was to “specialize until you’re special”. He likened a diploma not to a sword that would slay every hindrance, but as a key that would open many doors.

“You hold that key in your hand,” he said. “But, you can’t stop there…we must seek out that which makes us stand out as top-notch professionals in the workplace.”

He also encouraged the graduates, “Don’t be afraid of failure along the way.” He’s been knocked down by its grit but has found the inner-drive to get back up. He believes that you only learn from failure and from failure comes growth.

To close his remarks, he quoted the signature line of every email he sends: “In the words of Samuel Beckett: Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.”

Learn more about Grantham University: http://rly.pt/GranthamU

Citations:
2014 Commencement: http://rly.pt/2014-commencement

Response by CPT Aaron Kletzing made Jan 20 at 2015 12:14 PM

2015-01-20T12:14:14-05:00

That's a really nice story -- and has some lessons we can all benefit from reflecting on. This individual did not get complacent. Instead, he continued to push himself to get better and "look around the corner" and the next set of objectives he should be focusing on. This post is especially meaningful to me because this individual was a 20-year Army veteran retiree. He did his time and then successfully moved on to new positive challenges.

This also shows that an online degree can be very professionally beneficial for you, regardless of whether you are still serving or if you've already gotten out. There's a lot of good an online education can offer to most folks, and this gentleman is a fine example of that.

Thanks for sharing. I enjoy reads like this because they are authentic.

Response by Capt Brandon Charters made Jan 20 at 2015 12:53 PM

2015-01-20T12:53:10-05:00

I applaud SFC Lamp for seeing the opportunity and taking that extra step in his career and helping others do the same. There is a lot of personal time given up and it helps to see a real example of success to know it's worth the hard work. Great story for many us looking to further our education and land a leadership position post military... Which we are all capable of.

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Jan 20 at 2015 3:50 PM

2015-01-20T15:50:53-05:00

Yes. I married her anyway. Bad jojo. Wouldn't recommend it.

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Jan 20 at 2015 5:11 PM

2015-01-20T17:11:42-05:00

"...make waves in the world." For good or not?

I met an E4 retiring after 27 years. There was no doubt that he was making waves, for good. Although challenged, he somehow was enlisted and found a home in the Army. He did the menial tasks really well. A good soldier in every regard. How did he make waves? While stationed in Korea, he adopted an orphanage and worked as their handyman in his off duty hours. He won the Panamanian lottery while stationed there and donated the prize to endow the orphanage. He retired to live out his life among the orphans. Yeah, you just knew he was going to make waves.

I had a law professor who seemed decent enough. His daughter had attended the same high school as I and he was the PTA president there. In quick order, he rose to County Executive, State Governor, and Vice President of the United States. I never saw any of it coming. He was Spiro Agnew and you should know how that turned out. (If not, look it up.)

The bottom line is that you don't have to be important or a celebrity to "make waves in the world." Every one of us can make at least a ripple, hopefully for the better.