Thank you, all, for the privilege to give the commencement address for LDS class 446. As I look at all of you, I am reminded of the first time we saw each other gathered here in the OD room on Sunday, July 8. We all came as 59 individuals with a name card which simply had the FEI emblem, our name, our agency, and a smartly attached lanyard.

As we inappropriately looked around at each other’s chests to read the name, causing some discomfort for some in the group … yes, we know where your eyes are … some of us are slow readers … we were able to overcome the first obstacle to communication: Each other’s names.

Donning our name cards, we were immediately thrust headlong into our LDS group and team sessions where we were immediately subjected to physical and emotional stress. They drew our blood on the first day. I really do not remember the part about a blood withdrawal ever mentioned in their brochure. Notwithstanding, they made us more emotionally accessible through our executive case studies where we shared stories and deep secrets about ourselves to the team. Little did we know that beneath all the tears we were uncovering our values and events that shaped us as leaders. We were honoring our past.

As we moved on to discover who we were through the 360s and MBTIs, we realized what we needed to improve or further strengthen. We embraced who we were and had an opportunity to celebrate the present. This celebration was clearly demonstrated by our colleague, who shall remain nameless, calling our founding father, Thomas Jefferson, a tool. 

During the subsequent two weeks, we were immersed in our adaptive challenges and developing our LDP. Our instructors and facilitators continued to shape our leadership models and strengthen our knowledge using various models and styles. They, also, put our adaptive challenges in perspective using balcony and dance floor analogies so that we could take action steps to effect a desirable outcome. We were envisioning our future.

Throughout all of this, we continued wearing our name badges to and from classes, during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It enabled us to more easily have conversations and decide on evening plans. It enabled us to become a team. A team who supports each other. A team that is empathetic to each other’s needs and emotions. 

A team that recognizes that there is someone among us that considers friendly competition a blood sport. I think we know who this is.

So here we are, at the end of a 4-week journey of learning that helped us understand why our health, values, and mindful presence to make decisions is merely the beginning of great transformational leadership, not the culmination. Only through understanding and taking care of ourselves can we understand the people around us as well as those we lead. We have learned that leadership is a great responsibility and a full contact sport, which causes me to question not whether our team is ready for us but are we ready for our team? The answer is a resounding YES thanks to FEI.

So please join me in thanking our facilitators Plum, Lee, Karen, Jane, Stan, Lori, and Janet for leading and facilitating us on this leadership journey. Your nurturing and guidance throughout training proved to be invaluable to us in our rediscovery and improvement.

Thank you FEI facilities and hospitality staff for removing obstacles to learning by providing us with healthy and delicious meals and clean and safe facilities. Your efforts have made our stay pleasurable and helped ease our longing to return home. 

Thank you Antoinette, Kathy, Brandi, and your teaching staff for staying true to your motto that we all encountered as we entered FEI campus:

• Honoring the past
• Celebrating the present
• Envisioning the future

You all have truly transformed these mere words into something more. It has come alive by allowing us to honor our past, celebrate our present, and envision our future. 

A special thanks to Mike Belcher for introducing us to the phrase “roguishly handsome.” The more I say it, the better looking he gets!!

Lastly, thank you LDS 446 and FEI for transforming our name badges that merely started as inanimate objects on the first day of classes, into a symbol of our time together, the bonds that were built, our self-realizations, and how 59 individuals left as a single team. I know I will look at my name badge for guidance and inspiration during good times and bad, realizing that I am something more than a simple name on paper. I am a leader, as are all of you!!

Thank you.

As prepared by LDS 446 Commencement Speaker Andrew “Drew” Wang.