Welcome back to Five Questions for a General, a production of the Modern War Institute at West Point. This series features specially selected cadet hosts who are given an incredible professional development opportunity—to sit down with senior military officers and ask carefully crafted questions about everything from leadership to their unique experiences while serving to their expectations about the future of war.
In this episode, Cadet Zach Olson hosts the command team of the 25th Infantry Division, Major General Jeffrey VanAntwerp and Command Sergeant Major Michael Eilers. Their conversation explores leadership, professional growth, and the many ways in which the 25th Infantry Division is preparing soldiers for the changing character of warfare. The guests reflect on why they chose military service and the infantry, the impact of September 11 on a generation of soldiers, and the importance of humility, focus, and lifelong learning as leaders assume greater responsibility. They emphasize that effective leadership begins with understanding an organization before trying to change it, providing clear purpose and priorities, trusting subordinates, and inspiring people to tackle difficult challenges through personal example rather than slogans or speeches. One of the episode’s central ideas is that a leader acts as a weather machine: the attitude and behavior a leader brings into an organization every day eventually shape its climate and culture. The discussion also examines how the 25th Infantry Division is learning from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, integrating new technologies and command-and-control systems, and adapting those lessons to the distinctive operational environment of the Indo-Pacific while preserving the fundamentals of individual and small-unit proficiency. As warfare increasingly involves pervasive surveillance and rapidly evolving technology, the guests stress the importance of survivability as a prerequisite for lethality—summarized in the progression survive, fight, and win. The episode concludes with advice to younger soldiers and officers to take risks, avoid self-selecting out of opportunities because of fear of failure, remain focused, and build credibility through performance, integrity, and strong relationships.
