About this guy
My name is Mark
and I’m kind of a writer.
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My name is Mark McMillion. Since I was 13, I’ve spent my life learning, studying, and practicing leadership. I was born and raised in West by God Virginia. I was kind of a big fish in my little pond where I played football, basketball, and ran track. I was also a pretty good student (ok, not accurate — I was a lousy student but had good grades).
I graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point. Plebe year is your freshman year and Cow year is when you’re a junior (as pictured above). Sophomores are called Yearlings and seniors are called Firsties. I was a horrible student but graduated. While not a talented athlete, my Firstie yearbook bio calls me an “intramural warrior” because I boxed, wrestled, played football, and reveled in the athletic violence of those sports. I also earned my bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.
In 1991, I graduated, became a field artillery officer, married, and moved to Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Pretty big year. After that, my wife and I lived in Germany for three plus years, back to Fort Sill (picked up daughter #1), and then to grad school at The Ohio State University. Loved grad school and picked up a master’s in Cognitive Systems Engineering. Enormously fortunate to get to teach three years back at West Point (found daughter #2) in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership.
How did that happen if I was “a horrible student?” Mistakes were made. Teaching cadets was an awesome honor and experience. I’m still in contact with many of them I had in class.
From West Point, we moved to Fort Stewart, Georgia where I deployed with the storied 3d Infantry Division to Baghdad in January 2005 for a year. Came back in one piece (excitement at being home resulted in son #1) and a year later moved to Fort McPherson, Georgia (Atlanta) where son #2 ambushed us. Spent three years there as an Inspector General but managed to get a six-month individual augmentee rotation back to Baghdad. Again, incredibly fortunate to remain unscathed. Last duty assignment was with the Joint Warfare Centre in Stavanger, Norway as an exercise planner. Wonderful assignment!
I retired in 2013 as a lieutenant colonel to come home to West Virginia. Been teaching, training, speaking, and writing leadership ever since. Examples below!
My website: McMillionLeadership.com
My Amazon author’s page (mostly leadership, a couple of fiction pieces)
