Wofford brings Attorney General Alan Wilson to campus

“You don’t need to have a title to be a leader,” said South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson. He spoke to a group of about 45 people, most of them Campus Union delegates. His purpose at Wofford College was not to talk about politics or his achievements, including becoming the youngest Attorney General in 2010, but to bring his leadership skills to Wofford. 

“I learned one of the most valuable lessons when I was a newly-minted second lieutenant,” said Wilson, “I was basically in charge of about 40 people who all had more experience then I did. I was 23 years old. But they were all saluting me and calling me sir.” Wilson’s time in the military showed him the value of having humility as a leader. Because of his role, he was always the first man to complete the hard tasks and the last to take a break or go to bed. 

“Your job is not to enjoy the benefits of power, it’s to serve those people who have been there before, to take care of them.”

Wilson’s time in the military prepared him well for being Attorney General, he explained. At his young age, everyone around him had more experience both in law and in politics, and he had to have the humility to ask for help when he needed it, and surround himself with people who knew how to do the job.

“My job is to implement the best ideas, not my ideas.” Wilson said that if you want to run any kind of operations successfully, discussion and criticism is critical. He also mentioned how anyone can apply what he’s learned about leadership throughout the course of his career. “You can be a leader in your school and in your community.” 

Wilson emphasized the point that everyone can choose to lead, and they should, but that there will be challenges along the way. “You can’t succeed in life without risking failure. Don’t be governed by fear in your life.”

At a time of great change and great struggle, both as college students and as citizens of the 21 century, Wilson pushes all people to reach out and become leaders. One of his favorite ways to serve is mentoring young people and making sure the future generation has strong leaders.

To conclude, Wilson stressed the importance of voting, especially with the upcoming elections. 

“I served in Iraq through their first free election, and people were being shot for voting; there were roadside bombs, suicide bombers, people driving cars into voter lines. Do you know what the turnout was in that first election? Near 90%…What’s interesting to me is that this is a third-world country. People don’t have basic running water, but they were voting overwhelmingly because they appreciated what they didn’t have before.” 

In the United States, voter turnout rarely gets to 60% for presidential elections and almost half that for the average midterm elections, a fact that AG Wilson is always surprised by. “Let your voice be heard,” he says, adding, “it’s your duty as a citizen.”