The Diary of a West Point Cadet: Captivating and Hilarious Stories for Developing the Leader Within You

Preston Pysh could very well find himself as a very important historical figure on the dynamics of Bitcoin Analysis from its early days and reviews on "The Investors' Podcasts". It shows the basis of his formative years through genuine leadership challenges in the backdrop of West Point - lessons that are universal and can be applied to much of everyday life. Thoroughly enjoyed!

Do not read this book thinking it is a "year in the life" type book about West Point. BUT . . . it is still worth buying/reading, particularly for potential attendees of West Point or other service academies. This ISN'T a diary, but the lengthy title, after the "diary" reference, gives you some more accurate information about the content of the book: A relatively recent West Point grad (class of 2002 or so?) has put together a collection of stories from his time at West Point to shed light on his philosophies of leadership. The stories are indeed funny (one referencing a stubbornly stinky room is a favorite), and help you get a snapshot both of life at that institution and of the type of individual that is likely to succeed at West Point -- smart; determined; and with a good sense of humor and perspective. The leadership lessons are good, although relatively generic.I'd say this book will be most valuable and memorable to future cadets/midshipmen at the nation's service academies, as Captain Pysh does a great job of showing how some seemingly illogical traditions and/or training practices do indeed have a deeper purpose than just making the younger cadets miserable. Captain Pysh has also done a nice job by following up some of the heroes of his West Point-era anecdotes and reporting on their later, very successful army careers; again, a good way to show would-be service academy attendees why it all will matter later.One minor downside is that Captain Pysh, who sounds like a really gifted engineer (he invents something tested by NASA, which is pretty cool) writes like one too -- there are some vocabulary and grammar mistakes that better copy editing would have/should have caught. But it does seem like this is authentically his voice, which is ultimately the most important thing.

I'm probably biased. I love Preston Pysh.I've discovered many thought leaders in my life that offer perspectives or provide a shining example of something I aspire to emulate in my own life. More often than not, I will eventually learn enough about this person to discover something (or many things) that cause disillusionment. Preston is not one of those people. I bought this book simply to be entertained and try to learn a bit more about how he came to be the person I believe him to be; and I was not disappointed.

This has to be the best book I have read in a long time and by far the best book about West Point. The author is a recent graduate, thus giving a modern and candid account of his experiences there. The author, Captain Pysh, tells some of his favorite stories encapsulating his four years at the academy. Some are gut-busting funny while others touch the heart, and yes others leave the reader asking "why would anyone subject themselves to that". One thing is for sure, however. This book will make you laugh and leave you confident in the methods of the US Military Academy, regardless of how silly they may sound. The author also applies leadership lessons to the end of the chapters that tell the reader what he learned from specific events and how some of the outrageous stories served a critical role in his development as a leader.Anyone, military or not, will fall in love with this book. I could not put it down and couldn't wait to see what story would come next. Captain Pysh does a superb job at making the reader feel like he/she is walking in the same shoes. Anyone, especially those thinking of attending West Point will find this book fascinating. It is informative, educational, and most importantly an absolute pleasure to read.

Perhaps my expectations for this book were too high; in my read through I found myself enjoying it less and less as the chapters progressed. A few flaws contributed to this:First, the lessons learned (the author's BLUFs) become forced in later chapters. For example, discovering a rat in an air conditioner did not provide significant insight into leadership no matter how hard the author tried to make the case. Perhaps if he had drawn from a stronger, later experience which tied his West Point experience to an event in his military career these end of chapter write-ups would have been more meaningful. As written the later lessons read as forced comparisons instead of meaningful insights.Second, some stories in this book are decades old tales from military lore re-told in the first person. Perhaps the author asked his classmates for material, perhaps these stories were added to lengthen the book, I don't know. What I do know is re-reading a story my uncle told me twenty years ago (the Navy student peeing in the bathroom) lowers my confidence in the rest of the writing.Lastly, the author (or editor) desperately needed a style guide. The writing starts off fairly strong, but fades quickly and by the end of the book is dry and unengaging. A good book will seek to "show" you more than it "tell"s. Unfortunately, there is a lot of telling in the later half of this book, making the last chapters a chore.In all, I would not recommend this as a leadership book. If you want a good military leadership book in story format, try Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose . I would recommend this book to someone looking to join West Point, if they want an idea of what to expect.

That was a truly fun read, although it felt a little light on facts and stories. Had fun trough and trough, I recommend it.