Stam's success secret: skills, attitude, knowledge

"I hate being told what to do," Assistant Professor of Political Science Allan Stam said with a smile. These words capture the ebullient nature of this Society and War professor who is famous among students for his dynamism and unique take on life.

LIZ OLINER/YH Political Science Professor Allan Stam holds the secret to a rewarding life in the palms of his hands.

Stam, who has been teaching at Yale for two years, has a history of flaunting authority, dating back to his college days. The son of two Harvard graduates, he arrived at Cornell in the early '80s, "the typical Ivy League student--good at academics, not great at sports," but withdrew from the university after two years. Of the next five years, he spent two working as a cook before enlisting in the army as a volunteer for the Special Forces. He was readmitted to Cornell on an army scholarship.

For Stam, though, college was more than simply a place to study. He majored in government because "it was a major that I could finish in two years. Actually, I majored in rowing and minored in college," he said. Stam was an active member of the crew team, and remembers that he and his fellow oarsmen "would spend about four hours a day together in the dining hall."

Stam said he considers this "common experience in a community" to be an integral aspect of college, one which too many students today neglect. Yalies need to "spend more time hanging out with their classmates," he said.

"Yale students are exhausted all the time and not particularly happy," he said. "They tend to be incredibly uptight about individual grades. Many Yale students have to realize that high school prepares you for a four-year game, but college prepares you for a 40-year game. It's important to stay positive in light of our failures in life."

The key to a fulfilling life lies in what Stam likes to call the triangle of success: skills, attitude, and knowledge. "People need all three components to be successful in life," he explained. "For example, if you're risk-averse and lack the attitude to be bold in your attempt, it would be hard to make a big splash in life."

This attitude which distinguishes Stam is what he admires most in others. "I grew up reading stories about people whose lives one would want to emulate. I've noticed that great people have done all sorts of things," he said. When he was 10, his mother gave him a book about Leonardo da Vinci, whom he considers even today to be "the ideal kind of person." Apart from da Vinci, Stam's other heroes include people, like Theodore Roosevelt and Albert Einstein, who share the independence of spirit that led Stam into academia in the first place.

It is unfortunate then, he said, that people today tend to lack heroes and instead dwell on the flaws of some of the greatest scientists and politicians. He concedes that Roosevelt had imperialist and racist tendencies, but also points out that he won the Nobel Peace Prize and was a strong political leader. "Why put aside all the great things that someone like Teddy Roosevelt did because of his one terrible character flaw?" he asks.

Stam, a self-described "inveterate optimist," feels it is more important to look at the big picture in life. The ability to examine whole systems of thought and "come up with new ideas" is what prompted him to take on political science rather than become a politician.

After leaving Cornell, where he met his wife Cyndi, a rower for the Big Red and current supervisor of building services at the Yale Law School, Stam did graduate work in political science at the University of Michigan. He taught statistics and research design for three years at American University's School of International Service before arriving at Yale. Currently, he is working on two books, one that focuses on "the failure of the standard international relations theory," and another questioning "why democracies tend to win." Next year, he is planning on going on sabbatical to do intensive research.

Stam's unique approach to life has infected his teaching as well, and he has been well-received by Yale students. "He's a very dynamic, entertaining, and humorous lecturer," Todd Kasper, PC '99, said. "It's entertaining, so it's interesting."

If they learn nothing else from his lectures, Stam at least wants his students to keep the big picture in mind. "Remember that you cannot create a career at Yale and you cannot destroy one," he says.

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