Blue Grit Radio: the Police Performance Podcast: Mindset, Wellness, Leadership

In this episode, I dive into talks about the grind of the job and the NECESSITY to take a break, decompress, and what that might look like.

With critically low staffing levels, it's not that easy to simply schedule a vacation or take a couple days off.  Some agencies are more supportive than others; while some may want to be but feel operationally vulnerable without the manpower.

I talk about the concept of mental health day and offer my weigh in and insight.  Following my last conversation about Therapy, Travis Gribble from My Arena (IG @my_.arena) gave me a shout out and expanded on taking time off after critical incidents- or an agency providing that time in the form of training off the street.

I go into brainstorm mode, exploring what we could do as an industry to preserve mental health, combat "compassion fatigue" and burnout and think OUTSIDE of the box.  Let's look at the brass tacks.. we have higher attrition than ever, the younger generations need to be purposeful, validated, and challenged more than ever, and we have the highest degree of mental health issues than EVER.

Somethings gotta change- and conversations like this are what is going to help us find solutions and get there together.  Better Cops = Better Communities!

As always, thanks for subscribing, listening, weighing in, liking, sharing, giving it a 5 star review.  Your engagement helps Blue Grit grow!  Send me your questions, concerns, and feedback on IG @bluegritwellness.com or email [email protected] .  

As always- Be Well, Stay Safe, and Stay Gritty!

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

I heard a quote the other day and that thing SLAPPED.  

"The man who grasps principles can successfully handle his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

With my day-to-day and week-to-week being absorbed in training cops- brand new cops- I was taken aback.  It hit home on what we need to be drilling as trainers and what students and recruits need to be focusing as rookies.

Whatever the industry, there are so many tiny details to remember.  It can be dizzying and distracting.  Checklists, different ways to do the same thing.. new rookies often suffer (as I did) paralysis by analysis.

In this episode, I discuss these themes, how to keep it to principles and concepts to guide your thematic learning and development.

As always, hit me with your feedback, questions, and comments. Likes, share away- and thank you for subscribing and the positive reviews.  Be well, take care, and stay gritty.  

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

Therapy is a big discussion... and I have a lot to say about it.  I have so much to say about it, that I have been working on an episode and tabled it to work out this shorter break down of my thoughts, experiences and take aways.  (It still covers much more ground than I planned!)

First Responder World has done a good job moving the needle, advancing support for mental and emotional health but there's still a long way to go.  We are better about talking about our feelings, but there are still stigmas to professional help and support.

If nothing else, my sincere hope is that this episode helps you visualize and think of therapy in a few different ways and with a tone that makes it more approachable and less scary/committal/mysterious.

If you find this helpful, please share it out to your people inside and outside of the first responder world.  Mental health is absolutely critical to our individual health as well as our health as a community and society.

As always, questions and comments?  Drop me a line or send me your thoughts or prompts on Instagram @bluegritwellness or [email protected]. 

Take care and stay gritty!

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

In this episode,  I am rejoined by my recruiting officer, Brian.  We banter over the common question we get: How do I prepare for a police career? OR What should I be doing before I'm ready to test?

This question can go a LOT of different directions.  Generally, when we are asked it is from younger audiences: from teens or younger adults trying to prep their plan (jobs, college, military).  We dive into this aspect, giving our own experiences as examples as well as some examples from those we have assessed and even hired as police officers.

Truly good police officers come from all walks of life and experiences- which is what contributes to the most robust and dynamic team! Listen in and pick up themes and tips to help you decide what to do - and more importantly- how to do it!

Stay tuned for more installments on this topic!

*explicit is marked since I said the "s" word.  I'm not sure it that counts, but I'm falling on my sword.  #integrity #ownership

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

In this episode, I go into exactly what the title says...  

Shortly after posting about it on @bluegritwellness , I started getting the same question.. I was being asked by coworkers, guys at the gym I joined, and followers alike:

"Why now?"

This was usually followed by follow up statements along the lines of thinking I would be expected to have started long ago.  Or that after all these years, not getting into it, why now?  I get it.. I work a desk mostly.  But the reasons are so much more.

What started as a long-time nagging chore that I felt I "ought to do" just never materialized.  Things don't materialize.. you come up with excuses and those excuses become real obstacles.  That happened for me.  Work is busy, life is busy.  I committed to other pursuits like weight training and cardio.. and I called it good.

My desire was truly to get into a new hobby and sport (BJJ) was for many personal reasons that I detail- wanting growth and balance in many dimensions. I break down how even a little exposure to BJJ or ground-fighting can drastically improve an officer's ability to do their job, how to overcome your own hurdles and excuses, and things to consider when choosing and looking at gyms.

As always, thanks for the listens, subscribing, downloads, shares, likes, comments, 5 star ratings.. it all helps me and Blue Grit Radio and Bluegritwellness.com grow to reach and help more first responder in career and LIFE!

Got questions or topic requests?  Hit me up on IG or shoot me a line at [email protected] and let me know!

Stay safe and stay gritty!

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

Hey Gritty peeps, in this episode, I ask a VERY open prompt.. what should a (insert public service/first responder department) do about WELLNESS? Lucky for us, wellness, resilience, mental health support and fitness are bigger topics than ever before.

More agencies and departments are building policies and practices to highlight their importance.  BUT what else should/could be done?  Words are just words, and ACTIONS speak louder.

I put the question out to you all via a post on @bluegritwellness on Instagram, and the feedback was FANTASTIC.  

Listen in to hear me break down my thoughts along with follower responses and my input and commentary to those insights.

Subscribe and download so you don't miss an episode.  As always, a huge thanks to you all for your support and shares to get the word out to help build healthier officers and first responders- and stronger communities!


#staygritty #bluegrit #bluegritwellness #firstresponders #firstresponderwellness #officerwellness #peersupport #mentalhealthsupport #firstrespondertrauma

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

In this special edition episode, I share my conversation with Anthony, from The Off Duty Podcast.   It was truly a pleasure to connect and chat about what brought me to law enforcement, and some of my reflections of bringing my job home (in the form of second degree burns on my arms!)

Anthony has an awesome project going on with his podcast.  Check him out on Instagram, @theoffdutypodcast , give him a follow and listen in to his conversations with many brilliant women and men in uniform- and hear their accounts to learn what's behind the badge.

If you like our conversation, let me know and let Anthony know!  Share it out so we can both keep spreading our positive messages.  

Take care, be safe, and stay gritty!

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

Welcome to the final installment of the Gritty Interview Series.  In this episode, I go into the trickier types of questions common in police or other first responder interview oral boards: behavior-based questions and scenarios or hypotheticals.

Listen in, give a rating, and let me know what you think.  Share with your first responder friend hopefuls, and as always follow @bluegritwellness for my latest, newest content, subscribe to the blog at bluegritwellness.com and share this podcast with your peoples!

Take care, be safe, and stay gritty.

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

In the second installment of the Gritty Interview Series, Eric takes you through all the various types and formats of interviews.  You can learn what to expect as Eric shares insight from being on both sides of the interview table.  Whether it is for your firefighter exams, police oral board, background interview, or Chief's Interviews, the episode will get you into the right frame of mind to develop your personal brand.

By anticipating questions and knowing your personal story and purpose well, you can be confident and prepared by being your best, most prepared self.  

The last thing you want to do is come off clunky, run of the mill, or disingenuous.  Listen in to pick up the skills to avoid ALL of those pitfalls so you can land your dream job in public service.  It's what we : you, public agencies, and the community need - the sooner the better!

Thanks for subscribing, giving a top review and any likes/shares/comments on various platforms.  Follow Eric aka Sarge @bluegritwellness on IG and subscribe for free to posts on bluegritwellness.com !

#policecareer #firecareer #howtobeacop #publicservicejobs #governmentjobprep #policeinterviews #fireinterviews #careerprep #publicsafetycareer #criminaljustice 

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...

Happy New Year!  In this episode, I provide an update and some reflections on my current roles and pulling "double-duty" with Recruiting and Training unit supervision.  Work/Life balance introspection and reminders.

This is part one of a series diving into all things Interviewing!  The biggest translations will be for public safety / first responder world/ police and fire, but the translation to all industries is certainly  there.  Some rules are universal!

I cover some big themes: doing your homework, interacting with agency representatives and recruiters, showing professionalism (in many ways and forms) and knowing yourself.  This goes into chats of self-awareness, desire, and purpose.

Give it a listen, let me know your thoughts, and thank you for the continued likes, ratings, reviews, shares, and support!

Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!

To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:

Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com  !

Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more!  Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.

Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.

Need help with entry-level, promotional testing, career & mindset coaching? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop 

Email at [email protected]

-------------------------------------

Want to safeguard your health and the health of your team?

United Diagnostic Services brings hospital-grade diagnostic technology directly to first responder agencies, making early detection of heart disease and cancer simpler than ever.

For more information, visit udshealth.com

-------------------------------------

*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies. 

music credit: Drive by ASham...