Forging Mettle Podcast

Our guest today is Janey McGill. She has been a lawyer, a soldier and an art dealer. But not at the same time. She is now a filmmaker, an explorer, a speaker and a designer. After years of experimenting and searching for fulfillment she has crafted a life that brings her joy and purpose. 

She's led a somewhat unconventional life. The ‘things’ society deem important, she often doesn't. Making choices with her heart leads to incredible learning and adventure. The consequences of those decisions and the circumstance of her life prompt much introspection and self-examination.  As she says, "Arguably too much" at times.

She’s had her back broken from a horse riding accident and came back better. She’s walked hundreds of miles in the pursuit of meaning and giving back. She recently finished filming a documentary about planning and executing the greatest escape to the Arabian desert with a team of eastern and western strangers to deliver a message that we are ‘better together’ regardless of gender, culture or identity…

This was such a delightful conversation with a delightful soul. Enjoy the show, please drop a rating or review if you feel moved.

Website: https://www.janeymcgill.com/

This week we welcome my "SISU sister" to the forge. Elisabet and I have so much alignment around the concepts of doing hard things, overcoming adversity, being tough and staying the course. But to also make room for changing course when needed, softness, gentleness, compassion for yourself and those we lead. You will come away with ideas of how we can be both tough and gentle, and why we should. This is the leadership model of the future. We discuss what it means to honor yourself. And that pushing on is not always the best choice.

Show notes:

Elisabet is an international presenter on topics related to positive psychology, courage, leadership, and high performance. She is also a transformational mindset coach supporting individuals who are committed to cultivating compassionate leadership and integrity in their daily lives

She conducted her PhD research for the Finland-based Aalto University School of Science and Technology in which she is pioneered the research on the ancient Finnish construct of sisu, which denotes courage and determination in the face of extreme adversity and the ability to unlock hidden inner strength when it is needed (find the research paper on embodied fortitude here and its press release here).

Elisabet´s work has been featured by The New Yorker, Business Insider, Scientific American, BBC, and Forbes among others. Elisabet has given talks at Fortune500 companies such as Facebook and Salesforce, as well as Stanford University, The International World Congress on Positive Psychology, The Consciousness Summit, TEDx, and Singularity University at NASA Ames in Mountain View, California, where she also studied futurism and exponential technologies while attending their Global Solutions Programme.

Elisabet has a master's degree in social psychology from the University of Tampere in Finland and in a master's degree in applied positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, USA. She is a former student of Dr Martin Seligman and began her master thesis work on sisu was advised by research professor Dr Angela Duckworth in 2013.

Her personal life mission involves being a catalyst for human connection and compassion. She believes it is our collective responsibility to create socially warm, inviting spaces that empower people to reach their fullest potential. Elisabet enjoys facilitating meaningful connections across geographical, cultural, and disciplinary boundaries and has been hosting story circles and women's groups since 2013.

Website: https://www.sisulab.com/

Buy the book! https://www.amazon.com/Gentle-Power-Revolution-Succeed-Finnish/dp/1683649699

As the author of a bestselling book with the title, "Deliberate Discomfort," you can imagine our guest today is a perfect fit for the Forging Mettle podcast. Jason Van Camp is a former special forces soldier and now teaches people how to proactively seek out hard things through his company Mission Six Zero. In this discussion I was fascinated by Jason's origin story of his company, how he talks about failure, and what he believes we need to do to live our best lives.

Show notes:

Jason B.A. Van Camp is what Malcolm Gladwell would refer to as an Outlier; an exceptional person who is successful not just because of his personal accomplishments but because of his will to win and the unique ability and willingness to unlock the potential of others. A decorated Green Beret, world traveler, entrepreneur, author, and loyal friend, Jason has mastered the art of storytelling that reflects many of his own life adventures.

Jason is the chairman of “mission six zero.” He is also the executive director of Warrior Rising, which is a non-profit that empowers U.S. military veterans.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-van-camp/

Mission Six Zero: https://missionsixzero.com/

Warrior Rising: https://www.warriorrising.org/

Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Deliberate-Discomfort-Operations-Comfortable-Uncomfortable/dp/1733428011

Today's guest is our first Army Ranger on the show. Even though she was a trailblazer for women, I purposely left out that "adjective" of being female. Lisa recently published her book, "Delete the Adjective: Soldier's Adventures in Ranger School." I think you are going to find her approach to excellence, raising kids, controlled suffering and doing hard things and facing adversity.

Show notes:

Army Lieutenant Colonel Lisa Jaster is a soldier, an engineer, a wife and mother, and a trailblazer. One of only three women to graduate from the first integrated United States Army Ranger program—one of the most difficult combat training courses in the world—Lisa was the first female Army Reserve officer to become Ranger qualified.

Lisa, a fitness fanatic who continues to train CrossFit and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, has a hard-won understanding of the importance of perseverance, as well as a deeply ingrained respect for camaraderie stemming from a seven-year-long active duty career (including tours in Iraq and Afghanistan).

Website: https://deletetheadjective.com/

Buy the book: Today's guest is our first Army Ranger on the show. Even though she is was a trailblazer for women, I purposely left out that "adjective." Lisa recently published her book, "Delete the Adjective: Soldier's Adventures in Ranger School." I think you are going to find her approach to excellence, raising kids, controlled suffering and doing hard things and facing adversity.

Show notes:

Army Lieutenant Colonel Lisa Jaster is a soldier, an engineer, a wife and mother, and a trailblazer. One of only three women to graduate from the first integrated United States Army Ranger program—one of the most difficult combat training courses in the world—Lisa was the first female Army Reserve officer to become Ranger qualified.

Lisa, a fitness fanatic who continues to train CrossFit and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, has a hard-won understanding of the importance of perseverance, as well as a deeply ingrained respect for camaraderie stemming from a seven-year-long active duty career (including tours in Iraq and Afghanistan).

Website: ⁠https://deletetheadjective.com/⁠

Buy the book: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Delete-Adjective-Soldiers-Adventures-Ranger/dp/1544536445

In today's show we talk about female aviators forging a path for those who followed. They were instrumental to having the combat aviation exclusion for women finally removed. Our guest, Bev Weintraub, has written the first book detailing their incredible historical journey. This story includes head shaking moments, great courage, humility and perseverance. 

Show notes: 

Beverly Weintraub is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and instrument-rated private pilot. As an editorial writer for the New York Daily News, she covered topics including education, social services and aviation. She shared the 2007 Pulitzer for Editorial Writing for an in-depth investigation into the illnesses afflicting World Trade Center rescue and recovery workers after 9/11.

Her book, “Wings of Gold: The Story of the First Women Naval Aviators” debuts with a meticulous and often infuriating chronicle of the obstacles faced by the first six women to earn their naval aviation wings in the early 1970s.

Website: https://www.beverlyweintraub.com/

Book: Wings of Gold: The Story of the First Women Naval Aviators

Today's guest is Massimo Pigliucci. In his latest book, "The Quest for Character: What the Story of Socrates and Alcibiades Teaches Us about Our Search for Good Leaders," he looks at lessons of leadership and politics from ancient Greece. What is character? Is it something we are born with or can we develop it? We wade into compelling topics like wealth, power, greed, cooperation and competition. No discussion about character can skip over politics. Enjoy the show! 

Show notes:

Massimo has a PhD in Evolutionary Biology from the University of Connecticut and a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Tennessee. 

He is currently a Professor of Philosophy at the City College of New York. His research interests include the philosophy of science, the nature of pseudoscience, and practical philosophies like Stoicism and New Skepticism. He is also a prolific author. 

Buy the book:"The Quest for Character: What the Story of Socrates and Alcibiades Teaches Us about Our Search for Good Leaders"

Website: https://massimopigliucci.org/

Documentary (Trailer) mentioned by Massimo..."Young Plato"

https://www.imdb.com/video/vi709280537/?ref_=tt_vi_i_1

In today's episode we talk about trauma from someone who has experienced it as a combat aviator and also in his personal life. What he has to share could help us all take a different approach to how trauma affects us. Does it burn us down or heat our house? There are many factors that define trauma for us, but perhaps the most powerful is how we think about it. He has a wonderful "lightning" analogy that I think you will find useful. 

About Brian:

One in three will experience a significant trauma in their life. For Army Apache Pilot Brian Slade, his first was in Afghanistan.

Offering a unique perspective on preparing one's mind for trauma, his book, Cleared Hot puts readers in the cockpit of the most lethal helicopter in the world as Slade learns on the job, flying over an unforgiving landscape.

Follow Slade as he navigates the ugliness of combat while working to preserve a difficult marriage to a wife suffering from mental illness. Witness the challenges that taught him universal lessons on resilience and coping-and how they equipped him to think fast under pressure and maneuver through a curtain of enemy fire that crippled his aircraft and wounded his co-pilot, ultimately earning him the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Cleared Hot offers readers an exhilarating ride while giving them tools they can use to survive the traumas of their own lives.

Brian L. Slade has held command positions in the Army and the Air Force. He has received the Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star, and fourteen combat air medals. He attended Utah State, where he earned a BA and was commissioned as an Army Aviation second lieutenant. He's also earned an MA in aviation instruction. Brian currently serves as a lieutenant colonel for Air Force Combat Search and Rescue.

Website: https://www.clearedhot.info/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brian.slade_/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clearedhot/

A quick recap of 2022 and looking ahead to 2023. In this solocast, Ron discusses 3 types of goals and which one is most important, strategic planning, work ethic, and how much habits and routines drive our behavior. Don't miss this episode as you prepare to make 2023 your best year yet!  

Habits and routines (article) 

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/01/why-everyone-needs-to-know-the-difference-between-habits-and-routines.html 

"Adventure Psychology: Knowingly Going Into the Unknown" (textbook)

https://www.amazon.com/Adventure-Psychology-Routledge-Research-Environment/dp/1032003049/ref=sr_1_1?crid=22LZ8Y5MM9PAM&keywords=adventure+psychology&qid=1672844466&s=books&sprefix=adventure+psycholgoy%2Cstripbooks%2C164&sr=1-1

Principles of Leadership: Leading Oneself (Online course - Coursera)

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/principles-of-leadership-leading-oneself/

"Embracing Adversity to Forge Happiness" (TEDx talk)

https://www.ted.com/talks/ron_duren_embracing_adversity_to_forge_happiness

GatorAde Commercial (Hard Work, Work, Work)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVGRt38Jdfk

Today we talk with a mental coach for aviators. You'll get a firsthand account of what it's like to be a female instructor pilot in the U.S. Air Force. But rest assured there is plenty of wisdom in our discussion for the non-pilots among us. We banter about self-confidence, finding root causes, trusting your brain, women in leadership and performing at your best under pressure. Enjoy the show and please leave us a rating and review! 

Our guest, Tammy Barlette retired from the Air Force in 2018 after 20 years of dedicated service. During her last assignment she was an  instructor pilot in the T-38 Talon. She has more than 3000 total flight hours and over 1500 hours of combat support time in both Iraq and Afghanistan. She is now a motivational speaker with years of experience teaching and empowering others to be their best.

Show notes:

Tammy's website: https://tammybarlette.com/

Athena's Voice: https://www.athenasvoiceusa.com/tammy-g-barlette

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tammybarlette/

Former Green Beret Fran Racioppi joins us to discuss far ranging topics like quiet quitting, meeting people where they are, properly setting standards for yourself and those that you lead, navigating a complex world and a decision-making process to help you come out ahead more times than not. Thank you for listening. 

Show notes: 

Fran served 13 years in the United States Army as a Green Beret, deploying three times to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. In 2013, he deployed to Djibouti, Africa in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, where he coordinated Special Operations combating Al-Shabab throughout East Africa. In 2014, he planned and coordinated the Special Forces response to Boko Haram in West Africa, as well as oversaw the operations of Special Forces teams countering the Lord's Resistance Army in Central Africa and ISIS in North Africa. In 2014, Fran was selected to serve as the advisor and aide to the Commander of Special Operations Command Africa. Fran is a graduate of the US Army Ranger School, Airborne School, and several other Special Operations sponsored certifications.  

A lifelong sailor, Fran volunteers teaching Veterans to sail as the Race Director for Sailahead a Veterans service organization dedicated to reducing the Veteran suicide rate. Fran has also served as the Treasurer of the United War Veterans Council, a NYC-based non-profit focused on the wellness and healing of transitioning veterans, as well as the host of the annual NYC Veterans Day Parade. 

Fran's website FRsix: https://frsix.com/about

Jedburgh Podcast 

The Ballad of the Green Berets (song mentioned in the podcast)