The Next Shift Podcast

Send us Fan Mail

They say, "Time flies when you're having fun," and that is the TRUTH!

Somehow it has been ONE YEAR since the Next Shift Podcast launched and it has been one of, if not THE most fun and rewarding years of my life. 

I NEVER in a million years would've guessed I would have my own business, my own podcast, and a network full of totally badass LEOs...both current and former...who are willing to share their experiences and help each other, from all across the country. But here we are!

It has been such an honor and so incredibly humbling to "meet" and share the stories of so many incredible people I would have never met without this opportunity. I am so proud of US...those who've made the transition to life after law enforcement (for whatever reason)...and are paying it forward to all those considering it or currently facing it. 

This was a topic NEVER talked about when I first got into law enforcement in 2006 and even when I left in 2016, due to injury and was pissed off at the world for taking the "only job I could do." There were NO resources to assist in the transition and now there are so many....books, courses, podcasts, trainings, etc. It is so cool to look back at what this journey has been for me and where it has led me, but even cooler to watch more and more prior LEOs take control of their life and create their Next Shift.

While each officer's transition to life after law enforcement WILL look different and will bring it's own challenges... I hope this podcast serves as a beacon of hope that there IS life after law enforcement and it is pretty badass...IF you make it that way!

If you are considering leaving the job or are currently navigating this transition, REMEMBER...you are NOT alone...even if it feels like it. You are SOOO much more than, "Just a cop," and there are so many people rooting for you. Reach out and connect with me at the links below. Utilize the FREE resources at the link in either my LinkedIn or Instagram bio, schedule a coaching call, or dig into Life after LE: Preparing for it, and let's chat after.

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

This week's episode is a chat with Peter Stephens, about his transition out of Law Enforcement and into Global Security.

This is a route I have heard MANY talk about wanting to take, so I hope this episode provides you a little insight into what the transition CAN look like and how you can prepare yourself for it.

Peter is not only a prior LEO, but a Marine Corps Veteran and father of three, with one on the way. Through his transition out of Law Enforcement, he's reignited a passion for woodworking and become more present for his family, which is about to expand. He mentioned it feels like he's getting a "redo" in this Next Shift of life.

Peter talks about how his military training helped him transition into policing, then how policing helped him transition into the Corporate Security realm, and how being okay with being a beginner again helped him with the transition.

Make sure you follow Peter on LinkedIn, here. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

In this week's episode, I chat with Scott Medlin, founder of L.E.O. Motivation, LLC, about his transition out of law enforcement and into the world of speaking, podcasting, and becoming an author.

As you can see, Scott is so much more than just a prior LEO! Along with the things mentioned above, he's a Marine Corps Veteran, a husband, and a father.

Scott started his law enforcement career at his hometown department, where he just KNEW he was going to work and retire 30+ years later, after becoming chief. Well...what Scott didn't expect or see coming, was his career being cut short due to his mental health declining. After 12 years in the field, Scott chose himself and his family over the job and as you can tell from the intro...things are going A-OK for him.

Most recently, Scott and his wife, Rachel were part of a documentary called, "Is there something going on at home." They share their experiences as a young couple enduring the fallout of a demanding Police Career, which often leaves a spouse at home acting as a single parent and a once strong relationship slowly crumbling. You can check it out here.

Be sure to follow Scott on Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. You can also visit his website, here, and listen to The 10 Code Mindset podcast, here. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

If you've been on the job for any amount of time, I'd venture to say you've become a bit jaded in how you view the world. It's bound to happen when you deal with people on their worst days, over and over and over again.

That doesn't change the fact that most of us ARE helpers and MOST of us got into this job to help others in some way. But what happens when we put helping others and ensuring their needs are met, without making sure our own needs are met or helping ourselves when the demands of the job get to be too much?

In this episode, Barbara Rubel, police daughter, author, keynote speaker, and compassion fatigue expert, who lost her retired Police Sergeant father to suicide, tells us what happens when we do that.

She explains that compassion Fatigue is when you are concerned for someone who's been traumatized and you truly want to help them, through whatever role you are in and you immediately succumb to the demands of what THEY need over your own needs. You are compassionate and you WANT to help...but you're not helping yourself and burning yourself out.

She also describes and differentiates compassion fatigue from vicarious trauma and moral injury.  ALL very fascinating and definitely things that LEOs and first responders in general are faced with. Knowing some of this definitely would've helped earlier in my career...not only knowing there was a name for what I was dealing with, but also that I wasn't alone...like many of us feel.

This is a very eye opening and informative episode, that I hope provides YOU some insight, like it did for me.

Make sure to follow Barbara on LinkedIn, here, and grab a copy of the book she co-authored with Jason Palamara (that I am featured in), Living Blue: Helping Law Enforcement officers and their families thrive from recruitment to retirement, here. You can also visit her website, here. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

I am honored to be able to bring you this week's episode...an interview with Louisville PD Retired Sgt. John Mattingly, shot in the line of duty at the raid that Breonna Taylor was killed in, March 13, 2020.

If you're like me, maybe you never knew an officer was shot that night, due to not only the horrible news coverage, a global pandemic going on, and nationwide riots based on anti-police rhetoric from every direction....but also because no one at the Louisville Police Department or city would stand up for their officers and share the truth about what happened that fateful night. A night many of us have faced or will face at some point in our Law Enforcement Career.

Sgt. Mattingly shares HIS story about not only that fateful night, for context, but how it ultimately led to his forced retirement, due to his and his family's safety, and him now in the midst creating his Next Shift.

Sgt. Mattingly also shares his story in his book, 12 Seconds in the dark, which you can get here. Can you imagine your life flashing before your eyes and your whole world getting turned upside down in just 12 seconds?!?

It's happening more and more around the country, so it is my hope that by hearing Sgt. Mattingly's story, you will have a better understanding of how quickly things can change and how having a backup plan of some kind is no longer an option, but a necessity.

Make sure to follow Sgt. Mattingly on Instagram or contact him at his website, here.

If you're ready to start developing your backup plan or planning your Next Shift, and aren't sure where to start, click here to snag your 1:1 coaching slot.

Prefer to work alone, but would like some guidance...click here to sign up for my DIY course, Life after Law Enforcement: Preparing for it.  A course based on my own personal experience with the transition out and using the six pillars of wellness as a guide for a successful transition.

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

Law Enforcement is full of  life or death decisions, often made in a split second...but what about when the life or death decision is in regard to YOUR own life?

In this week's episode features Mark DiBona, a retired Police Sergeant turned co-founder of Protecting the Guardian and International Speaker, who is passionate about First Responder Mental Health and suicide prevention. When he's not out serving the community he once served alongside, he is at home with his wife and dog, playing music...with hopes of opening a dive bar he can play in.

Mark shares his story of how childhood trauma, a toxic work culture, and the stressors of the job itself, led him to attempts to take his own life...once on duty and once off. He obviously survived those attempts and now travels around, sharing his story in hopes of bringing awareness to a topic so many of us were never "allowed" to talk about.

Not everyone will relate to this story and that is okay, but I encourage you to listen and realize this is where some of our brothers and sisters are...and are suffering in silence. I encourage you to listen with an open mind and no judgment, and think about how you can help those living with thoughts you could never imagine having.

I am so thankful Mark is here today and willing to be open and vulnerable about not only his story, but suicide prevention in first responders. It is going to take each and every one of us to help end the stigma that plagues our professions.

Make sure to follow Mark on LinkedIn and checkout his website here. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

So you THINK you're prepared for retirement...

You've gone to the seminars. You've met with a financial planner. You've spoken to your significant other. Maybe you've even turned in your retirement paperwork and the date is quickly approaching. You FEEL ready....but are you?

That is what we talk about on this week's episode with Medina Baumgart...a LEO (now retired) spouse and Police Psychologist in California.

Medina and her husband found out the hard way that just because you've decided it's time to retire and have financially prepared for it...there is SO MUCH more to consider. For example, if you have a take home car...you might need a ride home on your last day, LOL. YUP, that happened to her hubby on his last day. In this episode, Medina and I chat about her husband's transition into retirement and HER perspective as a spouse AND psychologist.

Preparing for ALL aspects of retirement is an area departments are FAILING their officers at. We MUST do more to prepare them for everything they will encounter...and usually not expect (ie. emotions, feelings they never thought they'd feel, creating a routine, not knowing where they fit it, etc), on top of the financial aspect. Medina has now written a book, Surviving Retirement, that talks about her and her husband's experience with police retirement and the pitfalls they fell into, but made it out of.

Make sure you follow Medina on Instagram and LinkedIn.  You can also visit her website for all her offerings. You NEED to know her...she's a badass.

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

This week's episode is a refreshing story of unexpected retirement and transition to the private sector.

In the first responder world, it's easy to get caught up in the job and the burnout that often comes along with it. That is a majority of the stories we hear, especially on this podcast...BUT, it is NOT everyone's story and I wanted to share a different story this week.

I think almost every cop...at least old school cop...goes into the job with retiring in 20-30 years as a goal. But as we all know...even the best laid plans get derailed from time to time. That is what happened to Marcus.

Marcus was happily working away with six years left (in his mind), when a LinkedIn connection reached out and asked him if he was near retirement and if they could chat.  "Nah. I'm good. I have 6 years left until I retire." The guy was persistent and asked him to just have a conversation. He agreed to have the conversation and within two months, he'd put his retirement notice in, both to his surprise AND his department's.

He has never looked back. Sure, there are things he misses about being a cop...that will not go away...but he is still surrounded by Law Enforcement in his new role, which he credits with making the transition easier.

Make sure to connect with Marcus on LinkedIn and don't hesitate to reach out. You will often see him on the monthly DEBRIEF call as well. Make sure you sign up to get the next Zoom link, here. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

This week's episode is a resource episode for you and it's one that I absolutely LOVED! I was so honored when Darci agreed to come on the show. I have been a fan of hers since learning about her story in the book, Forever Athlete, by Cory Camp. It was in that book, I realized cops and athletes are a LOT a like and the identity crisis we go through when our career is gone, hits very similarly. I started following Darci after reading her story and fell in love with her personality and the content she delivers, so I KNEW I had to have her on the podcast!

Darci Smith is a prior D1 athlete, who started in Corporate after college...trying a few roles, then decided recruiting was her jam. She is now the managing partner at her own recruiting firm (financial industry) and a career coach, who is relatable AF and breaks down what job seekers need to know in an easy to understand and implement approach.

Darci provides so many nuggets of information in this episode, in regard to resume prep, interview prep, negotiation, and so much more. I would definitely have a pen and notebook handy. Be prepared to hit pause and rewind a few times!

Darci offers 1:1 coaching, two courses (under $50 each) for resume and career confidence, and FREE templates for LinkedIn reach outs and cover letters (if you need them). She has graciously offered Next Shift listeners a 50% off code for her courses, which you can use here.

Be sure to follow Darci on both Instagram and LinkedIn to get your share of the job search content she regularly puts out there. 

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift

Send us Fan Mail

I love a good transition success story and since this week is National Telecommunicators Week, I figured I would share the first Dispatch Transition story on the podcast!

"ALWAYS keep your dispatchers happy." A lesson I learned EARLY in my career, from my FTOs and one I obliged by throughout my career...but at the same time, never really took the time to appreciate or acknowledge the job they do...one I could NEVER do!

This week's episode is an interview with Lea Harms who is a ray of sunshine and someone I can't wait to have a margarita with some day! Her LinkedIn headline says, "Modern Day Wonder Woman," and I personally love it! It is NOT easy to be a wife, mom of two littles, run a household, and work a full-time job...yet that is what many women are asked to do every single day. 

Lea shares stories from behind the console and life after. She shares stories of suffering mental health and knowing when it was time to go. She shares about the oftentimes toxic work environments we deal with in the first responder community. She also shares about the book she has written since leaving the LE world, Lives on the Line: Stories from America's First-First Responders. Grab your copy here.

Make sure you give Lea a follow over on LinkedIn and if you loved or relate to her story, make sure to reach out and share that with her. It takes a lot of guts to share your story and I am so honored to be able to help her share hers and her perspective.

If you haven't already...make sure you follow me on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @_nextshift_ AND  @the_jessflores

If this podcast resonates with you or you feel like it could help someone else, please feel free to share it with them and/or on your social media platforms...but be sure to tag me so I can personally say THANK YOU!

Be sure to subscribe by clicking the + sign at the top and if you feel called to do so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review. 

You can NOW wear the mission of The Next Shift Podcast, with merch! Check out our current designs, here.

See you Next Shift