“Don’t be afraid to do something a little non-traditional - it will most likely work out in the end. ”
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Why Listen:
Shortly after leaving the Marine Corps, Mike traveled to Cambodia, where he worked to setup a cross fit gym. He went on to business school… in Malaysia. And then he became a National Outdoor Leadership School instructor, where he teaches civilians and members of the military about wilderness survival and leadership. Which is to say - Mike is a Veteran who is forging his own way, and thinking outside of the box. If you are interested in a non-traditional career path, or just a great story, this is the interview for you.
For those of you who enjoy this episode, be sure to check out:
BTU #240 - Self Reliant Leadership (Jan Rutherford)
BTU #268 - How the Outdoors Saved My Life (Stacy Bare)
BTU #120 - Traveling the world for 4 years after Active Duty Navy (Tim Patterson)
You’ll find links to each of those episodes in the show notes for this episode at BeyondTheUniform.org, where you’ll also find over 300 other completely free episodes, a whole host of online events, webinars and more.
About Mike:
Mike Titzer is a Field Instructor at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS). NOLS is a nonprofit global wilderness school that will help you step forward boldly as a leader. He served in the Marine Corps for six years. Since his military service, he opened a CrossFit gym in Cambodia, and went to business school in Malaysia. He holds an MBA from the Asia School of Business, a Masters in International Relations from American University, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the Naval Academy.
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Selected Resources:
Related episodes:
About Mike
Dirty Money
The Economist
Transcript & Time Stamps:
2:45
Joining me today from Denver, CO is Mike Titzer. Mike Titzer is a Field Instructor at the National Outdoor Leadership School, or NOLS. NOLS is a nonprofit global wilderness school that will help you step forward boldly as a leader. He served in the Marine Corps for six years. Since his military service, he opened a CrossFit gym in Cambodia, and went to business school in Malaysia. He holds an MBA from the Asia School of Business, a Masters in International Relations from American University, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the Naval Academy.
3:45
How was your transition out of the Marine Corps?
I started doing CrossFit when I was in the Marine Corps. I also took a basic level instructor course.
I really didn’t know what I wanted to do outside the military. During the instructor certification course, I met someone that wanted to open a CrossFit gym in Cambodia. He was looking for a partner to go into it with him. That partner ended up being me.
5:35
Was it tough to go from the structure of the military to doing something completely unstructured?
As I went into the CrossFit gym project, I signed a two year contract so there was a bit of structure there.
In the Marine Corps, my job was somewhat atypical. I did a deployment to the United Arab Emirates. There weren’t many other Marines there with me so I became accustomed to working without a ton of structure.
7:15
Did a desire to travel influence the decision to go to Cambodia?
For five of the six years I was in the Marine Corps, I worked outside the United States. I really enjoyed living overseas and when I got out of the Marine Corps, I was still interested in the possibility of living abroad. I was specifically excited to experience life abroad outside the military.
8:30
What was the experience of opening the CrossFit gym like?
We made an effort to train local Cambodian coaches to eventually take over the gym. It was amazing to build a community that hadn’t been there previously. These were people that not only worked out together but also spent time with each other away from the gym.
9:30
How did you eventually make the decision to leave the gym?
I had always wanted to go to business school. So after living in Cambodia for two years, I transitioned into business school at a university in Malaysia.
10:25
Why did you go to business school abroad rather than in the United States?
I applied to MIT Sloan School of Business and as it turned out, they had a sister school in Malaysia. MIT professors traveled to Malaysia to teach all of the classes. So after some thought, I decided that I wanted to enroll in that program.
11:30
How do you explain what you do for a living?
I do a little bit of everything. I’m a NOLS field instructor - mainly during the summer and fall. Coming up, I’ll be taking a group of students caving in Utah.
My other passion in life is being a CrossFit coach.
12:15
What is NOLS?
NOLS was founded by Paul Petzoldt in 1962. He had been on a number of pretty intense mountaineering expeditions. During these expeditions, he realized that people often had good technical skills but did not always demonstrate effective leadership and communication skills. So NOLS programs use nature to these participants how to be better leaders.
14:40
How did you get involved with NOLS?
I graduated from the Naval Academy in 2008. During my time there, I spent a summer in Alaska doing a NOLS mountaineering course. It was so much fun - really awesome.
When I got out of the Navy, I had some extra time so my wife and I decided to do a NOLS course together.
16:30
How did you become an instructor?
You have to go through a 30 day training course. During that course, you learn how to run a NOLS course of your own.
17:00
Are there any stories that really stick out for you?
A couple years ago, I took a group of Naval midshipmen on an expedition in Alaska. During most of the course, they would be talking to each other for most of the time. But at one point we crested a mountain and looked down into a valley where there were hundreds of caribous. Everyone fell silent to take in the moment and that was really special.
18:40
What do people get out of these experiences?
There’s an opportunity to test out different leadership styles - especially for younger people that take part in the program. For older participants, it’s more about addressing the issue of bottling things up. Many times, they’ll hide their emotions and true feelings from one another. So it’s about learning how to communicate with honesty and authenticity.
We also make sure people are getting feedback so they know how they are doing as a leader throughout the experience.
24:00
How can people learn more about NOLS experiences?
I recommend our website. There are over 300 types of expeditions that you can go on. You can go caving, sailing, hiking, etc. all over the world. The expeditions last from a few days to a few months.
You don’t have to have any previous experience in any of this. We’ll teach you everything.
28:30
Have you always loved the outdoors?
I enjoy exploring different things in life. One of the reasons I joined the Marine Corps after the Naval Academy was because the Marines offered so many different job options.
I just love learning new things and experiencing new cultures.
30:00
What resources would you recommend?
I love to read about what is going on around the world. The Economist is a good resource.
I also did a blog post on the NOLS website which details my journey.
As far as CrossFit goes, I like to listen to Jason Khalipa. He has a podcast called Coffee With Khalipa that is pretty good.
31:45
What advice would you give listeners?
Don’t be afraid to do something a little non-traditional - it will most likely work out in the end. Leaving the military can be scary because you’re leaving a steady paycheck. But it’s an opportunity to really try something that you’ve always wanted to.