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BTU #369 - How to Buy and Grow a Company (Charles Mullenger)

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BTU #369 - How to Buy and Grow a Company (Charles Mullenger)

Why Listen:

I reached out to Charles about six months ago, and am so happy that I was finally able to get him on the show. In this interview, we talk a lot about building up specific skills in one’s career. In Charle’s case, he learned skills at business school and then in private equity which both were in line with his eventual career goal: entrepreneurship. And we talk about a form of entrepreneurship you’ve probably never heard about - search funds. So many Veterans want to run a company, but don’t know where to start. A search fund is a way to buy an existing business and then build and grow it. Actually, for most of my time at Stanford Business School, I thought I would do a Search Fund, and I still believe it’s an incredible career path for many Veterans. As I mentioned, I reached out to Charles 6 months ago based on his background… I don’t really think I realized how incredibly smart and capable he is until we had this conversation… as an entrepreneur myself, I’m blown away by the moves this guy has, and on his ability to explain them to our audience. If you do like this episode, check out

BTU #117: Jim Vesterman: Marine Corps to Search Funds and Buying a Company to Run (https://beyondtheuniform.org/blog/btu-84-jim-vesterman-marine-corps-to-search-funds-and-buying-a-company-to-run?rq=search%20funds) which I’ll list in the show notes for this episode at BeyondTheUniform.org.

And, of course, this interview was only made possible due to the financial support of the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, and I want to share a little bit more about them. Whether you're transitioning to a civilian career or continuing military service, an MBA from Carlson, at the University of Minnesota prepares you for a high impact career in business. Carlson is committed to the veteran community and provides the benefits, experiential learning, and network to accelerate your career. In addition to a resident tuition waiver, all admitted full time MBA military candidates receive generous scholarships and stipends to cover expenses that may not be eligible for the GI Bill. To learn more, you can visit the show notes at BeyondTheUniform.org for this episode, or you can email MBA@UMN.edu.

About Charles:

Charles Mullenger is the CEO of President of Ethos Preparedness, which has been building the most trusted brands in preparedness, starting with Med Sled®, since 2004. A 2010 graduate of West Point, Charles served as a Field Artillery officer in the Army for 5 years, before obtaining his MBA at Chicago’s Booth School of Business. He has served on the board of directors for Purity Zinc Metals, and founded Steel Tree Capital, which led to his ownership of Ethos Preparedness.

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BTU #368 - Feltman's of Coney Island (Joe Quinn)

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BTU #368 - Feltman's of Coney Island (Joe Quinn)

Why Listen:

Today’s episode is a must-listen. Here’s my top three reasons. One - entrepreneurship. Joe and his brother started Feltman’s of Coney Island and is a self-proclaimed hotdog slinger. Seriously… do you need another reason? Ok, fine - reason #2: selflessness. The impetus for starting Feltman’s was the loss of Joe’s brother on September 11th. The way in which Joe and his brother honor their deceased brother is touching to say the least. Third - mindset. Joe is the Executive Director of Headstrong, which provides best-in-class therapy for Veterans. Its an incredible organization. We also talk about how often we as Veterans can mask our own internal struggle by looking to help others - there’s some really good insights there. So, those are my top three reason for listening to this episode, but honestly, wouldn’t this have been easier for all of us if you would have just taken my word on this one.

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BTU #367 - Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (John Troxell)

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BTU #367 - Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (John Troxell)

Why Listen:

I just wrapped up my conversation with John and I put this in a rare category of interviews where I just started taking notes for myself during the conversation. And John, as you'll hear, is such a wealth of wisdom about career success in in any arena. I've got a half a page to a page of notes for my own career advice that I got from him about achieving what you want to achieve in your in your professional life. John, as you'll hear about worked his way up to the pinnacle of service in the military, but more impressively after 30 you know, nearly 40 years of service he just powered through to continue to find purpose to find a calling that pulled him towards it, and keeping more than busy with many different things but continuing to give back after the Military. So I appreciated John's example not only in terms of an extremely high achieving individual looks like and and what it takes to do that, but also someone who continues to redefine purpose in his life. So I imagine this interview will be extremely applicable to all of our listeners. We also at the very end, we touch on something that is so powerful about what I would call the subconscious bias that we have - for most people who serve I would imagine this bias and opinions and beliefs about officer and enlisted on both sides. And I think that our conversation at the end is really worthwhile about challenging those assumptions.

Of course, this interview was only made possible due to the financial support of the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. Back when I interviewed Matt Hesse in Episode 358, that was a similarly energizing conversation. And what I said to Matt was we were fortunate enough to receive sponsorship from the Carlson School of Management. We've got a few more interviews we can do. I'll talk to anyone you would recommend. And John is who he recommended. And so thank you to the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management for making this possible.

About John Wayne Troxell

Before his retirement in December 2019, Troxell advised the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Secretary of Defense for four years on all matters involving joint and combined total force integration, utilization, health of the force and joint development for enlisted personnel. Troxell enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1982.

By 2020, Troxell joined forces with FitOps to lead the Foundation’s strategic advisory board, working closely with Matt Hesse and the team to help prevent and end veteran suicide. Troxell’s primary focus will be helping FitOps reach service members who plan to separate from the military and equip them with training prior, so that when they hit the ground as a civilian, they are equipped to immediately serve their communities again, this time as personal trainers and coaches.

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BTU #366 - Race & Gender in the Military (Natasha Sistrunk Robinson)

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BTU #366 - Race & Gender in the Military (Natasha Sistrunk Robinson)

Why Listen:

Normally I start with a nice quote, reasons to listen to the episode. I’m not doing that today. Today is a conversation I should have had 300 episodes ago - its a conversation I wish more people were having more candidly. Today I chat with Natasha Sistrunk Robinson, where we spend the bulk of our time discussing race and gender and the role it plays in the military. It is an open, honest, and very imperfect conversation, and something I sincerely hope you take the time to listen to. With that let’s dive in to my conversation

About Natasha:

Natasha is an international speaker, leadership consultant, mentoring coach, and the visionary founder of the nonprofit Leadership LINKS, Inc. A graduate of the US Naval Academy and a former Marine Corps officer, she is the author of Mentor for Life and Hope for Us.

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BTU #365 - Impossible Foods (Dan Greene & Ryan Fisher)

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BTU #365 - Impossible Foods (Dan Greene & Ryan Fisher)

Why Listen:
When Carlson’s School of Management came to us with an offer for financial sponsorship, Steve and I were like kids in a candy store. We had the resources to do any interview we’d like… that’s like a dream come true. As I was thinking through who I wanted to reach out to, I started thinking about purpose - purpose is something that comes up time and time again in my interviews. So, I wanted to find a company that is purpose driven. A company that is doing something pretty different. And that is how I view Impossible Foods. They are re-envisioning how we eat and driven by a deep desire to help us take better care of our planet. Not only that, but they have become a massive sensation - according to LinkedIn there are now over 500 employees at Impossible, and according to Crunchbase they have raised over $1.2B… that’s right - $1.2B… the amount of money a villain in a James Bond movie would demand to avoid destroying the world.

Here’s what I love about today’s interview. First of all, I’m joined by TWO incredible Veterans with TWO incredible career paths. We talk about innovation and sales, two very different career paths, and their perspectives on what it’s like to work at Impossible. While we do talk a lot about Impossible, we cover a lot of ground about general career advice.

If you enjoy this episode, check out the show notes for this episode, where I link to a few interviews I’ve done in the Cyrpto space - that seems to share the same purpose-driven culture that I felt in this interview.

And, of course, this interview was only made possible due to the financial support of the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, and I want to share a little bit more about them, whether you're transitioning to a civilian career or continuing military service, an MBA from Carlson, at the University at the University of Minnesota prepares you for a high impact career in business. Carlson is committed to the veteran community and provides the benefits experiential learning and network to accelerate your career. In addition to a resident tuition waiver all admitted full time MBA military candidates receive generous scholarships and stipends to cover expenses that may not be eligible for the GI Bill. To learn more, you can visit the show notes at beyondtheuniform.org for this episode, or you can email MBA@UMN.edu.

About Ryan & Dan:
Dan Greene is a SVP of US Sales and Growth. He started out at the Naval Academy and served over 10 years as a Navy fighter pilot and director of operations for multiple aviation units. Dan served as Chief Revenue Officer for a conversational artificial intelligence startup, and served as an executive consultant with other early-stage software companies. Prior to that, Dan spent 11 years overseeing large teams and revenue-generating business units at Google and Twitter.

Ryan Fisher is the Director of New Product Introduction. He served in the US Army for over four years as an Explosive Ordinance Disposal Officer. He has worked in global supply at both Apple and Uber. He holds an MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.

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BTU #364 - Veteran Tax Credits (Craig Washburn)

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BTU #364 - Veteran Tax Credits (Craig Washburn)

Why Listen
Craig is a serial entrepreneur who’s current company - Veteran Tax Credits - is relevant to all of our listeners. First of all, if you are a Veteran seeking a job, Craig talks about how the government provides tax credits for any employer who hires you. This is a financial benefit to employers that could play a deciding role in your next job offer, so it is worthy of your attention. Second, if you’re an employer, Craig talks about a tax incentive surprisingly few businesses know about. He’ll walk you through what you need to do to take full advantage of this benefit. In addition, we talk about entrepreneurship, partnerships and more. Lastly, one thing I really appreciated in this interview is the sense that when Veterans raise awareness of this sort of tax incentive, not only are they helping themselves, but they’re helping other members of the military community who may benefit from these tax incentives in the future. Many thanks to Craig for the work he is doing to help our military community, and for his sponsorship of this episode to help Beyond the Uniform further our work.

About Craig:
Craig Washburn is the Founder & CEO of VTC Veteran Tax Credits. VTC helps Veterans get pre-certified and find gainful employment through our partnerships. We help companies’ find outstanding Veteran talent and collect valuable tax credits for employing them. Craig started out in the Navy as an Administrative Supervisor, where he served for four years. His civilian career includes work at HealthCare Dimensions, PacifCare Health Systems, as well as Owner of the Pivot Management Group.

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BTU #363 - Drones & Data @ Skycatch (Christian Sanz )

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BTU #363 - Drones & Data @ Skycatch (Christian Sanz )

Why Listen
I'm so honored to have had time with Christian today. I realized a while back that we hadn't talked to anyone in the drone industry. I think it's an industry that has a lot of interest for veterans - it's growing rapidly, it's cool, it's high tech. I started looking for veterans in this industry and came across Christian. He agreed to be interviewed for Beyond the Uniform and I was so energized and inspired by our conversation.


About Christian:
Christian Sanz is the CEO and Founder of Skycatch, the leading industrial aerial data collection and analytics company, focused on indexing and extracting critical information from the physical world. He served in the Navy for 4 years, and his civilian career includes work as a software engineer for The Walt Disney Company, a Senior Software Engineer at LoopNet, the Senior Director of Engineering at Break Media, the CTO at Kin Community, the Founding CTO of Storify (acquired by Adobe), and the Founder of DroneGames. Over the last 7 years, Christian has grown Skycatch to have over 50 employees and $46M in funding.

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BTU #362 - Hope Unseen Part 2 with Tiffany Smiley

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BTU #362 - Hope Unseen Part 2 with Tiffany Smiley

Why Listen:
Two weeks ago, I interviewed Scottie Smiley for Episode 359. As soon as the interview was over, I emailed Scotty’s wife Tiffany to set up an interview. It was clear from Scotty’s story how big of a role she played in his recovery and success. Tiffany is an incredible woman and this interview is such a powerful reminder of how military spouses are often the unsung heroes in our country. I was moved to tears in our conversation and hope you appreciate Tiffany's story of strength, resilience, and optimism.

About Tiffany:
Tiffany Smiley is currently CEO and Founder of Tiffany Smiley Consulting and President and Co-Founder of Hope Unseen, a highly successful public speaking firm. She has been featured on CBS News, CNN, C-SPAN, Dr. Phil, Fox News, The Katie Couric Show as well as in major publications such as People Magazine, USA Today and the Wall Street Journal. Prior to that, Ms. Smiley served as a triage nurse and in other health professional roles. She is a graduate of Whitworth University where she received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Ms. Smiley has been a fierce advocate for American veterans, working with high-ranking politicians, lobbyists and the President to secure much-needed services. She runs her consultancy and other businesses from Pasco, WA, where she lives with her husband and three sons.

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BTU #361 - Purpose After Military Service (Craig Filek)

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BTU #361 - Purpose After Military Service (Craig Filek)

Why Listen: Purpose is one of the most cited things on this show. In 350 episodes, I cannot count the number of my guests who have talked about how they have struggled to find their next purpose once they leave the military. I experienced this... and I've experienced multiple times since I left the military over 10 years ago.

In this episode, I have Craig Filek back on the show to talk about his Purpose Mapping work. Craig and I just finished up a 10 week course with 5 veterans, and we share some of our takeaways from this work.

Be sure to sign up for our FREE 90-minute webinar, where you can start to uncover your purpose and mission in life @ https://beyondtheuniform.org/purpose-mapping-webinar

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BTU #360 - CBS' "Tough as Nails" with Kelly "Murph" Murphy

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BTU #360 - CBS' "Tough as Nails" with Kelly "Murph" Murphy

Why Listen:
I want to highlight a couple things that Murph and I talked about in this interview. The first is that I love Murph's attitude around expanding your thinking about your career. In this own life, he ended up doing things that he didn't initially plan when he got out of the military.

Murph currently works at the University of Central Missouri and as their Director of Military and VeteranServices so he has some great thoughts from his experience helping many veterans in their post-military life. We talk about the value of education that keeps on coming up again and again in Murph’s story.

We also talked about the TV show that he's on called “Tough as Nails”. We talk about what it was being on the set and how that opportunity came about.

About Murph:

Murph is the Director of Military and Veteran Services at the University of Central Missouri. He is also a competitor on CBS’s new show, Tough as Nails. TOUGH AS NAILS is a competition series that celebrates everyday Americans who roll up their sleeves and don’t think twice about working long hard hours and getting their hands dirty, in order to keep their country running. On the show, competitors compete in challenges that take place at real-world job sites. Murph served in the Marine Corps for 22 years. Since his military service, he has worked as an Adjunct Faculty member at Central Texas College and Columbia College and also worked at Lowe’s in their as a Human Resrouce and Training Manager.

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BTU #359 - Hope Unseen with Scotty Smiley

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BTU #359 - Hope Unseen with Scotty Smiley

Why Listen:
Today’s interview is both humbling and inspiring. Scotty lost his eyesight while serving on active duty. During and after his recovery, he continued to serve on active duty even though he was blind. Today's interview is just a great shot of inspiration, one about finding one's purpose and surrounding yourself with others who can lift you up and motivate you during the darker times of your life.

About Scotty:

Scotty is a graduate of the United States Military Academy (USMA). He began his career as an active duty officer. While leading his platoon overseas, Scotty came face-to-face with a suicide car bomber. That was the last thing that Scotty has seen. He woke up in the United States at Walter Reed Hospital blind and fighting for his life. Scotty not only had to learn how to live again, he also had to learn to lead. After fully recovering, Scotty became the military’s first active duty member to continue his service as a completely blind active duty officer. Scotty went on to receive a Master’s in Business Administration from Duke University and he has taught at USMA. Scotty commanded a 250-person company. In this role, he used his skills and abilities to lead his team through dire circumstances and adapt to much change. The Army Times named Scotty “Soldier of the Year” in 2007 and in 2008 he won an ESPY as the world’s Best Outdoor Athlete. Scotty retired from active duty and now works in the financial industry at Drexel Hamilton. He's written two books: Hope Unseen and Beatfeat.

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BTU #358 - Fit Ops with Matt Hesse

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BTU #358 - Fit Ops with Matt Hesse

Why Listen:
There is so much to love about today's interview. First of all on the professional side, Matt went from the Army National Guard and an unexpected departure into opening a series of nutrition supplement franchises that built up a skill set for him to then start his own performance supplement company. He currently works for a company called Fit Ops which is doing absolutely unbelievable things in the military community training people physically, mentally, and emotionally,.

I loved so much of what Matt had to share in this interview. In this interview, we talk about things like mentorship and finding clarity in your life. And we talk about letting your gut guide you in decisions. This is a very informative interview but it's also an inspirational conversation and I think you'll really enjoy this episode.

About Matt:

Matt Hesse is the Chairman & Founder of the FitOps, the CEO of Performix, and the Founder & CEO of COrr-Jensen. He also serves as an Advisory Council Member on the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. He served in the Army and National Guard for nearly five years, and was a multi unit franchise store owner for GNC.

BTU #357 - An intro to freelance consulting work

BTU #357 - An intro to freelance consulting work

Subscribe on: iTunes | Stitcher | Google Play Enjoy the episode? Review us on iTunes!

In this episode, I share thoughts about freelance consulting work and why both Veterans and those on Active Duty should consider this sort of work, either as a side hustle or a full time career.

Related Resources:

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BTU #356 - A 13 Year Journey to the Perfect Post-Service Career (Robin Brown) (Rebroadcast)

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BTU #356 - A 13 Year Journey to the Perfect Post-Service Career (Robin Brown) (Rebroadcast)

Why Listen: Today’s episode originally aired one year ago. Usually, when I do rebroadcasts, I like to go a lot further back then that, but Robin’s episode has been on my mind a lot lately. We got a one-star review on Apple Podcasts recently, after a 132 5-star review streak. The review criticized Beyond the Uniform for focusing on the 10% of Veterans who are most successful in their career transition. I feel that there is some truth there - I imagine it can be frustrating, especially for those of you who are approaching a career transition or who are experiencing difficulty in your transition - to constantly see stories of seemingly simple success. That’s certainly not my intention for this show. However, one of the things I loved about my conversation with Robin is her candor in her own 13 year journey of mistakes, pitfalls, and setbacks, that eventually led her to a job that she truly loves. I personally put Robin in a small category of people I have interviewed where it feels like she has felt her calling in her current career path, rather than simply a job. She talks about how the attributes that made her successful in the military were a liability in the civilian world - how she had to adapt her communication and response to corporate culture in order to be successful. We talk about her job in public service and why this sort of career may be very fulfilling to other veterans.

Additionally, Robin Brown is one of three Veterans spotlighted in the 30-minute documentary, Adventure Not War. I watched it and consider myself a movie aficionado -it’s fantastic. Google it - it’s also free. It is inspiring, to say the least.

If you like this interview, be sure to check out Episode #268 - How the Outdoors Saved My Life (Stacy Bare), as Stacy is featured in Adventure Not War along with Robin.

About Robin:
Robin Brown is the Executive Director at Grand Junction Economic Partnership, a non-profit organization that is your first point of contact if you are looking to expand or relocate your company to the Grand Junction, Colorado area. She served as an Army as an Aviation Officer flying OH-58s for 8 years, where she deployed twice to Iraq- first as an AS3, then as a Company Commander of an attack helicopter company. She is also a self-proclaimed "Army brat from a family of Army brats,” and her husband served as an Army pilot as well.

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BTU #355 - Army to the NFL (Nate Boyer) (Rebroadcast)

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BTU #355 - Army to the NFL (Nate Boyer) (Rebroadcast)

Today’s episode originally aired all the way back in February of 2017. I was just getting my feet underneath me with Beyond the Uniform, and this was one of my first big episodes. I still think of this episode today. And, I have to disclose that I don’t follow football… I’m not a football fanatic… my appreciation of today’s guest has nothing to do with what he did in the NFL and EVERYTHING to do with two things that helped him get there:

  1. Failure - Nate has achieved the impossible - repeatedly in his life. He talks about being a grinder, of just working hard to go after his dreams. And he talks about how it's not about not having fear - it's about having the courage to realize that there is no downside, that the only risk is not taking an opportunity. There are far too many incredible words of wisdom to summarize here, but believe me - it's a lesson every single veteran will benefit from hearing.

  2. Passion - Nate talks about how many veterans fall back on what you know. He talks about how tried many things - and failed at many things - in his journey to find his calling and what he enjoys most. Again, these are lessons I found inspiring and hope you do too.

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BTU #354 - The Slight Edge (Rebroadcast)

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BTU #354 - The Slight Edge (Rebroadcast)

Today’s episode originally aired all the way back in Oct ober of 2017. I recorded it a few weeks after episode #115 with Ray & Samantha Allen. They recommended a few books, and I read one that continues to impact my life called, The Slight Edge.

I think about this book all the time. In fact, in the last four weeks, I’ve discussed it twice with my Executive Coach, as the principles I learned in this book continue to impact the way I approach work and life. I’m also currently co-hosting Beyond the Uniform’s Purpose Mapping Seminar with Craig Filek, and I just sent a copy of this book to all of our seminar participants - it is such a great complement to any intended career path in life.

In this episode, rather than interviewing something, I play Levar Burton from Reading Rainbow and do a book review for you. While I still recommend reading the book, I hope this episode gives you some tips and tricks you can apply today in your personal and professional life.

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BTU #353 - Career Advice from Andy Chan

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BTU #353 - Career Advice from Andy Chan

Andy Chan works at Wake Forest as Vice President for Innovation and Career Development. He oversees The Office of Personal and Career Development (OPCD) which is creating a supportive university-wide career community designed to empower and equip students to successfully navigate their path from college to career. Previously, he was the assistant dean and director of the MBA Career Management Center at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. Before joining Stanford, he served as president and CEO of eProNet, an online recruiting and career network based on exclusive relationships with university alumni associations. Earlier, he was president and CEO of MindSteps, a corporate education software start-up. He has extensive executive leadership and career coaching experience as well as business experience in venture-backed start-ups, The Learning Company, The Clorox Company and Bain & Company. He earned his BA and MBA from Stanford University.

Why Listen:

Today’s episode originally aired back in June of 2018 and I’m guessing that a lot of our newer listeners have not heard it. If that’s the case… fix yourself. If you HAVE already listened to it, this is one of a handful of episodes that i believe is worth a second or even third listening for everyone - whether you’re currently in uniform, hung it up a long time ago, or never wore a uniform.

Andy brings over 20 years of experience helping more than 11k students at both Stanford University and Wake Forest figure out their next career move. In this interview he covers ground about the most common challenges people face in a career transition, and simple actions to take to approach this change with more confidence and skill. Andy packs in so much incredible information in a very short amount of time - I hope you enjoy and benefit greatly from his advice.

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BTU #352 - Vets in Hollywood (Tyler Grey)

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BTU #352 - Vets in Hollywood (Tyler Grey)

Why Listen:

My guest today has done the seemingly impossible - he went from medically discharged from the Army Rangers to consultant, director, and actor on CBS’ SEAL Team, amongst other impressive accomplishments. But what sets Tyler apart isn’t his incredible accomplishments, it is his attitude. In this interview, Tyler talks about how we are all equally unprepared for our military transition - be it from medical injury or after 30 years of a career. He talks about giving up control, and putting in the effort even if it takes decades to achieve your dreams. He talks about networking, about what one wants to do versus what one NEEDS to do in life, about how Veteran is a status, not a job title, and more. Regardless of your interest in Hollywood, I guarantee there are multiple inspirational and motivational lessons for you in today’s interview.

About Tyler:

Tyler Grey is a producer, director, and actor on CBS’ SEAL Team. Tyler Grey is an Army veteran who served with the 75th Ranger Regiment, 2nd Battalion as a sniper in Afghanistan and a SMU (Special Missions Unit) in Iraq. He was medically retired in 2007 after he ran into explosives during a nighttime raid in Iraq. He's spent years working in Hollywood as a military advisor and consultant since getting out.

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BTU #351 - Veteran Careers in Education (Daris McInnis)

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BTU #351 - Veteran Careers in Education (Daris McInnis)

Why Listen:

Often on interviews my guests talk about how - after they leave the military - they struggle to find a purpose, mission, or calling like they had in the military. One of the things i love about my guest today, Daris, is that his time since the military has been spent addressing a new purpose. I haven’t had anyone on the show before to talk about the education space. Daris has spent time as a teacher, leading a classroom of four year olds. He talks about how this is one of the best and most challenging job he ever had, and how it taught him resilience, leadership, and perseverance. He has continued in education, now as a full time doctoral student at Penn’s Graduate School of Education. He talks about meeting two different US Presidents, all in one crazy day, and more.

About Daris:

Daris McInnis is full time doctoral student at Penn GSE (Graduate School of Education) and a summer learning curriculum specialist at the Free Library of Philadelphia. Prior to Penn, Daris served as an early childhood teacher in Washington, D.C., an Education Pioneer in New Orleans, LA, and five years on active duty as an Ordnance Logistics Officer in the United States Army.