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Today’s episode comes to us from a listener question I received after the Diet and Fitness episode last month.  Our listener said that he would like to try the low carb diet because he is heavier than he’s ever been and he wanted some advice as to how to get his wife on board with the diet. Right up front I have to say that I don’t really believe we can get anyone to do anything that they don’t want to do.  We can educate them and make things easy, but ultimately if they don’t want to do it there isn’t much we can do to change their mind.  Rather than focusing on them, it is much more effective to focus on ourselves, our goals, and our motivations.  Don’t let someone else’s lack of interest be your excuse for inaction!  In the end, the best way to motivate someone else is to show them your own success. So [...]

It’s time for another Lesson From a Dangerous Life.  This lesson comes from my flying days and is the same lesson I use to close out each show.  Enjoy!

So much in life is a matter of perspective.  Have you ever heard the phrase, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”?  Likewise, what I consider a gourmet meal you may consider to be junk that’s not fit to eat.  Our perspectives matter, and how satisfied, happy, and fulfilled we are in life is often determined by how we view our situation.  Three words that have incredible power over us are fear, frustration, and failure.  In today’s episode, I look at each of these “f-words” and perhaps I’ll even change how you view them.

I’m in a reflective and philosophical mood today, and I’ve been thinking about what is truly important in life.  Naturally, that leads to the idea of wealth and how we define true wealth.  I’ll share my thoughts with you in this short episode.

     Why is it that so many people kill themselves trying to follow expert advice on diet and fitness but they don’t get lasting results?  Why are serious health issues like obesity and diabetes skyrocketing?  Are we too lazy or lacking in willpower?  I don’t think so!  At a certain point, we really need to consider that the problem may be that the experts and their advice are wrong.  Like many of you I followed the experts yet I continued to gain weight and my exercise regimen was leaving me tired and prone to injury, so over the past few years I have done a lot of reading, research, and experimentation.  What I have found is that diet and fitness are really quite simple.  Personally, I believe that the so called experts overcomplicate things so they can make a buck by selling you their solution.       In this episode, I talk about diet and fitness, and what has worked for me.  This is a big subject and there is really no way to do it ju [...]

One of the most important lessons I learned during Pararescue training is the idea that “Slow is Smooth and Smooth is Fast.”  We heard this almost everyday from our instructors and eventually came to understand just how true this is, not just during physical performance but also during times of crisis and even daily life.  In today’s episode, we’ll take a look at the connection between speed, simplicity, learning, performance, and even life itself.

Over the years, I have said farewell to a great number of warriors.  Some have died, and others retired or just moved on.  It is never easy, especially when they are not ready to go.  In this episode, I read a farewell speech I wrote for one such man.  It is short and sweet, and I believe it touches on the restlessness that many veterans feel when they leave the service.

Why is it so hard to be happy, content, and fulfilled?  We are really blessed to live in an age and a country where we aren’t struggling for survival every single day.  Yet, so many of us are frustrated and discontented with our lives.  At least, I know I am.  I feel like there must be something more, that I’m missing something.  I guess it all goes back to the age old questions about the meaning of life.  Today I’ll share a few of my thoughts on the subject and will hopefully give you something to think about this weekend.

Today’s guest is a good friend who has certainly lived an interesting and dangerous life.  Jim Ellis is a twenty year combat vet who served as a helicopter gunship pilot and maintenance test pilot.  During his tour in Iraq in 2003, Jim took stock of his life and was not happy with what he saw.  Two years later, he retired, bought a boat, sailed the Caribbean, bought a marina in Guatemala, met the love of his life, and eventually set off to accomplish his lifelong dream of crossing the Pacific Ocean in a sail boat. This is a wide ranging interview and I think you will agree that Jim’s story is an inspiration for us all.  Enjoy!  Books and Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Dove, by Robin Lee Graham  Patrick O’ [...]

Today we wrap up our series on time management.  In this episode we bring the focus in closer to look at tips and techniques for creating and managing our schedules.  Enjoy!

We’ll end the week with another Lesson From a Dangerous Life.  This week’s lesson is “You Go to War With What You’ve Got, Not With What You Want.”  The time to get ready for both emergencies and opportunities is now.  Once an event happens it is too late to get healthy, get knowledge, or get ready.  Enjoy the show.

Today, Glen Stilson returns to talk about guns.  We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including rights versus responsibilities, the best gun and best caliber, how to choose a shooting instructor, and how we can protect our rights as gun owners.  We even poke a little fun at the NRA.  Enjoy the show!

Today we are continuing our series on time management.  In this episode we look at creating goals, brainstorming, career planning, collaboration, and how all of these help us identify what is important in our lives.  Remember, successful and effective people are good at identifying what is important and get busy doing it.  It is all about the 80/20 rule.  Identify the 20% that is most important and tackle that with all of your energy.  Like many things in life, time management is really quite simple, but it isn’t always easy!  Enjoy the show…

I have a love-hate relationship with all of the gear, equipment, and stuff in my life.  On the one hand, it can make things easier and more convenient, and, on the other, it all ties me down and limits my flexibility.  In this week’s “Lesson From a Dangerous Life,” we look at stuff and consider the fact that, ultimately, gear always fails.  Enjoy!

Do you wear a seatbelt or will you put it on right before your accident?  That’s a silly question, right?  Maybe, but that is exactly how many of us go through life.  We all face crises and emergencies - some big and some small - yet, how many of us take the time to prepare ahead of time.  Forget massive end-of-the-world scenarios, we are talking about things that happen every day: injuries; car accidents; utility failures; and, of course, crime.  Each of these things can have a huge impact on our lives!  Fortunately, we can take simple, inexpensive steps now to significantly reduce the negative impact. This episode offers twelve simple things you can do to prepare for a wide range of emergencies.

Time is our true wealth.  It is our most precious commodity and the only thing that we truly own, yet we often live as if our time is unlimited.  One of our listeners asked me to talk about time management.  There are a thousand tips and techniques out there and a million self styled experts on the subject.  That’s not me.  However, I’ve learned what works for me over the years and in this three part series I’ll share some of my thoughts on time and time management.  As I said in the audio, take what works and make it yours, and throw away all the rest!  Part 1, General Thoughts on Time Management  Part 2, Goals and Planning  Part 3, Scheduling and Time Management Techniques

Our minds are powerful, yet we often forget that the mental aspect of training is often more important than the physical side of our training.  This episode explores the second Lesson From a Dangerous Life and offers a few ways that we can tweak our mental training and also use our minds to enhance our physical performance.

Today we delve into psychology and look at our need to be right.  Why is it that we sometimes have a hard time admitting that we are wrong or that we made a mistake?  This disrupts our relationships, biases scientific studies, impacts our work, and in a crisis can kill us!  For a deeper look into cognitive dissonance and how this phenomenon impacts our lives, I strongly recommend starting with the well researched book, Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me), by Carol Tavris & Elliot Aronson.

Today we are joined by my friend Chris Reynolds from The One Effect to talk about long term and extended travel.  Even as a child, I was passionate about traveling and seeing the world, which for most of us means a week or two at a time during our annual vacations.  However, there is a growing community of expats who have chosen to travel abroad for months or years at a time.  Chris has been on the road since 2011, and if travel is in your dreams then you will find this conversation both educational and inspirational. For our listeners with families, I will be following up in a couple of weeks with a conversation with another friend who has been traveling for two years now with his family of high school kids.  If you have the travel bug there is no reason to wait just because you have school aged children.  It can be done.  You just need to live dangerously!  As Chris said, luck favors those who take action! 

Living Dangerously starts with being flexible, and that means accepting that none of our plans will survive contact with reality…