Building the Elite Podcast

Alex Fichtler is a 9-year Navy SEAL combat veteran with operational experience in Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa. He is a Naval Special Warfare Sniper, Assaulter, Intel Specialist, and Communications Specialist and served as Troop Lead Sniper during his time with SEAL Team 7. Alex led the West Coast NSW Close Quarters Battle (CQB) training cell, providing thousands of active duty SEALs with countless hours of high-risk training and instruction on CQB, target assaults, and internal and external breaching.During his time in the civilian sector, Alex has transferred his knowledge of high performance into the service of others through personal and team coaching. He and his girlfriend, Jenna Bauer, own Highground Performance, where they teach fitness and mindset development alongside the nutrition and wellness habits that bring elite performance to life. Alex also works in the physical security sector, managing security professionals responsible for high-value asset and location protection. Alex is a father of three, a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, an entrepreneur, and has a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership. He also has his civilian EMT certification and is completing his NASM CPT certification.More about Alex:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bearded_beast8/LinktreeTimestamps:00:00:22 Introduction to Alex Fichtler00:01:40 Career in the Seal Teams00:09:40 Somalia Operation00:10:36 OTB - Over the Beach00:11:55 Fire Support from the Water00:15:14 The Stupid Never Stops00:16:27 Keeping Motivation When You Feel You Don’t Belong00:23:08 Replacing Negative Self-Talk with Positivity00:28:41 Using Humor to Uplift Yourself and Others00:30:30 Sponsor note: Fuel My Day Foods00:31:10 Transition Into Language School00:35:01 Failing Out of Language School00:36:39 Going Back to Montana00:40:30 Working with Civilians Without a Routine00:43:39 The Six Pillars00:47:50 Building a Healthy Community for Men00:51:35 An Agendaless Time00:54:57 Recreating the Unit’s PT00:57:10 Outro

Senior Chief Candace Esquivel joined the Navy in 2005 as a cryptologic technician with advanced training in signals exploitation systems. From there, she went to the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, where she worked as a SIGINT Geospatial Analyst. At Dev Gru, she was selected as an Intelligence Detachment Leading Chief Petty Officer (LCPO) for Tactical Evaluation and Development Squadron THREE, where she deployed and served as a Director of Intelligence (J2) for two rotations in the CENTCOM AOR supporting overseas contingency operations.She then screened for and was selected for duty at the Joint Cyber Operations Group, where she was a Troop Senior Enlisted Leader before she was selected as the Command Senior Enlisted Leader to establish North Squadron, an O5 operational squadron.In 2021, Senior Chief Esquivel was selected as a DoD Congressional Fellow for Representative Seth Moulton. While serving in the House of Representatives, she advised the Congressman on technical policy, cyber operations and talent management, and information operations across the DoD.Senior Chief Esquivel holds a bachelor’s degree in management studies and is pursuing her master’s in management interdisciplinary studies. Currently, she is a policy analyst in the Office of Culture and Force Resilience’s Office of Women’s Policy, where she works to develop and implement policies involving Navy servicewomen in coordination with the higher authorities in the DoD, like the Secretary of the Navy, the Chief of Naval Operations, and the Chief of Naval Personnel.  More about Candace:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candace-esquivel-a41669270/The Valkyrie Project: https://www.thevalkyrieproject.org/Timestamps:00:00:22 Introduction to Senior Chief Candace Esquivel00:01:55 Walkthrough of Candace Esquival’s Career00:06:01 Role as Signals Analyst and J200:07:36 What Type of Signals Are Analyzed?00:08:27 How Vulnerable Are Smart Devices?00:12:21 Protecting Yourself from Data Tracking00:14:59 Protecting Yourself on Social Media00:17:20 Hilarious Failed Attempts of Espionage00:18:44 Selection Process for DEVGRU and JCOG00:25:22 What Does it Mean to Be a Congressional Fellow?00:28:57 Which Policies Does Candace Esquivel Push For?00:30:54 What Does the Office of Culture and Force Resilience Do?00:34:30 Sponsor Note: Fuelmydayfoods.com00:35:11 Changes for Women in the DoD Communities00:40:07 Progress in Fertility Services00:47:29 Possible Toxins During Deployment00:53:52 New Policies for Women00:58:20 CFL Training 01:01:37 Adaptable Training and Modifications for Health and Recovery01:03:21 Best and Worst Advice Received01:07:00 Outro

We all must pay for our food. We can't choose not to pay; we only decide how. We can pay with our time. We can pay with our money. Or, we can pay with our health. You can invest time to learn how nutrition works and how to cook good meals, and then do the shopping, prep, cooking, storage, and cleanup. With practice, this all becomes easier and more efficient. The longer you go without investing your time, the harder it is to start and the more constrained you will be.You can pay for somebody else's expertise and have them tell you what to eat. You can pay for a meal delivery service or expensive restaurant meals.You can save time and money in the short term by not investing in nutrition knowledge, never learning to cook, and buying cheap convenience foods. The costs of following this last strategy take years to accumulate and manifest. The harm it does to gut health, metabolism, cognitive function, and every other process in your body may remain invisible for a long time. It might even seem like a free ride in your teens and early twenties. But eventually, you will pay for it.This is why the food we eat is so important. Eating well is hard. And it’s hard for everyone, whether you’re a young athlete trying to juggle training and school, a business traveler trying to stay healthy while living in hotels and airports, or a parent trying to keep yourself and your child alive with minimal sleep and no spare time. It can be even more challenging for military personnel deployed to locations with very few resources. In this episode, we discuss how to put together a healthy meal on the go, and the science behind how that works, and how it affects our bodies. Learn more: www.fuelmydayfoods.com

The idea that no one gets left behind is such a common phrase associated with the special operations community that it’s almost become a cliche. We can hear and say it without thinking about what it means. But it’s a critical concept in military operations, particularly in the SOF community, where people often work in small groups behind enemy lines doing dangerous things. It’s not enough to carry your own weight. That’s just the baseline, the entry stakes. You also must repeatedly demonstrate that you’re willing and able to carry the weight of one of your teammates when the situation calls for it. It’s crucial to be strong as an individual, but you must also be a strong part of the team. Without both, you don’t have the raw material the SOF community needs. This isn’t just a physical capacity, tested by carrying your teammates on your shoulders at the most inconvenient times. It’s a general attitude expressed in countless ways, big and small, physical and otherwise. 

Andrew is a strength and conditioning coach, business owner, national team powerlifter, and veteran with a tactical operations and physical training background.As a former Maritime Assault Operator in the U.S. Coast Guard’s Deployable Specialized Forces, Andrew has firsthand experience in high-stakes situations, including anti-terrorism operations, drug and human smuggling interdiction, anti-piracy operations, and executive/dignitary protection. He has dedicated himself to coaching and guiding other athletes to set state records and achieve medal-winning performances. He is currently the lead strength and conditioning coach at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, and he has dedicated his career to helping individuals develop physical and mental resilience.More about Andrew:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-siepka-cscs-9381461b7/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/siepka_ludus_/Timestamps:00:00:22 Intro to Andrew Siepka00:01:09 About Andrew’s Career00:01:51 Was Viral Video of "Submarine Attack at Gunpoint" Andrew’s Unit?00:03:19 What Led Andrew from Gunner’s Mate to MSST?00:13:19 Outsourcing Knowledge from Multiple Units00:14:38 Having Self-Doubt in Selection Courses00:18:04 Preparing Endlessly vs. Winging It00:21:27 Operational Life in the Unit00:26:26 What Does It Mean to Be “An Earner”?00:27:33 An Example of Andrew Failing Forward00:32:08 Sponsor Note: Mentorship Course00:32:30 Transition from Coastguard to Coach 00:41:36 What New Recruits Need to Start and Stop Doing00:44:37 How Does Andrew’s Background in Powerlifting Affect His Coaching Method?00:46:40 Andrew’s Career in Powerlifting00:49:21 How to Powerlift for Decades Without Injury00:52:13 Different Concepts of Training for Recon Marines00:54:52 Banded Resistance Training00:56:03 Things to Address to Handle Heavy Training01:00:41 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received 01:02:01 Outro

Tiffany Myrick-Woodley served two decades in the US Army, and played an essential role in the integration of women into the Army’s Combat Arms occupations. She served as a member of Cultural Support Team – Two (CST-2), enabling the 75th Ranger Regiment and Naval Special Warfare Development Group by engaging the Afghan female and adolescent populations prior to the lift of the Combat Exclusion Policy. She was also selected to observe and advise on the implementation of standards during gender integration of Ranger School, the Army’s premier leadership course.Over the span of her military service, Tiffany discovered that real change comes through policy and education. This prompted her to leave the military to influence policy on a broader scale while continuing to provide inspiration, mentorship, and advocacy to future generations. Her ideals prompted her to accept a role as a board member for the Valkyrie Project, a nonprofit organization devoted to the advocacy and support of female service members.More about Tiffany:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffany-m-b477671b6/The Valkyrie Project: https://www.thevalkyrieproject.org/Timestamps:00:00:22 Introduction to Tiffany Myrick00:01:28 Tiffany’s Roles in the Military00:03:35 Being On the Other Side of Basic Training00:05:18 One Station Unit Training00:06:51 What Did Tiffany Learn from Being a Drill Sergeant?00:10:03 The Cultural Support Team00:11:14 Selection Course for Cultural Support Team00:12:52 The White Board System00:13:15 Being a Student Versus Being Qualified to Do the Job 00:14:54 Ranger Physical Assessment00:15:45 Working Closely with the Same Partner for an Entire Mission00:16:48 Room for One Tactically00:17:38 What Does the Mission Objective Look Like?00:20:13 Deciding What Looks Important on a Mission00:20:40 Interacting with the Local Populous00:22:43 Main Security Concerns on Assignment00:23:46 Did Tiffany Know Ashley?00:24:39 Particular Missions That Stood Out to Tiffany00:29:23 Moments Where Everyone Is Suffering00:31:11 Wearing NODs (Night Observation Devices)00:32:01 Lifting the Combat Exclusion Policy00:32:59 Sponsor Note: Coaching Mentorship Course00:33:21 Advisory Role to Integrate Women into Ranger School00:35:25 Identifying Common Characteristics Among Graduates00:36:00 What Did the Army Learn as Women Were Integrated?00:38:33 The Gray Man, Middle of the Pack00:40:46 Why Couldn’t Women Shave Their Heads Like the Men?00:41:23 When did Tiffany Retire?00:41:32 What Led Tiffany to the Valkyrie Project in 2023?00:44:34 Advice for Women in SOF Pipeline 00:46:34 Similar Stories to “The Ranger on a Ridgeline Getting an I.V.”00:49:21 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received 00:50:59 Outro

After working with thousands of clients over the last twenty years, we tend to see people make the same mistakes when struggling to work toward their goals. They tend to fall into one of four categories: Trying to do too many things. Their values and time & energy allotment are not in alignment.Spending time and energy struggling against the things they can’t change while not fully committing to what they can.Constantly changing goals. Today, we will talk about the exercises and mental models we use to help our clients clarify what matters most so they can get unstuck and escape these traps. This isn’t a tome on why you should prioritize health or fitness or anything else. That’s precisely the point. Only you can decide the best way to spend the coin of your life. So, this episode aims to equip you with a few critical tools and mental models to get more clarity and make tough decisions.

Kathleen Oswald is a Strength and Conditioning Specialist with a Master's in Exercise and Sport Science and is earning her Ph.D. in Cognition and Instruction. She works at Peterson Space Force Base and is the first human-performance professional with a cognitive performance background to work with Space Force Guardians. Before that, Kathleen worked under the Cognitive Performance Specialist at the 10th Special Forces Group. By integrating tactical professionals into the design process of her exercises and workshops, she leveraged their expertise to optimize her coaching to help Special Forces operators improve their performance in some of the most challenging aspects of their jobs, such as CQB training. Her Ph.D. work in Cognition and Instruction allows her to research optimal programming for cognitive performance, develop a cognitive performance program for the US Space Force, and improve her abilities to teach, coach, and mentor the human performance professionals who serve our nation’s military. Aside from her work with the Special Forces and Space Force communities, Kathleen is also an ultramarathon runner, competing in races at 50k, 50-mile, 100k, and 100-mile distances. She is also a nationally qualified powerlifter.You can get in touch with Kathleen and learn more about her work on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katoswald/Timestamps:00:00:22 Intro to Kathleen Oswald00:01:43 NSCA Tactical Annual Training Session00:03:15 Cognitive Function and Cognitive Skills00:04:24 Ensuring Skills Training Transfers to the Real World00:06:22 Examples of Decision-Making Scenarios 00:08:06 Training for Selection Courses00:10:07 Adding Incremental Difficulties During Training00:11:39 Sponsor Note: Our Book, “Building the Elite” and Mentor Course00:12:25 Training Via Stress vs. Skill Mastery00:14:31 Assessing Technical Skills vs. Testing the Skills00:17:45 Knowing When to Display Certain Attributes00:18:52 Evaluating What Someone Is Made of00:20:47 Concocting Tests for Perseverance00:22:10 Performing with Severe Gastrointestinal Issues00:25:28 Addressing Imposter Syndrome00:28:25 Why Younger Generations May Struggle with Self-Regulation00:31:16 Training in Silence00:32:23 Being Perpetually Distracted00:34:07 Evaluation in the Shoot House00:39:35 Video Training Scenarios00:41:16 Rapidly Presenting Critical Decisions with Perceptual Learning 00:44:23 Comparing Different Levels of Skill 00:47:15 Changes in Eye Movement as Skill Progresses00:49:38 Emotional and Stress Regulation Assessments00:53:04 Does Your Fear Response Help or Hurt Your Performance?00:56:20 How Do You Determine What Foundational Training to Implement First?01:00:31 Tech Gadgets for Cognitive Skills Training01:03:49 Improving Cognitive Skills on Your Own01:06:32 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received01:09:26 Outro

Mindfulness is explored as the foundational mental skill for resilience. The discussion highlights how it connects to both mental and physical training. Practical exercises guide listeners to better understand their thoughts and emotions. Observing without identifying with feelings is emphasized, revealing tools for emotional management. The podcast illustrates how focused attention disrupts negative patterns, enhancing clarity and presence in daily life. Ultimately, mindfulness is portrayed as a crucial pathway to mental toughness and improved performance.

John Spencer is one of the world’s leading experts on urban warfare. He currently serves as the chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute, codirects the Urban Warfare Project, and hosts the Urban Warfare Project Podcast at West Point.In addition to personal experiences from 25 years as an infantry soldier and officer in the US Army, including urban battles in Iraq in 2003 and the Battle of Sadr City in 2008, he has spent over a decade researching, publishing, and lecturing on all facets of urban warfare.  In the last five years, he has conducted research in India, Israel, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Ukraine. He has served as an advisor to the top four-star general and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy. He has also trained multiple militaries in urban operations. His research focuses on all military operations in dense urban areas, megacities, and urban and subterranean warfare.In February 2022, Spencer wrote a guide, The Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender, for Ukrainian citizens on how to defend their cities. The manual was translated into Ukrainian and spread widely across Ukraine. It is now available in sixteen separate languages, with many other translations in the works.In this episode, we’ll talk with John about the difficulties of urban warfare, his time in Ukraine, his recent trip into Gaza, and much more. More about John:Website: JohnSpencerOnline.comX: https://x.com/SpencerGuardInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/spencerguardTimestamps:00:00:21 Intro to John Spencer00:01:53 What is The Modern Warfare Institute?00:03:56 Leading Academics Pushing Propaganda for Terrorist Organizations 00:05:29 Why is Urban Warfare so Hard?00:09:21 The Battle of Stalingrad 00:10:50 Urban Legends/Myths about Modern Warfare00:12:55 What’s Changed in Subterranean Warfare?00:16:41 What is so Challenging About Subterranean Warfare?00:21:25 Will People’s Perception of Russia Change?00:25:40 General Sun-Tzu00:26:10 Defeat Your Enemy Without Fighting00:29:08 What Happens if Russia Wins the Propaganda War?00:32:01 Gaza and Hamas00:34:33 How Many Civilians are Killed in the Crossfire?00:42:53 What if We Just Let Hamas Go?00:48:04 Proxy Groups of Iran00:50:12 Extreme Misogyny in Iran 00:53:15 The Spread of an Ideology00:56:03 Eradicating Extremist Ideologies Efficiently01:02:00 “Pay for Slay” Program01:03:04 Independence of Gaza in 200501:04:00 Responsibilities of Israel for the Conditions in Gaza01:05:11 Hamas Leadership Using Economic Oppression 01:07:55 Outro