Boots About Business
Support for our military veterans has never been higher than it is today. Many businesses have an interest in employing veterans, but they don’t know how to connect, and they don’t really understand the skills veterans can bring to their business. Something similar can be said about veterans in transition and their understanding of the business world. Hi, I’m Frank Strong, I’m a veteran, I’ve worked in businesses of all sizes, small-, medium and large, today I’m a business owner and now, I’m hosting a podcast called “Boots about Business.” We interview business leaders, executives and entrepreneurs that all started their careers wearing boots in service of the US armed forces. This podcast will be equal parts about sharing great stories, helping veterans, helping businesses and ultimately helping them both understand each other. The show is available wherever you get your podcasts. Keep an eye on the show’s website for show notes and links resources discussed on the show.
Episodes
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/bab_030_jason_marchant.jpg
Jason Marchant won’t tell you to not get a degree, but he will tell you don’t let not having one prevent you from applying for a job.
That’s how he did it. And in a couple years, he went from a veteran in transition, and wondering what he’d do with his life, to having a career in sales and business card with the title of “president” of a franch...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bab_029_starr_corbin.jpg
After leaving the Army Starr Corbin took a job for which she felt she was overqualified. But she took it anyway and excelled. In few years, she was running the shop that eventually led opportunities with companies like CapGemini, iHeartRadio, and eventually her own consulting company.
Today she leads the software team for a robotics startup in Aus...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bab_028_chuck_kluball_home_depot-scaled.jpg
After Chuck Kluball transitioned out of the Army, he spent months applying for jobs and sending out resumes. In fact, he says he submitted about 400 applications and received no responses.
Zero.
Home Depot was at the top of his most wanted list and he sent some 40 applications to positions there and had the same result: No cal...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/bab_027_michael_winters.jpg
Many of the lessons Michael Winters applies to his small business, he learned in the Army. He and a buddy started researching what it take to open a landscaping business while he was still wearing the uniform. In fact, they started mowing lawns part-time, in off duty hours, to get things going. It wasn’t easy, but then Mike says a lot of the th...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/bab_026_dj_faldowski.jpeg
It was 9/11. That’s what gave him the motivation to join the service. DJ Faldowski went on to graduate from Annapolis and serve in the Navy SEALs. He spent nine years in the Navy and multiple deployments before he decided to transition out.
He wound up working in private equity, which is an elite aspect of finance. He later moved into business d...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/bab_025_chris_kennedy.jpeg
Christopher Kennedy joined the Marines as a communications officer, and almost by accident wound up in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity was still a nascent industry then, but the experience served him well over his career.
He’s worked in high profile cybersecurity gigs across multiple vertical markets, including government and finance, and also in o...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_024_adam_braatz.jpeg
Adam Braatz joined the Air Force to play the piano. A professional trained musician, he was among the few that audition and selected for the Air Force band. That experience took him around the world – before transitioning to a Military Training Instructor (MTI).
Today he serves as Vice President, Communications & Programming at the Wisconsin ...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_023_kent_wilson.jpeg
Some veterans struggle with finding purpose after military service. It’s hard to match the idealism of uniformed service – that is being part of something bigger than oneself.
Kent Wilson, however, found purpose in his work in cybersecurity. The mission is very real every day, but it took a dinner with some old buddies that were still serving in ...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_022_timothy_dance.jpeg
Some of the conventional popular food delivery services are missing important elements: tamper proof measures, temperature control technology and other food safety issues. That’s a big part of where Timothy Dance sees a niche for his business idea. An Air Force veteran turned chef and entrepreneur, he walks us through his plans as he builds out ...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_021_beau_higgins.jpg
One of the skills Beau Higgins says veterans bring to business is an ability to operate in chaos. That is when things are chaotic – veterans learn to focus on getting things done.
For 25 years, Beau got things done in the Marine Corps. He’s a retired colonel that held roles from intelligence to Marine Recon and went all over the world. Today, he ...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_020_nathan_iglesias.jpeg
Nathan Iglesias joined the California Army National Guard right after 9/11 – and after graduating college he essentially spent the next six years on active duty. He was trained as an intelligence officer, attended the military’s language school where he learned Dari, and later deployed to Afghanistan.
He eventually came off active duty and wa...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_019_Jaime_Chapman.jpg
When Jaime Chapman married into the Army, she experienced firsthand how difficult it is to find a job or maintain a career. While she did find work as a DoD contractor running programs for veterans in transition, the contract nature of the work meant her employment was subject to budget constraints.
Despite three promotions, when she was laid of...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_018_craig_hatcher.jpg
Craig Hatcher joined the Navy as a Nuclear Machinist Mate looking after the reactors and associated equipment that powered the nuclear ship to which he was assigned. He later got out, and worked for UPS, until his wife’s interest and budding career in real estate drew him in as well. Today, Craig runs his own real estate brokerage.
On this episo...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/bab_17_herb_thompson.jpg
When Herb Thompson was getting ready to retire from the Army, he had no idea what he would do next in his career. However, the uncertainty is something he was trained to deal with, and he used those skills to start planning his next mission to the civilian world.
He didn’t know much about LinkedIn, but he got on it and just reached to people askin...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/bab_016_todd_connor.png
Todd Connor is a Navy veteran that has really done some interesting things. He’s worked for big companies like Booz Allen, he’s run his own consulting firm, and he’s even run for elected office. However, two of the things that he’s done that we’ll talk about on the show is an organization he founded called Bunker Labs and a book he has coming out w...
Mark as Played
November 10, 2020 • 4 min
My friend Tom Deierlein posted an update to LinkedI (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6732017553482235905/)n that reads:
To all my Veteran friends:
When people thank you for your service tomorrow and all days. Don’t say "you’re welcome." Tell them how you really feel:
"It was my honor and a privilege."
Tom was the first interview for this podcast series -- so it you haven't listened yet, g...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/bab_015_elliot_marks_.jpg
Veterans are quick learners that are loyal and perform well under pressure. They have a sense of integrity, selflessness, teamwork and resiliency. However, articulating these things and other transferable skills onto a civilian resume one of the hardest things for veterans in transition to do.
So says Elliott Marks who has had two careers in rec...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_014_josh_wilson.jpg
Joshua Wilson is a Corporate Relationship Manager at America's Warrior Partnership. The organization is a non-profit aimed at empowering communities to empower veterans. That involves many different things, but Josh is focused on helping businesses set up military affairs programs.
Military affairs programs are designed to help businesses attr...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_013_gable_eaton.jpg
When Gable Eaton saw how many pizzas his peers assigned to Marine Barracks at 8th & I ordered, he saw an opportunity. The (then) young Marine came up a plan to open a Dominoes Franchise nearby…but there was one barrier: as an active duty Marine, he’d need the Colonel to sign off on his paper work, and he didn’t quite see the opportunity the sam...
Mark as Played
https://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_012_ruthie_bowles.jpeg
Sometimes veterans struggle to translate what they did in uniform into skills that make sense in the civilian world. Ruthie Bowls spent eight years in the Army working in intelligence. When she got out of the service, she went to work for a government contractor doing much the same thing.
Still, she wanted something more and one thing the Army ...
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
It’s a lighthearted nightmare in here, weirdos! Morbid is a true crime, creepy history and all things spooky podcast hosted by an autopsy technician and a hairstylist. Join us for a heavy dose of research with a dash of comedy thrown in for flavor.
New episodes come out every Monday for free, with 1-week early access when you join Amazon Music or 1-week early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers "SmartLess" with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett is a podcast that connects and unites people from all walks of life to learn about shared experiences through thoughtful dialogue and organic hilarity. A nice surprise: in each episode of SmartLess, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised and authentic conversation filled with laughter and newfound knowledge to feed the SmartLess mind.