Host: Stacy Mandock

Stacy Mandock provides support to the Risk Mitigation team as the program director. With the purpose of providing the safest possible experience for travelers both foreign and domestic, Stacy assists in doing the initial research for travel destinations and identifying potential concerns and/or risks before and during travel. Her specialty is working with collegiate travelers and ensuring that they’re thoroughly prepared before travel as well as tracking potential risks or threats throughout their trips.

Guest: Stu Farris

Colonel (Retired) Stu Farris retired from the Army at the end of 2022 after serving over 25 years in the Army. He commanded Army Special Forces units from the Detachment to the Group level and deployed to Afghanistan six times. His final assignment was serving as the Chief of Staff of the US Army JFK Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, NC.

Stu lives with his wife and kids in Fayetteville, NC. He works for The Donovan and Bank Foundation, a small non-profit with a mission to help special operators leaving service "Bring closure to their warrior story and transition to a life of peace, contentment, and balance." (www.donovanbank.org)

On this topic: Stu and Terry dialogue about the benefits of hiring veterans and some of the skills they bring to the table. Tips shared for both veterans and those looking to hire them. Please see the Show Notes below for links to some of the programs and organizations mentioned in the show.

Key takeaways:

• Challenges of some of the rhetoric around veterans.
• Terry and Stu share their, very different, experiences of how they retired from serving and transitioning to the “what’s next”.
• Tips for potential employers on how to engage veterans, what to ask.

Show Notes:

• The Honor Foundation: https://www.honor.org/
• Special Operations Transition Foundation: https://sotf.org/
• Commit Foundation: https://www.commitfoundation.org/
• Bunker Labs: https://ivmf.syracuse.edu/programs/entrepreneurship/

Dynamic Leadership Discussions

Assuming Responsibility of a Dynamic Team

Host: Stacy Mandock

Stacy Mandock provides support to the Risk Mitigation team as the program director. With the purpose of providing the safest possible experience for travelers both foreign and domestic, Stacy assists in doing the initial research for travel destinations and identifying potential concerns and/or risks before and during travel. Her specialty is working with collegiate travelers and ensuring that they’re thoroughly prepared before travel as well as tracking potential risks or threats throughout their trips.

Guest: Brian Vinton

Brian is a distinguished art and creative director with a notable career in the video game industry. He gained prominence at Riot Games, where he influenced League of Legends, and later joined Bungie as Art Director and Head of the Art Department. Known for his strong leadership skills and inspiring leadership style, he focuses on coaching leaders, building teams, sourcing and training art vendors, and art and creative directing player-focused content. Dedicated to the mantra, "It's all about the player," his work continues to push the boundaries of interactive art and storytelling. The opinions expressed in this podcast are his own and not those of Bungie or Sony.

On this topic: Brian Vinton has been working with LSDS’ leadership training in different capacities for the past decade. During that time he’s moved up significantly in leadership roles in his career, more recently taking the position as Art Director at Bungie. In this podcast he digs into some of the prep work that went into taking on that role, what he prioritized during the initial phase and what he still implements today.

Key takeaways:

• Key priorities from the start
• Integrating with an experienced team as the relative “new guy”
• Best practices that have kept the momentum going

Host: Stacy Mandock

Stacy Mandock provides support to the Risk Mitigation team as the program director. With the purpose of providing the safest possible experience for travelers both foreign and domestic, Stacy assists in doing the initial research for travel destinations and identifying potential concerns and/or risks before and during travel. Her specialty is working with collegiate travelers and ensuring that they’re thoroughly prepared before travel as well as tracking potential risks or threats throughout their trips.

Guest: Dr. Kate Colvin

Dr. Kate Colvin has worked in the human performance industry for 15 years, gaining experience working with professional athletes, military special operations, as well as Fortune 500 companies. As a seasoned performance psychology consultant, she is passionate about increasing individual mental performance and thus overall psychological well-being.

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Kate is a published author with contributions to both the Journal of Special Operations Medicine and the Journal of Alternative Medicine. She holds a M.S. in Sport and Performance Psychology from University of Idaho as well as a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Texas Tech University and currently resides in Idaho.

See Kate’s full bio at Focus20 Coaches

On this topic: Introducing Kate and her skill set as she explains what she does, who it works for and who she loves to work with. This could be you! Working with Kate is a team experience and it’s obvious during this chat that she is energized by the unique problem sets that clients bring to her.

Key takeaways:

• Kate’s background and professional experiences
• What Kate’s passionate about in her line of work
• What are some of the qualities in a person that she loves to work with

Check out all the coaches and use the intake form on the LSDS Focus20 page to get started!