Service Academy Business Mastermind

“I genuinely believe that this pathway was made for me and I had to meet the right people and take the right steps and have the right hardships and the right adversity to be the person I am now to write these songs that I’m putting out there…that’s what makes a song so good, capturing an emotion that’s real and raw. It’s a work of expression.” - Chris Nurthen, USNA '15 On a mission to build something together, Chris Nurthen and his wife Keri started a small food truck business in 2018 out of a pop-up tent in Virginia Beach during Chris' tour in the Navy. Chris' overly aggressive “engage everyone" customer approach and Keri's counteract of genuine Southern hospitality drew in huge hungry crowds and Sweetnur’s "Home of the Iron Pie" became an instant success. Chris has since left the Navy and now lives in Memphis, Tennessee with his family where their successful food truck has become the launch pad for his career as a singer-songwriter. In this episode, we discuss: What an iron pie is and why it launched Chris

“All of this is very easy to do if you form a relationship with a firm like ours very early because we can crawl with the business, we can walk with the business and then run with the business as it goes from the idea phase to the startup phase to the growth phase…depending on where you are and how mature your business is, you can always reevaluate strategy, you can always identify what the strategy is and optimize it and tweak things, and you can always do maintenance on a partnership...we want to be in long-term relationships with our clients.”  - Chris Czaplak (USNA ‘00)   Chris Czaplak is an experienced litigator and former engineer who leverages 20 years of leadership and crisis management experience in the military to solve the most complicated business problems and tailor solutions to his clients’ needs. As a Partner at The Precept Group–a boutique firm working at the intersection of law, accounting and finance–Chris helps entrepreneurs create and implement efficient and effective legal and financial s

“I think a lot of us as entrepreneurs need to hit that home run in the beginning, early. We just need to get something and we’re going to crush it. But it’s those singles and doubles, and winning those little by little, getting one client. Making them very happy with your service, or your product, then doing it again and again.” - Freddie Kim (USMA ‘04) Freddie Kim, a former Special Forces Green Beret, founded MilSpec Talent where he helps businesses connect with and recruit the best leadership talent. Freddie calls these candidates “Veteran 2.0 Executives” who have successfully transitioned from the service and have proven themselves to achieve business results. Since transitioning, the Veterans he seeks have served in exceptional capacities in their various industries and business functions, with the common theme of being outstanding Leaders. In this episode, we discuss: The early days of MilSpec Talent and overcoming large obstacles like COVID-19 What MilSpec Talent currently looks like today and who they

“If you want to build resilience in kids, the first rule is to take them into an unfamiliar environment…and the second rule is to plan it in a stepwise way meaning plan, discuss, do and then revisit the shared memory together….We built this curriculum for a ship out of a need, but this isn’t just a Navy thing this is something that everyone can benefit from.” - Matt Brown (USNA ‘05) Matthew Brown is the Founder of Chimeny Trail Co., a subscription box service that helps parents build resiliency and emotional durability in their children through fun outdoor adventures and activities. Once a Captain in the U.S. Navy, Matt experienced firsthand how a warship’s “operational readiness” was strongly linked to the sailors’ “family readiness.” Almost half of those serving in the U.S. military have children. Our “warrior elite” are also moms and dads and their amazing stories are what inspired Chimney Trail Co.’s mission. In this episode, we discuss: The moving origin story behind Matt’s company, Chimney Trail Co. Wh

“My personal mission statement in a phrase is to eliminate the civilian-military divide in the country…what we bring with us as veterans, those underlying soft skills are precisely what today’s corporate leaders say they desire for success for their businesses in the marketplace.” - Matt Louis (USMA ‘91) Matt Louis is a leading expert in career transition for veterans and public service professionals. His award-winning book, Mission Transition is a practical guide for veterans in career transition, their families, and their employers. During active commissioned service in the U.S. Army, Matt served in the Southwest Asia combat theater and in the 194th Separate Armored Brigade. Later, Matt served as a reservist on the staff of the Army’s Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and commanded multiple regions around the country for the U.S. Military Academy’s Admissions Office. Matt now serves on the Service Academy nominating committee for his local Congressman and is also the President of PurePost,

“Once you start thinking about residual results, meaning you do something once that will pay you in perpetuity, then things change in your life. I try to do more things to create these residual results because that gives you so much more capacity, autonomy, and control over your time.”  - Kirby Atwell (USMA ‘05) Kirby Atwell started his first full-time property rehabbing company, iCandy Homes, with two good friends after leaving active-duty military service in 2011. Five years later, Kirby formed Green Vet Homes, an investment company that leveraged everything he’d learned over the previous 10 years in order to support military veterans and their families. Today, Kirby also hosts a podcast and educational platform called Living Off Rentals. Kirby believes that owning high quality, cash flowing real estate is a great business model for someone who wants to create a lifestyle they desire. In this episode, we discuss: How real estate enabled Kirby and his wife to quit their W2 jobs Why short-term rental propert

“I think all of us who left the Academy know how to adapt and learn in often a rapid, stressful environment. I think that’s the hallmark of Academy grads…all of us have learned the skill of learning how to learn. Part of it is having the confidence to know you have that skill.” - Niv Caviar (USAFA '90) Niv Caviar is the CEO of Spine Ovations, Inc., a clinical-stage medical device company developing a novel, minimally invasive treatment for lower back pain based on a proprietary technology platform. Their minimally invasive product addresses lower back pain and functionality by targeting key unmet needs: reduction of back pain, improvement in motion and mobility and delaying or eliminating the need for costly back surgery. Prior to his decades of experience in the healthcare industry, Niv served as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force. In this episode, we discuss: How Spine Ovations treats lower back pain Why lessons Niv learned from the Academy are helping him excel The biggest challenges in bringing a medical de

“We want to be the dominant player in professional education and usher in an entirely new era of professional education. We want to be the medical education platform for a mobile generation.” - Christ West (USMA ‘88) Chris West (USMA ‘88) is the Chief Operating Officer of ConveyMed, the number one app for Continuing Medical Education (CME) that aggregates content from leading medical education podcasts and partners to provide Continuing Education for medical professionals. Chris is a former executive in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry where he held several senior sales and marketing leadership roles. These roles included general management, medical education, strategic and in-line marketing, and senior sales leadership. Throughout his career, Chris has routinely collaborated with key opinion leaders and societies on physician education initiatives.   In this episode, we discuss: Why podcasts are an effective and successful educational tool What ConveyMed is doing to push the boundaries of podcast edu

“Grittiness and the ability to wear multiple hats simultaneously are the two areas that I see as being big lessons from my time in the military and that have carried over and proved true in spades as the leader of an early-stage startup.” - Matt McBride (USNA ‘06) Matt McBride is a dynamic healthcare leader that has spent the last decade guiding early-stage technologies to the commercial market, managing start-ups, and driving innovation policy and processes at large academic institutions. Matt actively leverages Wave Strategy’s extensive network to make meaningful introductions that expedite the development of cutting-edge technologies through strategic enterprise partners, healthcare systems, industry influencers, and entrepreneurs. Prior to working in the healthcare industry, Matt served as a Naval Officer at several commands around the world. In this episode, we discuss: How Wave Strategy’s services benefit pre-revenue startups Why transparency, trust and accepting what you don’t know are keys to success

“Being the leader of a business is sometimes a lonely spot to be in whether you’re leading 10 people or 1000 people. The ability to have someone else to lean on and ideate with, to have conversations with and to think about the next steps with is really important. The more you understand about yourself, the better and more effective you will be as a business owner.”  - Jeff Evenson (USMA ‘90) Jeff Evenson (USMA ‘90) has owned multiple businesses since 2008 and has successfully launched, or purchased and scaled, several multi-million-dollar companies. Along the way, he’s experienced virtually every good and bad element of business, including startup, rapid expansion, purchase, sale, and franchise, which taught him countless valuable business lessons. Today, Jeff invests in, or buys companies, with an aim to scale them up and retain them. His goal is to create $1 billion in generational wealth for military veterans and their families over the next 25 years through his new venture, the Thayer Gate Project. In th

“Almost 80% of the buyers' journey is not attributable. We focus on the 20% that is. Our recommendation is also to focus on the dark funnel, where that 80% are feeding and getting their thought leadership from.” - Matt Bolian (USMA ‘11) Matt Bolian is the Co-Founder of RevPartners, a company that designs, builds and executes revenue operations to support holistic go to market strategies for scaling companies. RevPartners weaponizes data to drive a predictable, repeatable revenue engine through a proven growth operations framework while providing customers with less risk and better value when it comes to driving both strategy and execution. Matt has led teams as large as 250 people and thousands of projects in the United States and abroad for hundreds of clients across multiple functional areas in the military and in the private sector. He thrives under pressure and breaks rules when it makes sense. In this episode, we discuss: How RevPartners’ revenue engine diagnostic and ops analysis works Why data is esse

“My formula is 1) develop your relationship with God, 2) when you make big decisions, seek advice from those who are wiser than you, and 3) act. Action says I’m prepared to accept the risks and any consequences associated with this decision. This kind of mentality will help you move forward in any area of your life.” - Burnie Lund (USNA ‘03) Burnie Lund (USNA ‘03) graduated with a degree in Chemistry from the U.S. Naval Academy before moving to San Diego to report for sea duty as a Surface Warfare Officer. While looking for a church, God led him to Canyon Ridge Baptist, where he became Music Director in November 2004 and Assistant Pastor in 2008. He married his wife, Leslie, in 2010 and they have been blessed with four children. In addition to their ministry work, Burnie and his wife also invest in real estate as a means to achieve financial freedom and increase their ability to give generously to others. In this episode, we discuss: What motivated Burnie to transition from Naval officer to pastor and real e

“Not having a paycheck for the first time in my life and taking a jump into the unknown was scary as hell, but honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever felt more fulfilled in my career since making that decision. I was thinking, this feels great…I’m having a blast. For the first time in my life, it opened my eyes to the fact there’s a different way of living, there’s a different way of doing things. It's been really exciting to figure this out, to figure out a new way of living and doing.”  - Sean Blackman Sean Blackman (USNA ‘07) is a former F/A-18 Hornet pilot and the Co-Founder and CEO of Nooks, which provides classified-spaces-as-a-service (CSaaS) to both commercial and government customers. Sean and his team believe that in order to win the great power competition of the next century, every effort must be made to accelerate technology transfer between industry and government. By lowering the barrier of entry for qualified companies to access secure facilities, Nooks plans to dramatically change the landscape of

 “What I discovered, which is the most important message of everything we're saying, is that you have to become an authentic person. An authentic person knows who they are, you have discovered your gifts and powers, you have forgiven those that have wounded you, healed the wounds, you are trusting your intuition, you're confident, you're courageous, you're fearless.”  - JD Messinger (USNA ‘81) Jonathan David “JD” Messinger (USNA ‘81) is the Founder of The Messinger Institute, whose mission is to create authentic, congruent, and bold leaders who dare to imagine a new life, embrace a new way and embark on a new journey that balances people, profits, society, and the planet. Before establishing The Messinger Institute, JD served as a Submarine Officer in the US Navy and later became an executive at ExxonMobil, Ernst & Young and Capgemini. When a neck injury he sustained while serving in the Navy led to a near-death experience in 2000, JD embarked on a life-changing journey to find meaning and purpose. In thi

“There have been times through the years when I've had a complex relationship with my experience of going through the ups and downs of being a student at the Naval Academy. But now, at this point, I would say that for the last 10 years of my professional journey in particular, it's explicitly no question that my experience in the military has been everything to me in terms of my ability to take on new challenges and not be afraid of them, to not be risk averse, to be decisive. I can get through any fears I have because I know how to get through them thanks to my time in the military. And nothing's as bad as plebe summer.”- Gabrielle Blocher (USNA ‘98) Gabrielle Blocher (USNA ‘08) is CEO of CelerPurus, a healthcare startup that uses proven, portable technology to safely and conveniently decontaminate masks and other personal items in just 60 seconds.  In her role, Gaby handles day-to-day operations and the growth strategy for the business. She is a U.S. Naval Academy and Columbia Business School graduate and f

“My belief is not what the business is, but in people, that’s one thing I’ve learned throughout my career is teaming up with the right people.” – Henry Russell (USNA ‘03) “I’m a true believer that the strength of your ally determines the strength of your outcome. It’s never about me, it’s the team that we put together and about the people who are out there helping us achieve the mission. And I’m just one cog in that wheel.”– John Reeves (USNA ‘03) This episode is all about two Academy Grads coming together to build a real estate investment company 18 years after they first met at the Naval Academy. John Reeves (USNA ‘03) has eleven years of real estate experience as a property manager, investor, real estate broker, and licensed contractor and completed multiple combat tours before building his own residential real estate company. Henry Russell (USNA ‘03) has eleven years of experience working in the financial industry and completed multiple combat tours, before he began his career in finance, assisting and ma

“Our priority is to do well while doing good…Diversity says there's a difference between one person and the next. Inclusion identifies the value of that difference. That's what we need for our veterans, that difference needs to be valued by the civilian marketplace, and it needs to be harnessed so that the collective can be better than the individual.” - Cal Quinn (USNA ‘97) Cal Quinn (USNA ‘97) is Founder & CEO of Bancroft Capital, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) and institutional broker-dealer committed to excellence with the underlying ideal of levering the firm to facilitate the restoration of veterans and disabled veterans through access to meaningful careers. Prior to his career in finance, Cal served as a Logistics Officer & Aviation Logistics Officer at the Naval Supply Corps School before volunteering for the initial phase of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2001, and was responsible for providing forward combat logistical support to surface, aviation, and coalition spec

“I just want to double down on the idea of letting go…you have no idea how quickly the universe will deliver what you want if you get out of the way. What’s the beam of light that you want to stand under? Don’t block it! It’s important to have goals. Be true to what you actually want to achieve, don’t place any filters on it, write it down, and let it go. Work and do your thing, but be open to how that goal might manifest in your life.” - Scott Mackes We’re celebrating episode 200 of the SABM Podcast. My good friend Ginni Guiton interviewed me back in February 2020 for episode 100 and I’m excited to welcome her back to the podcast as we record episode 200 and reach over 100,000 downloads. A lot has happened since Ginni and I spoke two years ago and I’m grateful for this opportunity to thank our listeners as I reflect on the progress we’ve made and share goals for the future. In this episode, we discuss: Why teamwork makes the dream work How to build a strong team with great synergy  How 10X Vets grew into a

“If you want to find a way to transition out, it's possible, right? It's possible but it really starts with knowing what you want…just because you're not a commander doesn't mean you're not a leader. You can still find other ways to lead…there's so much opportunity in the civilian world, to still make a difference and influence people in a positive way, through your leadership through your own gifts. And I really want to encourage people to let them know it's there, it's real.”  - Iven Vian (USAFA ‘01)   Iven Vian (USAFA ‘01) is the Founder of Anthem Capital, a real estate investment firm that specializes in acquiring and operating multi-family real estate properties based in growing geographic markets across the United States while providing predictable returns for investors. Iven’s 20-year military career in the US Air Force equipped him for his role as Anthem Capital’s strategist and primary asset manager. Iven oversees Anthem’s operations with military precision, working in tandem with property management

Ryan Martin (USMA ‘11) is a West Point graduate and Co-Owner of Fulfillment CO, a personable and startup-friendly fulfillment center in Colorado Springs, CO. Concurrent to Ryan's military career as a Blackhawk helicopter pilot, which includes two combat deployments to Afghanistan, Ryan handles all new client outreach, software integrations, and onboarding. Ryan also serves as Fulfillment CO's "Special Project Officer" by offering coaching and analysis to help dozens of eCommerce entrepreneurs make informed decisions about their shipping, packaging, cushioning, unboxing experiences, logistics, and more.  In this episode, we discuss: Why eCommerce companies are Ryan’s ideal client How forced delegation can help accelerate business growth Current trends in the shipping and fulfillment industry What Ryan hopes to achieve in 2022 with his veteran business partner We loved hearing how Ryan’s desire to start a business began with Dunkin Donuts and enjoyed listening to how he helps clients ship everything from hula