The Stoic Sentinel

I am joined by former LEO and author of the book Workicide, Stephanie Kiesow. We discuss what Workicide is and the organizational and mental health challenges facing officers. We also discuss ways to combat Workicide and prevent the path to suicide among first responders. Amazing conversation with a true subject matter expert.

This was a big episode for me personally. One of the most influential authors in my philosophical journey joins me to talk about his concept called Psychitecture and about his new book, "Become Who You Are" which is up for preorder right now. Ryan has developed some incredible concepts and tools that will help you become a better version of yourself and help you understand the workings o...

You don't have to have stripes, bars, or stars on your uniform to be a leader. Some of the greatest leaders I've ever had were "unofficial". They led by example rather than by rank. Here are 5 ways to be an unofficial leader.

In this episode I am hitting on the importance of play in our lives as adults and how vital it is to bring an element of play to our careers as well. This episode is sponsored by Officerprivacy.com, an incredible company dedicated to keeping your vitally important personal information off the people search sites which in turn keeps you and your family safe. Don't gamble with your safety, trust...

Welcome to Season 3 of the Stoic Sentinel Podcast. This first episode is one of the many shorter topical episodes I'll be releasing this season and it is centered on the Stoic key to the good life, Virtue. We break down what virtue is and how we can put it into practice to experience the benefits of living with excellence.

This episode is all about the destroyer of families, careers, and relationships. This episode is all about anger. The Stoic philosopher Seneca wrote a whole book on the subject and I discuss what anger is, what the Stoics think about it, and some practical steps to reducing its effects on our lives.

This episode is huge for me. I was fortunate enough to have Captain Tom Rizzo on the show. Tom has been hugely influential in my career and we talk about everything from leadership to personal accountability and what we can do as individuals to combat some of the major issues in the profession. Tom is a class act and I hope you get something out of our conversation. Sign up for Tom's class and...

I have the incredible Dr. Olivia Johnson on the show. She is an absolute encyclopedia of knowledge on police suicide and is doing deeply important work to help stop the dying as well as improve the lives of first responders through her organization the Blue Wall Institute. https://www.bw-institute.com/ She is one of the authors of the book Practical Considerations for Preventing Police Suicide. I...

This episode features Sgt. Steve Sweeting, creator of StreetStoic.com and the author of the newly released book Street Stoic: Ancient Philosophy Modern Policing. Steve and I also release a weekly Stoic newsletter called Bravo One. Steve and I discuss his journey into Stoicism, and how it has affected his life and career and led to him creating the website and writing his book. Steve has been an in...

This episode is a special one for me. When I started the Stoic Sentinel, the first milestone I wanted to hit was 20 episodes. Well, we made it to 20. Thanks to everyone who listens, I hope there has been something along the way that has helped you or at least gotten you to think. I have no plans of stopping or slowing down so here's to the next 20! Another reason this episode is special is tha...

What happens when your career is suddenly taken from you? Do you have a plan? We tend to think as cops that working 20 to 30 years is a given and yet, how many officers do you know that have reached that goal? How many are actually happy and fulfilled people once they reach it? My guest today was faced with her law enforcement career ending due to injury and we discuss what she did with that oppor...

I believe the most critical role in any police organization is that of the Field Training Officer. They are the first and most visible representation of a department, both to fresh recruits and laterals from other departments. I am sure we have all had terrible training officers in the past and I don't believe we have the luxury of allowing that continue. The best way to change it is to change our...

So many officers I have spoken to in my career felt trapped. In the department they worked, the career path they'd chosen, or even by the profession itself. Many were unhappy with the politics, the revolving door of the justice system, or just burned out with the job. So many were dead set on sacrificing their health, happiness, and short time on this planet for a crappy pension, ruined health, an...

The New Year is here along with the same old short-lived goals we see every year. The gyms are crowded with people that won't be there next week when the motivation nose dives. The diets get forgotten. And on and on. However, the ability to change your life and achieve your goals is not as impossible as it seems in the third week of January. I have five tips based in philosophy that will help you...

Welcome to Episode 1 of Season 2 of The Stoic Sentinel Podcast! We're kicking off a big season with an amazing guest, Dr. Trevor Wilkins AKA The Angry Viking Therapist.  Dr. Wilkins is a licensed professional clinical counselor in the Lexington, KY area, specializing in the symptoms related to trauma, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Trevor is a 15-year veteran of unif...

This episode is dedicated to the life and memory of Flower Mound Firefighter Wade Cannon who recently died of colon cancer. Wade's life and battle with cancer perfectly illustrate courageous resilience in the face of horrible circumstances. He did not allow this uncontrollable event to change him from the amazing human, husband, son, father, and friend that he was.  I cover the Stoics' answer...

On this episode I am joined by Bill Mauro, the author of the excellent book, The Stoic Cop. Bill's book was the first (and only) resource I found when I began this podcast involving Stoicism and policing. It is a regular read of mine and I can't recommend it highly enough. Bill and I fought our way through scheduling conflicts, my crazy FTO schedule with the new department, and lots of technical d...

In this episode, I discuss 10 steps to leading like a Stoic. I also heavily feature quotes and stories about Maj Dick Winters of Easy Company in WWII as he exemplified the Stoic virtues of Courage, Temperance, Wisdom, and Justice. What steps did I leave out? What do you agree or disagree with? Reach out to me on IG @thestoicsentinel or send me an email at thestoicsentinel@gmail.com!

This episode will go down in history as the first interview of my podcasting career.  I was honored by Officer Juan Ovalle, a young officer at my department and fellow Honor Guard member who also follows Stoicism and applies it to his life and career.  We talk about how we each center our lives around this philosophy and explain what it has done for us. There's a bit of noise disturbance at t...