The Veteran (Semi) Professional

Send us Fan Mail Paul was an army artilleryman who spent a number of years after the military running businesses for other people.  Problem was- he was good at it but wasn't getting much out of it.  He found his way into digital marketing and now runs his own marketing firm, Hashtag Smart . 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: - 101st Command Team makes it through strip club probe  - Taliban takes back Afghanistan *shocker* - Why getting vaccinated is a good idea - Cathie Wood and ARK Invest - Eviction moratorium - Unemployment - Robot burger flippers 

Send us Fan Mail Bret works for Academy Securities, the first Post-9/11 veteran and disabled veteran-owned and operated investment bank.  

Send us Fan Mail This episode is meant to accompany " 16 Ways Veterans Can Buy a Small Business " from the website, theveteranpro.com Business acquisition sounds like crazy talk, until you realize that it's way more approachable than you think and people are HUNGRY to have veterans run businesses. The show will cover financing deals, search funds, SBA loans, and where you can find d...

Send us Fan Mail JessicaRose found herself sleeping in her car after leaving the Marines before moving back in with her parents.  Feeling adrift, she learned to find strength in helping others and now runs her own consulting practice focused on mental health issues. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: - Bipartisan Bill to support Taiwan against China - SFC Alwyn Cashe receives MOH posthumously  - Jeff Bezos in space - HOAs: Sound great, but they are a challenge - Bitcoin...maybe not a hedge against inflation? - Why banks are ignoring traditional credit scores - Social media manager: real job - Poor Tokyo Olympics 

Send us Fan Mail Fred is a Darden MBA grad who wanted to continue filling leadership roles after the military.  He started a career in operations and has worked with some major firms since exiting the military. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: - GEN Milley, Iran, and the last days of the Trump administration - How do you lose 100 NVGs??!! - What are stable coins and what might regulators do with them?  - Inflation -How China is hurting US investors but also itself.  - Details on remote work - In person > online for MBA

Send us Fan Mail College isn't for everyone-lots of veterans can have fulfilling (and financially rewarding) careers in trade jobs.  Listen to this episode to hear how Perfect Technician Academy helps veterans crush it in HVAC. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: - US leaving Bagram Airfield in the middle of the night - Will we use rockets to ship supplies to war zones?  - Not all master's degrees are the same - The devil is in the details with air taxis - Why working for a company you like is better than a brand name - #Unity22 - Joe Biden the trust buster - Implications of the NYC mayoral race

Send us Fan Mail Brad Johnson, PhD, worked in counseling with the Navy before heading to teach psychology at the Naval Academy where his research focused on mentorship.  David Smith, PhD, is a former Naval aviator turned researcher into mentorship and military sociology.  They are the co-authors of the books Athena Rising and Good Guys.  

Send us Fan Mail Matt Poepsel is a true renaisance man.  After the Marines, he got a PhD, worked in startups, run an Ironman and so much more.  He's a fascinating cat and you'll definitely enjoy this talk. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed:  - WSJ OpEd on Afghanistan - App being used to collect intel across the globe - Inflation and the Fed - Apps that support Uber and Lyft  - People quitting jobs they hate - How Peter Thiel turned $1,700 into $5 billion - MBA options for mid-career professionals 

Send us Fan Mail Michael left the Marines and worked for a while as a voice actor, member of a punk rock band, and then film acting.  He's had a wide and varied life after he left military and his story is absolutely worth hearing. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics discussed:  -Refueling with drones -Moving air defense batteries from the Middle East -United to buy supersonic jets -The unregulated world of space travel -How equity works in pre-IPO companies -Will crime kill crypto? -"Don't end up on a Hindenburg report" - Draft Kings -Re-thinking pay and perks post-pandemic 

Send us Fan Mail Wayne left the Marines and started a career in executive search, not something he had been trained for but found success in because of skills built in the military. 

Send us Fan Mail Jerry ended up working at Riot Games after the Navy and is now working on his own startup, focused on gaming for working professionals. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: -Afghan brain drain of bad-ass fighters -Why is the Army using Zodiac signs for recruiting?  -Bond yields and inflation -AMC CEO leaning into the WSB meme craze -Wireless carriers bringing back free phones -Why OnlyFans isn't an app -AR training for pilots

Send us Fan Mail Paul Capon was born in Mexico and adopted by American parents.  After the Air Force, he went to Columbia for his MBA and started his career in investment banking.  He then moved to venture capital and started a firm, LunaCap ventures, which provides debt financing for businesses started by veterans, women, and underrepresented minorities.  Paul also uses his ability to fundraise t...

Send us Fan Mail Socrates followed a typical path for an army officer: he went and got his MBA (MIT Sloan) and then went to work for an elite consulting firm (McKinsey).  But during his time at McKinsey, he started working on an e-commerce platform for cannabis.  It soon got to a point where he had to leave and since then, the company has doen well. 

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: Yes, the CIA still uses fax machines Army commercial controversy Snapchat makes AR acquisition Infrastructure stimulus How much money can an MBA get you?? Hotel staffing problems Apple getting into the car game Gen Z doing career advice on TikTok

Send us Fan Mail Chris is a former Marine who will soon go in front of a US federal magistrate who will likely extradite him to Spain, where he is wanted by the Spanish government for an incident involving the potential defection of North Korean diplomats.

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed:  - Current conflict in Israel - Iron Dome System - What is it? - Americans destroy military equipment as we leave Afghanistan - Inflation fears pound the stock market - Tesla stops accepting Bitcoin for purchases - Crypto civil war ensues - The IRS is coming after people who are not paying taxes on their crypto tendies - Only 49 bucks for ransomware software...ti...

Send us Fan Mail Mercedes tells her story of bouncing around a few careers after the military and then finding her niche in the financial services industry. Her bank, AmeriVet Securities, was founded by a veteran and is a veteran-centric organization.  https://amerivetsecurities.com/

Send us Fan Mail Topics Discussed: - Can we shoot down a Chinese rocket?  -French Air Force going too far hazing new pilot -What happens when the money machine stops?  -Elon on SNL -SpaceX buying up a 20-home town - Supply doesn't match demand....yikes - New ways to diversify investments -Restaurants post-COVID