JT DeBolt

Had the HUGE honor to sit down with a man I hold in high regard as a mentor, a Leader, and now a friend, Greg Anderson, on his amazing podcast The Endless Endeavor Podcast. We cover a LOT of ground, so settle in and enjoy!

Fly HIgh. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN
~JT

3 months ago | [YT] | 0

JT DeBolt

A quick thought on some outward observations, stressed tested against inward reflection.

It appears the default behavior for a lot of (far too many) people is “outrage”. They seem to demonstrate little or no emotional modulation or control. Lazily, they throw themselves at the self-indulgence of “outrage, then fling it all over their social media pages.

They pour mountains of energy into arguing for "their" side, addicted to the affirmative agreement they get from their compatriots in their “fight”, fueled by confirmation bias and groupthink.

The other side is “wrong” and if you agree with any one part of that side’s argument, you are evil, idiotic, and wrong.

Lost in all of this, of course, is contribution.

What have you done to HELP the situation? To make the country better? To help it heal?

Oh sure, you feel righteous and virtuous and have even been called “courageous” by your tribe, and so blathering on and on “feels” like “helping”...but in truth, you’ve done fuck all to produce anything of SUBSTANCE.

In the end, you've provided nothing meaningful or memorable.

In short, you are part of the problem.

You want to make real change? Sack up and LEAD.

Instead of repeating the banal behavior of pointing fingers outward, look inward>

And commit to LEADING.

Create actual solutions to the problems you are so”outraged” by.
Contribute your time, resources, and intellect civically.
Work to IMPROVE, empower, and elevate your fellow Americans (or countrymen)...not just “your side”.

If all you choose to focus on is “your” side vs “them”, you have done nothing but fall for the role of pawn in the giant chess game of power.

Blaming “patriarchy” and “authoritarianism” while deepthroating the exact same behaviors from “your side” doesn’t make you an activist, it makes you a cuck.

Instead of straining against the ballgag of identity politics, try rolling up your sleeves and building something. Stretch your mind with curiosity. Think critically for a change.

The condescension, name-calling, vitriol and arrogance from your "outrage" is tedious and annoying.

Try talking less, listening more, and getting your information from different sources.

Think critically and fucking LEAD for once.

Nothing changes if nothing changes. And it wont come from the Republicans or the Democrats; they are the exact same fucking demons.

Only We The People can fix this.

But time is running out.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
~JT

6 months ago | [YT] | 1

JT DeBolt

It's not harsh, it's honest.

When are you going to step up? When are you going to contribute to the solution? I see you…you scroll, you fret, you wish for better. You are waiting for someone to step up and DO SOMETHING about it.

But what about YOU?
When will YOU lead?

There are lots of different types of people in the world, but 3 specific types showing up more and more lately: Those who lead, those who follow, and those who do nothing.

The first group has a Vision and courage to see it through.

The second group relies on the first group…sometimes just long enough to develop their own Vision and courage. And that is perfectly okay.

Just don’t be the third type. They provide little outside of criticism, complaints, and consumption. They are often the ones who get run the fuck over by those of us on our Mission to do something great.

Choose where you fit.

If you are still following, that is OKAY. Take this time to learn, develop, and find your voice and to get your legs underneath you.

But if you are in the first group, you better be on your Mission daily. People are looking for you, counting on you. WE NEED your Leadership.

And for that third group…head on a swivel.
Lead. Follow. Or become roadkill.

Nobody is coming to save you.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

10 months ago | [YT] | 0

JT DeBolt

There is enough noise in the world. Enough vitriol. Plenty of problems (and a glut of people pointing them out or adding to them).

And far too many distractions.

We don’t need more of it.

We need more SOLUTIONS.
More ANSWERS.
More LEADERS.

If you want to bitch and complain and wax poetic on your Substack or Facebook, go for it, Enjoy the mental masturbation. (I know, Pumpkin Spice, it feels SO good to get validation from your echo chamber, but seriously…what are you DOING to change anything? What solutions are you actually providing?)

Some of us–a growing number–have fuckign HAD IT. And we are on a MISSION to do something about it.

If that’s you, you have one job: Know Your Role.

As a Solution Provider.
As a Seeker of Answers.
As a Guide, a Listener, a Thinker.
As a Leader.

Because change is COMING. You can either be part of the problem, or a contributor to the SOLUTION.

What’s it gonna be?

Know your role.
Stay focused.
Execute.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

10 months ago | [YT] | 0

JT DeBolt

Devastated to hear the news that Ozzy OsBourne—The Prince of Darkness—passed today.

I’m seriously gutted.

Ozzy was part of the sound track of my life.
Black Sabbath occupies more than just parts of my playlists, they occupy a huge part of my soul.

They inspired an entire genre of music that literally saved my life.

I feel like I lost a friend, a mentor or sorts today.

He just performed at the “Back To The Beginning” festival on July 5th, alongside some of the most iconic bands and artists in the world.

His last song he ever sang: “Momma I’m Comin’ Home”

I have no words, man.

RIP, Oz.

Thank you. For everything.

Love,
JT

1 year ago | [YT] | 1

JT DeBolt

In case you needed to hear it, it is 100% okay for you to “not feel like it”. It is NOT, however, okay for you to bend the knee to that impulse every time you feel it.

I dragged (and I mean draaaaggggged) my ass to the gym today and battled through a tough one.

Didn’t have the time.
Didn’t have the energy (DEFINITELY didn’t have the energy)
Didn’t feel like it.

At. All.

But I battled through it.

Do I feel better after the workout? If I'm being transparent, no, not really.
I’m wasted.
I drained the tank.

But here’s the important point: I hit a major milestone on my health and fitness journey early today, and EVERYTHING that I listed above was impacted by that.

It would have been so easy to take my foot off the gas, but the very thing–the small victory of hitting the milestone–also served as the driver for me to embrace the suck and get the workout done.

It feels great to win, but don’t let it lull you into complacency.
Use it to stoke the FIRE.

This is not a “Yay, me” post, just a stark reminder that YOU have the power in any given moment to make the decision to WIN, or the decision to whine.

Whiners never win, and Winners find a way.

As the great American philosophers, Pantera, famously said:
"Cause yesterday don't mean shit
What's over is over and nothing between
Yesterday don't mean shit
Because tomorrow's the day you have to face"

Which--said another way--means TODAY is the day that writes your story.

How you show up to any given moment dictates whether you win or lose.
So embrace the suck and play the game to win.

Make it happen.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

1 year ago | [YT] | 1

JT DeBolt

YOUR GRIT AND YOUR DRIVE ARE NOT YOU OVERCOMPENSATING FOR YOUR “WOUNDS”.

Recently I saw a post (actually, an email…somehow I ended up on the wrong list) from a person I respect, and have long admired. The message was such bullshit that I nearly spit my coffee out all over my laptop.

I’ll save you the annoyance of the full message, but essentially the person was saying that if you having grit “isn’t strength” it is a “byproduct of emotional wounds” and that being driven is your “wounds demanding to be proven wrong” and–wait for it–your success is you "outrunning your truth”.

I could go on and on about how dangerously misleading this is, how it is the OPPOSITE of leadership advice, and how it serves to fuel self-pity and victimization as it promotes and glorifies mediocrity, but I wont (if you REALLY want to hear me go off on that, go check out my live I did last Sunday on my YouTube channel).

Let me clear something up right now. That statement about success being some kind of emotional escape plan is not just wrong—it's dangerous thinking that will keep you playing small.
Look, I've worked with thousands of high-performers across military and civilian sectors, and I can tell you straight: TRUE grit isn't your wounds talking—it's your fighting spirit–the spirit of a Leader–answering the call.

You True Drivens™ know your drive isn't you running FROM something; it's charging TOWARD your destiny.
The idea that your accomplishments are just you 'outrunning your truth'? That's the kind of weak ass thinking that keeps people stuck in mediocrity, which is where society wants you and the gurus monetize on your desperation.

Success isn't about escaping—it's about ENGAGING with your highest potential.
It’s about LEANING into the challenges of life.
It’s about LEVERAGING your pain.
It’s about UTILIZING any past trauma in a constructive and positive way.
Your success is evidence of your commitment, discipline, and courage to step up when others step back. Every mission I flew as a Naval Aviator required precision, focus, and unwavering dedication—not because I was “wounded”, but because excellence was the standard.

The same is true for YOU. As a Leader, you must set those standards for yourself, instead of allowing your “wounds” define you.
Don't let anyone–the gurus, the influencers, the therapists, and especially society–diminish your achievements by reducing them to “trauma responses”.

Your success is legitimate.
Your drive is authentic.
And your grit? That's the mark of someone who refuses to accept anything less than their absolute best.
Remember this: You're not running from your past—you're taking command of your future.

Now get out there and EXECUTE WITH EXCELLENCE.


Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

1 year ago | [YT] | 3

JT DeBolt

How easy it is to allow a moment to slip past us, like water through our fingers, without a second thought.

I minute here, 10 minutes there; scrolling useless nonsense that seems to increasingly get more and more divisive and less beneficial. Escaping. Avoiding. Resisting.

How easy it is to think “tomorrow will be better/more productive/less chaotic/etc”.
How easy it is to back away from the thing you TRULY want.
The life you TRULY desire.
The dream you TRULY align with.

Without warning and before we can even arrest the slide, we’ve lacerated our most precious resource of time and bled out the best days of our lives.

What’s worse, is the feeling of listlessness, hopelessness, despair and apathy that pervades when we stop thinking, stop feeling, stop dreaming. Stop fighting.

“Fuck it. What’s the point?” has been played out in the hearts and minds of so many good and capable people more than we realize.

And before we know it, we let our light dim, our flame shrink, and our dreams dwindle like daylight in winter.

The saddest story would be to die before you're dead. To not live fully, with fidelity to your values, in alignment with your authentic self…true to the spirit of who you REALLY are.

To not be 100% you; to not speak your mind; to not live courageously. To live with any mental reservation or purpose of evasion from your soul’s true nature. That is a slow and sad death.

Don’t die before you dead. Live life OUT FUCKING LOUD.
Fuck the trolls.
Fuck the critics.
Fuck the detractors.
Fuck the tyrants.
Fuck your fears.
Fuck ‘em ALL.

Live like you are going to die some day. Because you will.

Just not today.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

1 year ago | [YT] | 2

JT DeBolt

The timing of this book showing up in my life is unmistakably perfect. Superbly written, intellectually accessible, and the wisdom is delivered in a way that makes it immediately actionable.

If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you know I’m driven and obsessed with leadership, especially empowering Leaders to actualize their own personal excellence and help others to do the same

Perhaps THE most important skill to do that is the skill of communication.

This masterpiece by ‪@ErwinRaphaelMcManus‬ is an absolute must-read for Leaders and anyone committed to elevating their Leadership through excellent communication.

I could gush all day about this book, but I encourage you to get a copy for yourself, take the assessment, and implement what you learn from it.

The world needs more Leaders, and “Seven Frequencies of Communication” is a superb tool for developing your personal Leadership.

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#embracethesuck

1 year ago (edited) | [YT] | 2

JT DeBolt

Big shoutout and major gratitude to the great and mighty ‪@MikeDillardShow‬ for sharing this today.

Timely and needed.

“The world you desire can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours…”

Fly High. Fly Fast. Fly Far.
STAY DRIVEN.
~JT

#earniteveryday
#leadership
#leadershipdevelopment
#mentaltoughness
#makeithappen
#painisthepathway
#embracethesuck

1 year ago | [YT] | 4