Sep 3, 2022
Today we hear the Combat Story of Joe McNamara, a former Marine
Corps officer who experienced a unique kind of violence from his
time on campus at Virginia Tech during the horrific 2007 shooting
to leading Marines in combat in Afghanistan.
After leaving the service, Joe founded a leadership development
company called Impact USA that trained both elite athletes and
private sector leaders. Impact was recently acquired by Mike
Sarraille’s Talent War Group, where Joe is now a partner and Chief
Revenue Officer.
Many will recall a fantastic interview with Mike (episode 70
https://youtu.be/v4TPJtkZrek), the former enlisted
Marine who went on to Force Recon then served as an officer in
SEALs and, eventually, Naval Special Warfare Development Group
(DEVGRU). The fact that someone like Mike who went through that
crucible of leadership experiences went on to acquire Impact says a
lot about what Joe does to develop leaders.
This episode dives between combat experiences and the leadership
lessons we can apply to our lives, from the foxhole to athletics to
the office. In fact, Joe answers two questions I’ve always had: how
do you create a sense of shared adversity in a corporate setting
and how do you find time to train corporate leaders without taking
them off operations for a full six to 12 months the way the
military does it.
I hope you enjoy this Combat Story with a battle hardened Marine
Corps officer and some of the tangible leadership lessons we can
all apply from his experiences as much as I did.
Find Joe Online:
- LinkedIN https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcnamara1/
- Instagram @joe_mcnamara_ https://www.instagram.com/joe_mcnamara_
- Impact Leadership https://www.impactthepace.com/
Find Ryan Online:
- Ryan’s Linktree https://linktr.ee/combatstory
- Merch https://www.bonfire.com/store/combatstory/
- Instagram @combatstory https://www.instagram.com/combatstory
- Facebook @combatstoryofficial https://fb.me/combatstoryofficial
- Send us messages at https://m.me/combatstoryofficial
- Learn more about Ryan www.combatstory.com/aboutus
- Intro Song: Sport Rock from Audio Jungle
Show Notes:
0:00 - Intro
0:35 - About our sponsor, Let's Get Checked
1:57 - Guest Introduction (Joe McNamara)
3:46 - Interview begins
5:13 - Childhood and path to the military
10:04 - Support for Combat Story brought to you by Manscaped
11:24 - Somber stories of courage and leadership from the school
shooting at Virginia Tech
22:08 - When certain experiences harden you emotionally
25:10 - The most impactful leadership advice from Marine Corps
mentors
30:40 - Training and what it was like in Afghanistan with insane
amount of IEDs
40:31 - Being in a leadership role at 20-21 years old and the most
important attribute in leadership
44:12 - Combat Story - What it is like as infantry men when your
vehicle gets hit by massive IED
53:47 - Combat Story - First time someone in his platoon was hit
while on foot
1:00:24 - What an "XO" is in the military and what the role
entails
1:04:24 - Combat Story - How leadership planning and drills show up
after a mass casualty event
1:14:29 - Formative Company Command time at Paris Island
1:24:55 - Where the idea for Impact Leadership came from
1:28:10 - Replicating shared adversity and military training in
corporate sector
1:36:03 - The biggest challenges seen in corporate leadership
1:39:55 - What did you carry into combat?
1:40:39 - Would you do it again?
1:43:26 - Listener comments and shout outs