Show Notes
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! You’ve built your whole identity around what you accomplish, and it worked, until the day it didn’t. In this episode, host Shelly Rood sits down with a fellow Veteran – a retired Navy SEAL – who says the strongest people he’s ever known are the first ones to ask for help, and who’s still working out what it costs when you didn’t. Andy Stumpf has spent seventeen years as a Navy SEAL, six of those on SEAL Team Six. In February 2005, an insurgent shot him at close range on a deployment in Iraq; doctors weren’t sure he’d walk the same again. He came back and later set two world records skydiving from 36,500 feet to raise $750,000 for the Navy SEAL Foundation. His book, “Drownproof: Eight Life Lessons to Keep Your Head Above Water,” is a New York Times bestseller with a foreword from Jocko Willink. In this conversation, Andy talks candidly about why asking for help gets treated as weakness in high-performance cultures when it’s actually the opposite, why money is a tool to say no rather than a way to acquire things, and what his own career cost his marriage and his kids the first time around. We also get into a live, unresolved question: what happens when the label you’ve earned starts doing more work for your identity than you want it to. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL DISCOVER ✓ Why the most capable people ask for help first, not last ✓ Reframing money as a tool to say no, not a way to acquire things ✓ The real cost of chasing danger and delaying what matters most ✓ Being more than the label you’ve earned, even one you’re proud of Andy Stumpf U.S. Navy SEAL (Ret.) - NYT Bestselling Author Andy Stumpf is a retired U.S. Navy SEAL who served for 17 years, including six years with the elite SEAL Team Six. After being critically wounded by an insurgent during a deployment to Iraq in 2005, he made a remarkable recovery and went on to set two world records for high-altitude skydiving, raising more than $750,000 for the Navy SEAL Foundation. Today, Andy is a New York Times bestselling author and host of the Cleared Hot podcast, and a sought-after speaker who shares candid insights on leadership, resilience, identity, and navigating life’s toughest challenges both in and out of uniform. Shelly Rood Host - Hardcore & At Ease Shelly C. Rood served across 16 years as a U.S. Army Reserves Intelligence Officer — Captain, Company Commander, and S2 — leading covert briefings overseas and overseeing security programs for nearly 4,000 soldiers. A Distinguished Military Graduate of Western Michigan University and a third-generation Detroit business owner, she brought that same standard of leadership into the private sector. She is the founder of a training and leadership development company, Mission Ambition, LLC, creator of the Others Over Self® leadership mindset, and the architect of Be At Ease, Woman Veteran™, a peer support program serving military women since 2019. She is host of Hardcore and At Ease, and author of Mission Wildflower 🌻. Today she leads a team of veterans who continue to serve beyond the uniform.
More from Veterans Radio
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Conrad Begaye, Army Ranger, received the Silver Star making the Rangers and his Navajo nation proud. This story highlights the heritage and courage of Native American soldiers.
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Army combat veteran and ordained chaplain JP Kotsko discusses the need to included trauma-informed care into military medic training. This helps with the question "Am I going to be OK?". JP talks to host Jim Fausone about his service in the West Virgina National Guard and lessons learned about using psychological first aid skills.
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! This week on Veterans Radio, host Shelly Rood takes you to the NHRA Great Lakes Nationals at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan, then sits down with Army veteran Dawn Klein for a candid conversation about what it means to be hardcore and at ease. Shelly recaps a rainout, a return trip, and a record-setting Monday. She shares the comeback stories, signing a military tribute car through SCAG Racing’s Simply the Brave program, and the permission slip she took home: give yourself permission to work on the foundation before you chase the next level. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL DISCOVER ✓ What it was like to witness a historic 346.95 MPH NHRA drag racing run and the inspiring comeback stories behind the competition ✓ How the lessons of preparation, perseverance, and resilience on the racetrack can apply to everyday life ✓ What Army veteran Dawn Klein experienced transporting tanks, munitions, and essential supplies throughout Germany during her 27 years of military service ✓ How Dawn overcame expectations and challenges as a woman in the Army, and why humor, faith, and recognition remain important to her life after service Dawn Klein U.S. Army (Ret.) - Transportation Soldier Dawn Klein served on and off for 27 years as a transportation soldier, hauling tanks, munitions, and blood throughout Germany. Dawn shares what it was like to challenge expectations as a woman in the military, take pride in her responsibilities, and navigate life after service. Through humor, faith, and determination, she offers a candid perspective on resilience, finding purpose, and making sure women veterans receive the recognition they deserve. Shelly Rood Host - Hardcore & At Ease Shelly C. Rood served across 16 years as a U.S. Army Reserves Intelligence Officer — Captain, Company Commander, and S2 — leading covert briefings overseas and overseeing security programs for nearly 4,000 soldiers. A Distinguished Military Graduate of Western Michigan University and a third-generation Detroit business owner, she brought that same standard of leadership into the private sector. She is the founder of a training and leadership development company, Mission Ambition, LLC, creator of the Others Over Self® leadership mindset, and the architect of Be At Ease, Woman Veteran™, a peer support program serving military women since 2019. She is host of Hardcore and At Ease, and author of Mission Wildflower 🌻. Today she leads a team of veterans who continue to serve beyond the uniform.
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! The WWII Battle of Wake Island in December 1941 caught the American military by surprise. The men on the island and in the fight came from all across the nation. There were a number of Utah residents involved in that battle. This interview tells that story, which is both tragic and heroic.
Have a message for Veterans Radio? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! U.S Air Force Veteran and historian, Joseph Neussendorfer, writes about how military engineering impacted early America but still impacts us today. His article was published in the Engineering Society of Detroit Fall 2026 magazine. This article was converted into a AI discussion of key points.