Steve Milgazo spent nearly 30 years in two branches of the U.S. military. He began as an Air Force Pararescueman (PJ) and later became a Navy SEAL. He chased purpose, leadership, and combat across two elite communities, but the cumulative toll eventually followed him home.

In this episode, Steven Bunting traces that journey with him: why he left one special operations pipeline to start over in another, how 9/11 reshaped his trajectory, and what it was like to seek conflict. Milgazo also talks openly about the years after service, including burnout, divorce, identity collapse, and the moment he nearly took his life.

He explains how he approached recovery like a mission, rebuilding his mental and physical health from the ground up, and how that work led him to coaching. Now at Sharp Performance, he serves high-risk professionals who are still in the arena, helping them extend their impact beyond the uniform.

01:10 Going from the Air Force to the Navy 05:03 Steve’s Early Life Inspiration

08:40 Choosing the Air Force

11:33 From Cocoa Beach to BUD/S 14:28 Starting Over at 27

17:38 Going to SEAL Team 2 22:01 Waiting for War in the Wake of 9/11

24:55 Learning to Manage Expectations 27:04 Burning Out and Thinking About Retirement

31:28 Retiring and Going Through Divorce at the Same Time

35:37 Going Back to School

37:11 Hitting Rock Bottom 39:02 Going All-in on Healing

41:03 Becoming a Sharp Performance Coach

44:16 Healing is for Everyone

45:28 It’s Never the Wrong Time to Try Coaching

Justin Crocker spent two decades in the U.S. Army, starting in the infantry as a paratrooper before commissioning as an officer and completing Special Forces selection. He deployed to Iraq during the surge as a platoon leader and later commanded a Special Forces detachment in Afghanistan.

In this episode, he walks through the lessons learned across Iraq, Afghanistan, and Africa. He explains what combat really teaches about leadership, trust, and the cost of constant performance. He also breaks down why the best units run on decentralized decision-making and why paying attention to your people is more important than tactics.

Justin also opens up about the invisible toll of service. He talks about the strain on marriages, the disconnect of coming home, and the loss of purpose that hits when the mission ends. He lays out parallels between the military transition experience and the burnout spiral he sees in both law enforcement and the fire service.

Now serving as Head of Talent at Sharp Performance, Justin is fighting a new battle. His focus is on ensuring first responders and high-stress professionals do not wait until a crisis to get support. His message is direct: purpose must be protected, and no one earns longevity by grinding themselves into the ground.

00:00 Introduction

03:04 Where Justin Was on 9/11

06:37 Military Service as a Family Inheritance

08:59 Early Lessons as a Paratrooper

13:31 Leading Through the Baghdad Surge

20:20 Risking It All to Join Special Forces

27:38 Earning the Green Beret

32:16 Loss, Family Strain, and the Cost of Service

36:51 How First Responders Struggle to Switch Off at Home

42:15 Why So Many Retire and Decline Quickly

47:19 Choosing Purpose Again at Sharp

52:45 Overtime, Burnout, and the Loss of Mission

Former Navy SEAL and firefighter paramedic Guy McDermott shares his unfiltered story of service, struggle, and redemption. Over the course of 24 years in the Navy, he experienced unbreakable brotherhood and the physical toll of training, including surviving BUD/S with pneumonia and fractured ribs.

When his military career ended, Guy faced the painful loss of identity that so many warriors encounter. He became a firefighter and paramedic, stepping into homes not with a weapon but with the tools to save lives. Yet even in the fire service, silence and stigma followed him. A critical call in October 2019 caused him to freeze, and he carried that shame home.

In this powerful conversation with host Max Bush, Guy reflects on losing friends to suicide, battling shame, and finding his way back through daily practices that rebuilt his sense of self. He explains how relentless coaching saved lives, why protecting your energy matters, and how warriors can bring each other home.

Chapters

00:00 Intro – Meet Guy McDermott

01:00 24 Years in the Navy

02:10 Growing Up in an Unsafe Household

06:08 Choosing the Warrior Path

09:43 Hell Week with Pneumonia

11:55 What SEAL Brotherhood Really Means

15:16 Becoming a Firefighter - Saving Lives vs Taking Lives

24:22 Withholding the Truth

25:12 Suffering Through the Loss of a Friend

26:27 The Breaking Point

32:37 Exploring the Wellness Process

38:08 Relentless Coaching and Accountability

40:52 Guy’s Coaching Style

42:21 Preparing Police and Fire Chiefs for Retirement

50:08 Advice for First Responders

In this episode of The Hero’s Journey, Jared Cheselske shares his path from a military household in San Diego to the Army’s 101st Airborne Division, and eventually the fire service. He recalls serving in Panama on security operations and deploying to Kuwait and Iraq during Desert Storm. After leaving the Army, he completed three different fire academies and spent nearly 30 years on the job in Salt Lake City and San Diego.

Jared talks about the physical and emotional cost of those careers: chronic injuries, sleepless nights, and the loss of close friends. By 2017, the strain had compounded and taken a major toll on his family life. A call from a fellow firefighter led him to get help, and working with a coach gave him tools to restore his sleep, regulate stress, and rebuild his health.

He explains how coaching gave him language to make sense of what he was experiencing, and why he started sharing those tools with others. Jared describes his work today with Sharp Performance coaching first responders. He notes that while his clients come from very different backgrounds, the patterns are strikingly similar, and the same practical tools continue to make the difference.

Chapters

00:00 A Lifesaving Call

01:22 Growing Up in a Military Household

10:43 Deciding to Join the Army

14:05 Boot Camp and Joining the 101st Airborne

20:20 Desert Storm

31:45 Transitioning Out of the Army

33:05 Finding the Fire Service

36:00 Going Through Multiple Fire Academies

37:05 Hitting Rock Bottom

38:46 The Call That Changed Everything

40:50 Finding Coaching

41:41 Sharing Tools That Work

42:55 Building a Support Group for Firefighters

48:22 A New Chapter with Sharp Performance

50:57 Using the Operator Syndrome Framework

52:36 Nonprofit Work in Hawaii

56:40 You’re Not Alone

Max Bush grew up in small-town Illinois chasing football dreams before finding his way into the Navy SEALs. The Teams gave him purpose and belonging, but leaving that world brought isolation, injuries, and struggles he never expected.

In this conversation, Max talks about the failures that pushed him toward the Navy, the lessons that carried him through BUD/S, and the dark transition that followed. He shares the turning points, including mentorship, coaching, and a meditation retreat that changed his life, and the moment he realized his story could help others.

Today, as Head of Customer Engagement at Sharp Performance, Max is the one standing in front of firefighters, police, and military professionals. Through raw honesty and the sword and sheath analogy, he connects his own journey to theirs and shows what it takes to stay sharp in the face of demanding careers.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction and Early Life in Illinois

3:33 Football Dreams and Struggles in School

4:54 A Family of Sailors and Military Influence

7:00 What the SEAL Movies Get Wrong (And the One That Gets It Right)

8:26 Failures, Partying, and Choosing the Navy

10:43 How to Become a SEAL

12:45 Lessons from BUD/S: One Meal at a Time

14:43 Rising to the Level of Your Peers

18:06 Misconceptions Around Mental Health

20:40 The Dark Transition Out of Service

22:21 From SEAL to Salesman

25:31 Injuries, Stress, and Operator Syndrome

28:23 The Path to Sharp

29:28 Breakthrough at a Meditation Retreat

33:12 Benefits of Learning Meditation from a Professional

34:36 From SEAL to Storyteller

36:33 The Sword and Sheath Analogy

41:39 A New Sense of Purpose

42:39 The Foolish Mindset

45:10 Find Someone to Show Up For

In the first episode of The Hero’s Journey podcast, Sharp Performance co-founder Andrew Sakmar shares how 15 years in the Army, concluded by career-ending injuries, led him to build a new approach to performance coaching for demanding professions.

Hosted by Navy SEAL veteran Max Bush, this episode traces Andrew’s path from childhood inspiration through the Citadel, infantry leadership, and Special Forces selection. He opens up about the injuries that forced him out of the military and the recovery process that followed. Max and Andrew explore how hard-earned lessons from the frontlines can be used to support law enforcement and first responders at home.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:47 The Hero's Journey Framework

06:43 Andrew's Call to Adventure

10:11 Path to Becoming a Green Beret

19:28 A Raw Moment of Clarity

25:16 Continuing the Mission Beyond the Uniform

26:35 Andrew’s Personal Call to Action

27:54 Understanding First Responders

30:14 Finding New Purpose in Helping the Next Generation

33:00 Tools for Transition

36:06 The Only Two Choices

43:18 Storytelling as a Tool for Connection

47:14 Vision for the Future

Learn more about Sharp Performance: https://hubs.la/Q03ChDnC0

Steven Bunting’s life has been shaped by adversity. From growing up in an Alabama trailer park to serving as an Independent Duty Corpsman in the Navy, his story is one of grit, loss, and redemption.

In this episode of The Hero’s Journey, Steven shares how a tough childhood and a pact with his little brother led him to Special Operations, deployments around the world, and years as a medic on the front lines. He talks about the steep cost of service, losing friends and family, battling alcohol, and the moment he realized he had to change.

After transitioning out of the Navy, Steven became a marriage and family therapist to fill the critical gap for high-risk communities. He explains how coaching, mentorship, and the mind-body connection helped him rebuild his life and relationships.

Today, he serves as Head of Coaching at Sharp Performance, helping others in demanding occupations take back control of their health, performance, and purpose.

Learn more about Sharp Performance: https://hubs.la/Q03Dmtg70

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

02:32 Childhood in a Birmingham Trailer Park

07:01 Moving in with Grandparents and Watching 9/11 on TV

08:56 Call Center Job, Fallujah on TV, and the Pact with His Brother

10:13 Fight with Marine Recruiter, Choosing the Navy Instead

13:22 Boot Camp, Becoming a Corpsman, and Special Operations Selection

17:28 Deployments as a Frontline Medic

22:30 Alcohol, Family Strain, and Losing Friends and His Brother to Suicide

30:14 Rock Bottom After Afghanistan and Contracting

30:54 First VA Session Ends with the Psychologist Asleep

36:00 Discovering Coaching, Meditation, and the Mind-Body Connection

41:00 Building the Coaching Program at Sharp Performance