Can you feel it coming?
Something's waking up inside.
Hearts ablaze, we're standing tall, breaking chains of yesterday.
Dead America finds its voice, in the darkness we make choice.
Truth and healing lead the way, hearts ablaze, we're here to stay.
Rise from ashes, come what may, we're finding hope in disarray.
Today, we're speaking with Ryan Reichert.
He is the owner of Our Protector Development, he has a podcast, Our
Healer, Our Protector, and a book series Protector Development book series.
Ryan, could you please introduce yourself?
And let people know just a little more about you, please?
Absolutely.
Thank you, sir. Yeah, Ryan T. Reichert, uh, grew up in North Dakota.
Uh, yeah, started, uh, Our Protector Development, uh, which was Our
Protector LLC in the beginning.
And, uh, it's now turned into Our Protector Legendary Leadership.
Company's kind of taken on coaching, professional speaking.
Uh, the book series, as you discussed, uh, there's, uh, God Only Knows When The
Devil Comes For You A Second Chance At Life, uh, came out in June and, uh, The
Icarus Effect, um, The Highs And Lows Of Our Emotions We All Have Feelings,
uh, will be released 30 September.
But, uh, if someone really wants it, uh, I can certainly get it out
to 'em with an email and an address and, uh, we'd be good to go there.
And, uh, the third one's an editorial review kicking around, uh, you know,
what it'll look like if it's, uh, you know, supernatural or super intelligence,
uh, you know, your spiritual journey through life and the six steps
that get you there kind of thing.
But, uh, yeah, we got a lot of stuff shaken out and it's super
exciting and I'm just grateful to be, uh, on your platform here.
Well, thank you for being here, Ryan.
It's a pleasure.
Uh, first off, thank you for your service.
It, it's, it's always a great thing to talk to service members.
Uh,
what started you off on your journey to what got you to where you are here today?
Yeah, no, absolutely.
It's, it's long, it's coming up, uh, almost forty-seven years.
But, uh, it, uh, it started like in, uh, Hoople North Dakota, it's tater town, USA.
It's a village of about 350 people, so super small.
I graduated with eleven other fine North Dakotans.
Uh, and so yeah, it was, uh, back in 97.
Uh, but uh, through all that, uh, I came from, uh, my mother was a school teacher,
uh, reading, um, writing, and then she did special education and visually
impaired as she got, uh, you know, closer to forty years in her teachership.
Uh, my father who grew up in Hoople, uh, was, uh, in the Army, Vietnam veteran.
Uh, and then, uh, came home, uh, from that, went back to school, uh, and his
dad got sick, so he didn't finish his degree at the University of North Dakota.
And, uh, the Reichert's insurance was the family business
that they had there in town.
And, uh, so for me, entrepreneurship was something that, you know,
it'll take many years to get to the entrepreneurial side of things.
For me, it was not something I wanted.
Uh, I looked at it as, you know, it was a, a town of, uh, farmers, you know, so
we were kind of, uh, you know, excuse the language, but the bastard family.
You know, there wasn't too many businesses in town.
And, and so, uh, you know, at the end of the day, for me,
this is my perception of things.
It's changed, um, you know, now today.
But, uh, when I was younger it was definitely, us against them, I had a chip
on my shoulder and so on and so forth.
And, uh, I joined the Army in, uh, let's see, September of 99, when I
was at the University of North Dakota.
I, I'd done two years of, uh, school before I got in,
I got an ROTC scholarship.
And, uh, in 2002, uh, I was commissioned in the infantry and,
uh, headed off to the school for boys down in Fort Benning, Georgia.
And, uh, from there, uh, did another twenty years, uh, in the Army.
Uh, retired as Lieutenant Colonel.
Uh, so a trip to Afghanistan, Iraq, a couple other trips to Saudi Arabia, so
just about four years in the Middle East.
Um, you know, all the fun schools, Airborne Ranger, all that different stuff.
And, uh, yeah, we, uh, we were gonna retire in Washington State.
I was gonna be a financial advisor, uh, for Edward Jones, my best friend.
And, uh, COVID happened on my last deployment.
And, uh, I have two adult girls today.
And, um, they came home with their mother, uh, or came to Minnesota where,
uh, my former spouse was originally from.
And, uh, while I was on deployment and their best friends had, we weren't
retiring here in the Minneapolis area, and the, the one week trip
turned into two weeks, turned into three weeks, and so on and so forth.
And I got a call saying we would really like to retire in
Minnesota instead of Washington.
And, uh, so we made the leap in 21, I wanna say, moved the girls here.
I finished up my last six months of active duty, um, out in Washington
actually living with my best friend.
So that was awesome for his, his family to take me in and, and, uh, stay at their
house while we moved the family here.
Uh, and then I got a Fortune 500 job after I retired and, uh, that
was about, uh, two and a half years.
And a year ago, uh, I was laid off and about, I suppose about four or five
months into that, uh, you know, uh, I think it was Tailor Brands, it was, kept
popping up in my inbox and I was like, Huh, you're supposed to start a business.
And so I think that was December of last year.
And, uh, so I started the, uh, Our Protector LLC and um, 30
December, uh, our divorce was finalized, uh, 30 December of 24.
And, um, I started writing like that day and, uh, the first book, God Only
Knows When The Devil Comes For You A Second Chance At Life, uh, you know,
knocked that out in about 30 days with Trilogy Christian Publishing.
Uh, we did a hybrid, uh, self-publishing, uh, with them for the first two books.
Uh, the third book, uh, is, uh, through Author Success with Steve Harrison's team.
So, uh, got a writing coach now and all that to make it, you know, make it
better and, and, uh, keep working on it.
I do enjoy it.
So it's kind of a crutch, um, you know, to me now.
It's to, like, I'd rather write a book then, you know, start working on the
professional speaking, you know, reaching out to the different associations or
the Chamber of Commerces and, you know, trying to get on their docket to be
a, a speaker at some of their events.
Um, so we always go back to what's comfortable.
And, and I can think of that in my military career, you know, I was
always, if you're in an operational assignment for a few years, like, you
know, it was always nice to come back and then take a training assignment.
And
it's kind of, you know, been that way now, even only nine months into
entrepreneurship where I'm already seeing that I'd rather write a book
than, you know, do the hard work and making phone calls and not receiving
emails back and so on and so forth.
But it's been beautiful to see because I didn't realize how strong
my father, my grandfather had to be to be entrepreneurs and what that takes.
So whoever's listening out there, that's an entrepreneur, you know,
you got a retired lieutenant colonel, airborne Ranger, um, saying, wow.
I mean, it's, it's tough.
You know, you don't know when the next paycheck's coming.
Um, you know, who, who you gotta pay that, you know, has done contract work
for you and getting them paid on time.
And, and I just, but I thoroughly enjoy it because every day's a new adventure.
You know, I can't get too far ahead of things, um, you know,
look off on the horizon like I did.
And that's where I struggled, I think in the military.
You know, um, I got hurt in 2011, um, and, uh, you know, made a
pretty solid comeback from it.
But, uh, I think I was then, hours after that, looking
towards retirement, you know?
Like just every year inching closer and closer to that and not realizing
that it's just part of the journey.
It's not the destination there, you know, retirement just gets
you further down the road.
It, it, you know, so when I ended up, you know, in Fortune 500, it just, it didn't
fill the hole that I had in me, you know?
I got paid a lot, but it definitely wasn't bringing, fulfilling my purpose that I
did have when I served, um, in the Army.
And so I think today I have that service back, but, you know, I
do a lot of volunteer work with the church, uh, that I'm in.
You know, I, um, teach, uh, sixth grade boys on Wednesday nights.
So, um, I do have a past of, uh, addiction, uh, both alcohol
and prescription drugs that, uh, I've been in recovery for
about the last twenty-one months.
Um, and so, you know, there's a lot of different things that, uh, you
know, this journey has, has taken me on and, and it's, um, a super blessing
just to see it come full circle.
Before this, I was actually moving my oldest daughter back into college
at the University of Minnesota.
Um, you know, this year she's in a sorority house, so, uh, it was, uh, you
know, second floor and, uh, definitely gonna enjoy some relaxation tonight 'cause
uh, we certainly moved a lot of stuff.
Right on.
Yeah.
Ryan, just from looking you over, researching you, there, there's
a lot to unpack with your life.
And addiction is a big part of a lot of people's life and they
sometimes get stuck there and it's hard to get moving forward again.
And I, I really feel that our nation as a whole right now is in that trap.
And we see this drug addiction, alcohol addiction, sex addiction, homelessness,
it's, it's just chronic right now.
There's, there's gotta be a way back out of this and getting back
into a productive nation again.
I, I know you practice faith.
Do you think faith is involved in coming out of what we're stuck in right now?
I, I absolutely do.
Um, you know, I, it's interesting when you reflect on that 'cause, I mean, part
of, I guess, that I left, the part I did leave out from growing up was, you
know, the division of being, you know, business versus agriculture, there was
also, we were Catholic in a Protestant community, about ninety-nine percent
Lutheran, uh, for the most part, um, and just a handful of us were Catholic.
And, um, to me, like you just, you don't label it as that.
You just know that like anything else in this world, if like your, your best
friends go to this, there, it doesn't matter what it is, like, and you're
stuck over here, you feel left out.
And, you know, for me, that's what I felt growing up.
And so then, you know, in the military, you know, we have that same division.
Like us, you know, going over to Afghanistan and, and what we did
over there, going to Iraq and what we did in Iraq, and you know,
going to Saudi Arabia and what we did with Yemen and Oman and so on.
So anyways, long and short is, there's so much division that I believe, you
know, I'm, uh, very much, you know, yeah, raised Catholic, married Lutheran,
now I just follow Jesus Christ.
Um, but to that end, I'm just a very spiritual person.
I always have been.
And my father, uh, you know, he's been, um, recovering in his
alcoholism for the last forty years.
And, uh, so when he sobered up in March 85, it was pretty cool this past year,
you know, for me to be sober and give him his fortieth, uh, year, uh, medallion.
And, uh, to that end, I mean, we have, you know, we have that
spirituality, we have that faith.
And, and, uh, you know, I don't love to get political because I think
it starts more so with us and being kind and being loving human beings.
You know, we always look to politics, government, and so
forth to be these saviors.
And like, it's, it's within us to be better, you know, to, uh, you
know, for me, a big push this year.
Uh, so yeah.
You mentioned Our Healer, Our Protector, the podcast, I
co-host that with Lisa Sanders.
She's a nurse of twenty-five years.
And, you know, our goal this year is to start our 501C3, uh, you
know, so waiting on the state of Minnesota to finish that up.
Um, but you know, for me it's to go out there and, you know, feed the poor,
protect the weak, and heal the sick.
Um, you know, because I know when I was going downtown Minneapolis, uh,
with Lauren, um, you know, I can't pass homeless people anymore without
stopping and wanting to help in whatever way I can, just because I
know that I wasn't too far from that in my addictive nature and state.
You know, I just, the good Lord pulled me out of the ditch in time.
Uh, and I had enough help around me that, you know, I, I didn't
have to go live on the street.
You know, I was, I was hanging out in my basement, um, you know, sleeping
in the furnace room kind of thing.
And so it's one where it ends up being, you know, from that side of
it, you know, where you're hiding out and you are running from everything.
You know, it's the same with fear, you know, forget everything and
run or face everything and rise.
And today I just, you know,
I, I'm brutally honest with everything, you know, I'm, I'm here to help.
And it's just that nature that, I think the accountability that we all have as,
as Americans, like, let's get our side of the street clean, like, you know, first.
Like I know it's easy to run somewhere else and, you know, try to clean it
up in some other part of the world.
But I mean, we have such a fractured state here that all of
us, you know, love thy neighbor.
I mean, I definitely, it's in both, both of the first two books, you
know, talking about loving thy neighbor and it's not your neighbor
next door to you like if you live in suburbia, like they'll be just fine.
Like it's your neighbors that, you know, are, are living on the street
that haven't showered, you know, they don't know where their next meal is.
Like, I think back to ranger school, you know, when we had one meal a day
and you'd eat at, you know, whatever time, middle of the night, or, you
know, in the morning in, in the patrol base once you finally walked, I don't
know how many tens of twenty of miles and, you know, you were so grateful.
And to me it's, the same goes for anybody else out there.
And so I get pretty passionate about that because in a previous
life I was somebody who didn't care about anybody but myself, you know?
Um, I certainly, you know, I think about my two little girls, you know,
like, you know, I was their hero.
And then the things that I did, you know, towards the end of things, you
know, with, uh, with their mother and the divorce and separation and everything
else, like, I was just not a kind person.
And today, you know, I, I do better, you know?
I know better, so I do better.
And, and you know, I put, I challenge everybody else out there that's,
that's gonna be listening, uh, or are listening that, you know, just do better.
Like, we all can give something, you know, it doesn't have to always be money.
Like, you know, time is the most precious commodity.
So like, go serve your community and give back.
You know, try to make better.
I mean, it blows me away today, everywhere I go, how dirty our, you know, cities are.
You know, just everything is becoming, we just have, we have
no pride in ownership anymore.
And what I mean by pride in ownership is pride in America.
You know, I'm not, pride in your front lawn, you know, I got it,
you should be keeping your little castle, you know, all squared away.
That's a given.
Um, you know, it's picking up after another human being, you know, if
they're gonna throw, throw some litter on the ground, pick it up.
You know, like, but if you're the one throwing the litter, you know,
shame on you kind of thing too.
And, uh, yeah, I, uh, I struggle with that one, uh, quite a bit, uh, today, you know?
And, and I know I have plenty of other things to still work on with
Ryan, you know, Ryan's not done yet.
You know, there's plenty of reflection to do and plenty of things that, you
know, I'm still need to continue to hold myself accountable to and for.
Yeah.
Well, I, I really believe that if we start with that approach, accountability,
everything else kinda lines up.
Because, you know, everybody's looking at you, what are you doing?
And if you're doing the wrong thing, they have the mindset, well, it's okay for me
because Bob's doing it, Joe's doing it.
So just do the right thing and then there's no excuse.
And, and I, I really think that that's one of the ways out of this.
So tell us about the journey of writing these books.
You said within thirty days you had a book written, that just blows my mind away.
That's dedication or a lot of focus.
What is it?
Well, it's not me.
It's not me, it's just divine, divine appointment.
Um, I was just listening.
I've, I've found, uh, let's see if I got a copy of it, it'll be coming out
in the third book here, it just went to first readers, uh, but I call it,
uh, Our Develop, uh, Our Protector Development Spiritual Practices.
Um, it'll, it'll be a ninety day prayer meditation journal and,
uh, kind of your work side of it.
Um, and this is what got me, as I just started the journey in recovery,
um, you know, going to meetings, having a sponsor, um, doing the work.
And from there, you know, my faith practices started
getting stronger and stronger.
Going back to church, uh, went to a course, you know, called
Alpha, uh, which was a great help.
A lot of the things that I had either forgotten, uh, since, uh,
growing up in catechism or whatever.
But, uh, it was, it was pretty special.
And then joined a bible study about a year ago and, uh, and a few other groups.
But this takes you through what I call your, you know, spiritual.
You can't have spiritual without ritual.
So I look at rituals capitalized, you know, the SPI, it, it really,
I mean, it's there 'cause I believe, you know, in spirituality.
But it's really the ritual, it's the habits that you take on every day.
And so for me, it's upon awakening, it's an attitude of gratitude,
it's prayer and meditation.
So what that looks like today, for me, after doing this for a number of
months is, I, I don't set an alarm,
I just naturally, the good Lord wakes me up somewhere between 2:25 and 4:08 in the
morning depending on, I guess, what good and evil needs to be fought in this world.
Um, feed May, May is a three-year-old goldendoodle.
Um, she is, uh, well, who saved my life, uh, when we went through all this, uh,
you know, twenty odd months ago now.
And, uh, you know, basically walk, feed her, walk her, come back, read
my Bible, and then I go to the gym for, you know, hour and a half or
so, maybe two hours depending on what the workouts look like, how many
miles I'm gonna get in and so forth.
And then your daily actions from there, it's, it's, it's a real easy one,
I call it now, like you're, uh, I don't know, the six step method to, you know,
thriving today or something like that.
But it's smile, say please, say thank you, say excuse me, say I'm sorry and
then you repeat that all day long.
It's just, it's literally that easy and you gotta make eye contact or
whatever that, that's important too.
Uh, you write down ten things you're grateful for, and if you're, if you
don't have ten, you know, I always say, you know, start with three.
I mean, we all have three things we can be grateful for, you know?
We, you can hear, you can see, you can talk, uh, that was three just off the bat.
Not everybody has that, you know, ability, you know, to have one of those three.
Um, pray for three people you do not adore.
Uh, and then you work on your three daily wins.
So, physical win, walk, run, lift, swim, whatever you do physically.
A mental win, read, write, create, learn, something else
that you want to come up with.
Your spiritual win, which is pray, meditate, study, grow,
whatever that looks like.
And then you do a, an after action review or an AAR from military.
That always worked when we did operations or exercises.
But it's like, where do I sustain in my wins?
Where do I improve in my wins?
And then what actions do I need to take in my wins?
And, you know, you, we can talk a lot, right?
We, we're always great at talking,
it's those actions of doing it every single day.
And I always say growth over comfort or discipline over feelings.
Trust me, I do not wanna wake, you know, wake up whenever that is, 2:25 to 4:08
in the morning and then do what I do.
I don't want to, I don't feel like it.
Um, but I do because I know that I have work to put in and, and
that work has been the books.
It's, there's gonna be an online course that comes out
here at the end of September.
There's also gonna be an application that will roll pretty much everything
in together to have one community, holistically speaking, with, you
know, whatever we, whatever we work on under the sun as a group on top of
what, what's been built out so for,
uh, so far.
Excuse me.
And then, uh, at the end of the day, you do the same thing as you
did at the beginning of the day.
You pray, you meditate, your attitude, gratitude.
So it's really wild.
And this is something I do wanna kind of get in on it.
It's like, and I never really understood this, but like, you
know, everyone was like, you know, it's an attitude of gratitude.
And if you can look at, if you can be grateful for every single thing that
happens to you in life, like your pickup truck breaks down and you're
like kicking the tires, you're swearing, you're whatever, you can look at it,
it's like, there's a reason why that happened and you should be grateful for
it, whatever it looks like, you know?
So you weren't flying down the interstate at seventy miles an hour
and it broke down and, you know, you killed thirty people or whatever.
There's a lot of different, I mean, that's extreme, but,
you know, whatever it may be.
I, I used that one because it did happen a few weeks ago.
Uh, a couple of trucks that I have from business, one of 'em
broke down and, you know, somebody couldn't get to work on time and it
broke down in like their driveway.
So it was like, it didn't happen, you know, somewhere where it could have been
catastrophic because like the transmission went out, you know, completely.
And so, um, a lot of things, you know, wouldn't, wouldn't,
wouldn't work properly.
Um, but, you know, I, I mean, for me, I struggled with this for a
long time with the divorce, um, you know, to have gratitude for that.
And it's, today I can see it.
Um, you know, my former spouse, like who she's with today, she's,
she, you can see she's happy.
So I'm happy for her, you know, in that.
And, and she would've been one of those three people that I was praying for, you
know, that you do not adore, earlier.
Because I was resentful and ungrateful and so like, that to my,
you know, it's emotional maturity.
And I'm trying to think, you know, I, I use Harvard quite a bit in a lot of
studies, uh, but I wanna say this is a Stanford study where it does talk
about, um, I'm gonna get this mixed up or whatever, but, you know, your
ability to be emotionally mature.
So to work on your emotional intelligence in such a way that, um, it truly, you
know, sharpens all aspects of your life 'cause it, it just, it cleans you out.
It just has this effect when you, um, well, just like, you know, being on
podcasts, you know, like you talking, well, me, or, or another person,
or whatever, it's just that natural conversation that I don't believe we're
having anymore with people, you know?
I mean, I think of my, my mom, you know, she's got her best
friends, they talk all the time.
But, you know, that's, uh, a 1951 modelish group, you know, kind of thing.
So like, they know how they want to connect.
They don't, you know, if I asked her, You wanna get on a Zoom call mom?
You know, she'd be like, I don't, what, what's that?
You know, kind of thing, you know?
And she's like, I'll meet you at the cafe.
And I'm like, Well, I'll get in the car and see you in like five and a half hours.
But, you know, it's, that's what we're missing so much is to just truly
connect with another human being.
And know that like, you know, I just, we all have like, feelings
that create the emotions.
And sometimes that's bad because we have a feeling that invokes anger and then rage
comes out and, you know, like that's where that emotional maturity, that emotional
intelligence comes into play to pause.
I mean, I'll tell on myself today, moving Lauren into the sorority, uh, you know,
I, I'm a Chevy guy and I drive a big truck 'cause you know, I'm pulling trailers
and stuff like that, and, uh, I parked somewhere that, you know, I knew was like,
we're supposed to park at this sorority, but no one's moving in this sorority,
so I just parked where I, you know, where I wanted to.
Wrong answer, I know, where I wanted to.
And so I was asked to move and they said, Well, the rules say this.
And so unfortunately I didn't pause, I allowed my feelings to
get in the way of my emotions and I said, Well, I don't follow rules.
And it wasn't a very good example for my, well, yes, nineteen-year-old daughter.
So I mean, she's old enough to make her own decisions and does live on her own,
but, um, I could have been a better example, you know, in that moment.
And so, you know, I wanna apologize to Lauren, which I probably embarrassed
her with who I was talking to 'cause it's somebody who works at the
sorority that she'll have to live with or deal with all year long.
Um, and then later on, you know, I apologized to the person I made
that comment to because it was rude.
You know, I was being rude and ungrateful and, you know, 'cause maybe I was
hot and tired or whatever, you know?
Like, whatever excuse you want to have, it doesn't make it right.
And so that to me is where I reflect today.
I always, you know, for years I've called it the man in the mirror.
But I'm like, Hey, you know, take the mirror outta your back pocket,
take a good look, who do you see when you look in that mirror?
Who's looking back at you?
Are you proud of him or her?
Like, and can you do better?
Because we can always do better.
We can always put in more work, we can always make something better.
Because just like myself, like, like discipline over feelings.
My feelings at times knowing like, you know, for us like to hop on
the show, like I was running back and I was like, I gotta jump in the
shower and I don't feel like this.
But I made a commitment, I said I was gonna do something.
Here I am doing it and I'm glad I am because I can feel
the spirit inside of me.
That gratefulness for completing a commitment and knowing that my
testimony's gonna help someone else out there and might get them to get off the
couch and clean up after themselves.
It might, you know, they might go volunteer, you know, tomorrow or
whatever it may be, or this weekend.
And that to me is what matters is like, you know, if we all take one
step together, we can make this all better at the end of the day.
That's right.
I, I, I agree a hundred percent.
You know, and dedication to you comes in little steps.
I mean, just like you explained, if you say you're going
to be someplace, be there.
If you can't be there, make every effort and try to explain so you
don't have somebody waiting on you.
You know, there's accountability and that emotional intelligence
that you talk about is huge.
Uh, I really think that a lot of people are understanding that more
now, and more people are hopping on these podcasts and they are
actually speaking of these problems.
And this is how we start pushing the cart in that direction
by having conversations.
Long form conversations, it's hard to sit and listen to somebody, especially
if you don't agree with them.
But the more you train yourself to just relax in the moment
and listen, it is amazing the discovery that comes out of that.
And it all starts with that commitment, just showing up.
And it, it really starts right there.
So as we progress in podcasting, I, I really think this is like a catalyst,
if you will, to something better, the next stage or whatever it is.
So how are you driving your podcast right now, and what direction
are you going with that podcast?
Yeah, it's, it's definitely, you know, it's, it's, uh, Christian
faith-based, uh, it does focus on, you know, um, you know, more so
divorced families, blended families, uh, those recovering from trauma.
We, uh, you know, we kind of normally do a couple of months, uh, where
it's just Lisa and I and, and just walking through what life looks like.
You know, two post-divorced, uh, folks with, you know, two adult
kids each, and what that looks like.
And, you know, the trials and the tribulations that families go through,
you know, the aftermath and the destruction and what that looks like.
And as, you know, like she's healing, I'm healing, the kids
are healing, you know, our exes or formers are healing, our families.
You know, like everyone's like dreams of what life was gonna look like, you
know, all changed in a matter of, you know, months and so on and so forth.
And, um, you know, today it's, you know, I have no idea where, you know,
the roads are taking us, but I, I do know as I reflect, um, in looking
at the podcast, it's definitely, you know, trying to utilize, um,
the, the lighted path, I guess is what I look at it today.
It's like, you know, and I was never somebody who read the Bible, um,
before, you know, for whatever reason.
I know my mom was in Bible studies, I don't ever remember
seeing my dad read the Bible.
And, um, you know, I had guys in the military that worked for me and I'd be
like, Oh geez, look at that Bible banger.
And today when I reflect on it, I'm like jealous that like I didn't get
my stuff together, you know, five years ago, ten years ago, fifteen
years ago, whatever it looked like.
And then I think about all the guys that I led, um, and to see who's
still in and their leading today.
And I'm so proud of them, um, you know, and I hope that I was not,
you know, being a poor example.
You know, use me however, my dad would say this quite a bit, you know, use me
however, you know, I should, as a good example or a bad example, but, you know,
just utilize me, you know, to where it is.
There's a lesson to be learned or it's a blessing, you
know, however you look at it.
And so, so I think for us, yeah, Lisa and I, you know, we definitely focus on that.
And then, you know, our guests always have some form, like we had Tom Pfanner on a
couple weeks ago, he does Dads who Lead.
And I don't have his book to show it and help promote him, but, you know,
he had a son when he was in high school and, you know, went through the
whole, you know, how hard that can be.
And it's amazing today that he leads, uh, fathers and sons on retreats,
weekend retreats where they do a lot of different adventures together
and how it tightens those bonds very rapidly, uh, and so forth.
And, and to know that, you know, he made a lot of hard choices, him and
his family, to, you know, make sure that his son, you know, wasn't lost
into the whole side of things when, you know, I, I can't imagine, you know?
I mean, I was like, uh, twenty-seven, twenty-eight when we had Lauren and, you
know, twenty-nine, thirty when we had Boo.
So it's like, to me, I'm like, Boy, I was like, you know,
like, you, shoot, you had a teenager when you were that age, you know?
So, um, and we've had other guys, Brian Bogart, like he, um, you know, was in an
accident and uh, you know, his one arm was torn off and, and then reattached.
So, you know, he has a bit of a deformity there, uh, in it and
talking through that trauma.
So, you know, the focus always is the recovery side of it and knowing if you
put the work in and you never give up, like, you know, there's no pot of gold
at the end of the rainbow, but there's a beautiful, mysterious, uh, graceful light
in it all that you just, I can describe it in such a way 'cause it's just so amazing.
You know, just to understand today that, you know, not all days are
sunshine and rainbows, but like, you just know that like if you can live
in a state of gratitude and your attitude's always in that, like, you
just, I mean, it's, you just gotta have the ability to always go like, Okay.
Like, I can come into this being sour puss, angry, resentful, hurtful,
I just think all the things that I, I was.
And yeah, I, I mean, gosh, I must have been just like a
miserable person to be around.
Maybe some people will say I'm still a miserable person 'cause I, you know,
preach discipline and growth over comfort and all this other stuff too.
But I only want it knowing that like, if you put the work in, like there's so many
just golden nuggets inside all of us that are waiting to be, you know, found out.
I mean, just, it's, you know, if we just put a little bit of work, a little
bit of discomfort, you know, in, you know, like, I mean, I was fifty pounds,
I gained fifty pounds after I retired.
In seventeen months I gained fifty pounds.
And, you know, today, you know, I, I still got a little bit of it left.
I think a lot of it's maybe turned into muscle, which is a positive thing.
But like, you know, it's just to, to go like all those years of being disciplined,
um, in a way of just living, but naturally it was part of the profession.
You know, why can't we do that today for businesses?
Like, why is it all about like work, work, work, work, work when you go to work?
Like, why can't we allow people, to pay them to work out, you know?
Why can't we look at having a healthy cafeteria, you know, at the corporate
center for them to eat, you know, healthy?
And, you know, I acknowledge like all the different things.
I mean, I've been on both sides of, of that, you know, when it comes to budgeting
and the bottom line at the end of the day.
But I just think about life and know that, I think the final
thing for me was like money.
It was just, you know, my God-sized hole.
Like, you know, I was like I filled it with everything and I was like,
Okay, when I make X, that God-sized hole gets filled, you know?
And I finally, you know, started to, you know, get paid to where I'm
like, When am I gonna start feeling better, you know, kind of thing.
'Cause you know, I'm making good money, we got lots of stuff.
And, um, then it didn't, it, it didn't.
And so that, for me, is really what summed it up and realizing, you know,
it's the journey, not the destination.
It's one day at a time control what Ryan can control and
that is just Ryan, you know?
That's all, all that he can control, that's all that any of us can control.
Um, and, and knowing that if we smile and, you know, just try to be a kind,
loving human being, you know, to ourselves and everyone around us, like,
it just, it just keeps getting better.
Because, you know, it, just check out the circles you're running in, you know,
if, if, if, if you're, if you're somebody that's miserable, you're probably hanging
out in a miserable circle and y'all just sit and complain about whatever isn't
happening in your life, 'cause you, you're not gonna put the work in, you know?
Um, it, there's a lot of things and when I look at that, that, that, to me now,
today is, you just, you can't put yourself back in those situations because, um, you
know, unfortunately a lot of people don't wanna see anybody succeed but themselves.
It's that selfish nature and, you know, so get in circles where you're promoted
to excel and do good and, um, yeah.
It's about as, that, it's about that simple.
Yeah.
So it's almost two years since you've had any issues with
addiction in your recovery.
How does that make you feel?
Uh, good.
But I also know, like, I don't, how do I put it?
It's, it's something that like, I, you know, I'm not, I always try to look at it
in such a way, it's like, you know, like, I'm not gonna drink over it kind of thing.
Like in the, you know, it's like I lost my job, I'm not gonna drink
over it, you know, kind of thing.
Uh, I got divorced, uh, I'm not gonna drink over it.
Uh, one of my children, you know, doesn't, you know, have a relationship
with me, uh, not gonna drink over it.
It's, it's that side of life, I guess, that, um,
I'm giving up one thing or two things, uh, to have everything.
And so that's, that's how I look at it today.
It's like, you know, I guess it would be if I, you know, if you, I mean, well,
yeah, I gained fifty pounds, so it's like, how do you lose fifty pounds?
Well, it, uh, nutrition's a huge thing.
So it's like, you know, I don't go across the street, promote Hy-Vee since
I live across the street, and for many, many, many moons I'd go over there and,
you know, eat my feelings away when I, when I quit drinking kind of thing.
And, um, you know, now it's like, I don't even, I was telling Lauren that
today, I was like, it was like, Sugar doesn't even taste good to me anymore.
Like, because you just, you start to develop better habits.
You know, it's like amazing what vegetables, you know,
I mean, I think there's this whole thing moms, yeah, I know, mom, I'm listening.
I did listen, you know?
Like, uh, but, but where we, you know, so I think getting back to that
is where I really go, um, It's real.
It it, it sounds terrible to make it that simple 'cause it's not
that simple, but it is that simple.
Um, you know, it just, you just, today I, I mean, I love it.
I love all the folks that like I get to have in my life.
That want to be in my life, that choose, that choose Ryan.
You know, because it's one that, I think before I was just always
trying to make everybody happy.
And, you know, when you have people tell you you're too much, so then you
make yourself small, you know, you, you shut yourself down, you go hide.
You know, for me it was, you know, everyone goes to bed at night, you know,
tuck the kids and give 'em a kiss, tell 'em you love 'em, and then, you know,
Oh, I'm gonna go down and watch some TV.
And, you know, and just like, you know, go to the beer fridge or, you know,
whatever, go to the liquor cabinet, you know, throw down some THC, you know,
all the different things that, that I was doing because I couldn't be myself.
And today I can be myself.
And like, and it's, it's weird because it's like, before I'd be
like, I'm proud of myself, you know?
And, but pride and ego wouldn't been a thing of like, to run around with.
Like, I don't have anything I look like, I put like, Oh, look at my trophy,
look at my trophy, look at my trophy,
you know, it's, kind of thing.
It's like the books.
Um, yeah, I'm grateful that, you know, that I was able to publish a couple books,
um, but I'm like, They can be better.
You know, so I'm gonna like write a third one and it'll be better, you know?
I'm gonna write a fourth one, it's gonna be better.
I'm gonna write a fifth one, it's gonna be better.
Another side of it is, it's gonna help people, you know?
Like the first one, anybody that's suffering, you know, addiction, divorce,
estrangement, all of that, or whatever, like, it's your guide to like, you
know, it's me hopping in the hole with you and going like, Let's, let's
get through this together, you know?
It's an easy read.
It's like, I don't know, I think 106 pages or something.
Like, I think you can, eighty-five, ninety minutes, you could probably read it.
And then there's lots of stuff in there that you'd want to keep because
there's lots of steps, or goals, or other things in there to help you out.
But to me, I, I like The Icarus Effect better because
this is one that I'm really passionate about today.
It's like, and kind of calling us all out.
These, these, uh, these males, you know, like, everyone's like, Oh, you're
an Airborne Ranger, you were a stud and all this, blah, blah, blah, blah.
And I'm like, I was a boy for forty-five years of my life.
I lied for forty-five years of my life.
You know, I told the person that I married for and, you know, I lied to
her, you know, about all kinds of stuff.
And, you know, and, and when finally like, you know, came toe to toe
to the end, then I like, you know, November of 2023, like, it was like,
you know, what, what are you doing?
And I'm like, I, you know, laid it all out, told her everything.
And then obviously from there it was, you know, time to, time to, you
know, basically, uh, you know, move on in life and so on and so forth.
But like, I had lied about everything.
You know, my fish is this big, you know, kind of thing.
For those who are listening, you can't see that I'm doing the six
inches to sixty inches kind of thing.
Uh, but I just, so frustrated to that end of like, you know, like to be a man, like,
you know, you have to tell that, you have to be brutally honest no matter what.
You know, I think Jordan Peterson, you know, I've heard him speak a number of
times now, and you know, the big one is like, you know, by telling the truth,
the absolute best case scenario happens.
You know, because if you lie, like it just prolongs the inevitable.
So all you're doing is just moving the goal posts and the, and the, you know,
not in the direction you want them to.
They just get further away and you get more and more miserable and you
wonder what's going on in your life.
And don't worry, somebody's listening, somebody's taking notes as much as, you
know, as His son did, did die for us.
Um, and there is mercy in all that.
But that doesn't, I don't believe that doesn't mean that, we, uh, you know?
You have to repent, you have to change, um, in your evil ways on, on
this side of the turf otherwise, I, I don't, I can't see it any other way.
But yeah, to that end, The Icarus Effect, it really gets, honing that emotional
intelligence we talked about earlier and really focusing on the tools necessary
to, you know, work on, well, just this long form, you know, well, it starts
in short form, just literally to have a conversation with a stranger, you know?
And, and then it moves further to adapt into such a way that like you
can have a consistent, you know, more than ten, twenty, thirty minute
conversation, um, with another person.
And it's realizing too that like, this is different 'cause this is an
interview, but if we were actually just you and me having a cup of coffee, like
I would be asking you questions like, because I want to get to know you.
And that's where we all struggle, you know, and I call it two ears, one mouth
if there's, for a reason, you know?
Shut this one, open this one, and just listen.
You'd be amazed how much you can learn from somebody else
that has, you know, knowing that you have more years than I do.
Like, I'm curious, like, you know, what was it like here, there, you know?
I mean, my, my timeline goes back to 1978 and I, and I don't remember
much, you know, probably for the first ten years, um, to date.
And so it's like, yeah, you know, what was life like here?
And well, you lived there during that time.
Like, I can read history books and know this, but what was it really like?
What did you feel, see, smell?
Like, what was that like?
And, you know, so, and we all have feelings.
So it, you know, that one goes into like everybody under the sun.
You know, I don't care who you are,
like you treat everybody with respect and kindness.
Because like, at a minimum, that's what they deserve until they show
you that, you know, know your worth, I guess, at the end of the day.
Once they show you like that they, you know, your worth, like,
they're like, No, I'm sorry.
Like, I'm gonna treat you this way.
Then okay, then establish some boundaries and give them the Heisman
and, and, and move out smartly, I guess.
But yeah, to that end, you know, um, I do enjoy, um, and I have to reread the books
because, um, it's one of those where you, I've, I'm focusing on the third book and
making that is, is as good as it can be.
You know, like the, the first two books it, you know, like, like I said,
grateful that they're part of, you know, a collection now, or a series,
or whatever you wanna call 'em.
But, um, you know,
the biggest thing is getting 'em in the right hands so it can help people.
That, that's the bigger thing, you know?
Because I just, I see it time and time again, you know, when you go to
different, you know, hospitals, treatment centers, so on and so forth, it's not
about, you know, really focusing on getting anybody better unfortunately.
I didn't realize the impact that, um, you know, alcoholism has on like, the
workforce and, you know, how destructive it is, uh, from a healthcare standpoint.
Um, 'cause, you know, I was, I was blessed, probably 'cause of my dad,
no one, you know, I wasn't afraid.
Um, I, well, I was afraid to admit that I was like him, you know?
I was afraid to admit I was an alcoholic, um, prior to it all.
But I think I wasn't afraid of going to a meeting, getting in a circle,
and, you know, I listened, obviously, for the first number of meetings.
But, you know, when it was time to like share, I mean, I had a lot of shame.
I still have a lot of guilt, but the shame kind of finally lessened
'cause I realized like I have to forgive myself and let that go.
Like I can carry the guilt around a little bit, that's fine, you
know, that's having a heart.
Um, that's being like someone who, you know, wants to be, wants to
be redeemed, wants to be kind now.
Uh, 'cause you can see yourself and how ugly you were.
Um, but the shame one, that keeps you, like you were talking about, dark, you
know, scared, um, and just running.
And so, yeah, absolutely.
That's kind of what life is, isn't it?
It's a chase, a game, and, you know, it doesn't necessarily mean
that you're the winner at the end.
It just means that you've taken the time to play it.
And the game is always different for the different people.
So I, I really agree, you gotta slow down and enjoy yourself.
It's, it's about the experience and it's not about where you're
going or how you're getting there.
Uh, I like to concentrate on people now because it helps me develop myself, and
that's what brought me to podcasting.
And podcasting really helped me develop these skills to shut up, shut
the one hole and open the other two.
And it, it really does help you experience life in ways that I, I
never thought was possible before.
Ryan, is there anything else you wanna share with us today before we end up?
I was, uh, the only thing that popped into my mind as you were kind of,
you know, sharing that is just, you know, I never liked reading books.
It was never something that, you know, for me, I was just like, my mom was
a reading teacher, I was in third grade getting ready to get held back
and, you know, um, I couldn't read.
I'd lied, I, here we go, going back to lying, um, I'd lied about
it, you know, kind of thing.
I, I'd get picture books and tell stories, you know, out of 'em.
And it was like, wow, he's really young to be reading.
And so, you know, I'd probably cheated off everybody's tests and
stuff like that to keep going.
And finally it was found out in third grade.
And so my mom, like anything else, she's like, You know, it'll be okay.
We'll, you know, we'll put in the work.
We'll, you know, we'll get you help, We'll figure it out.
And I did.
I guess where I'm going with this is the, the sense of humor that, I believe
and, and we can all believe whatever we wanna believe, but I, I believe
that the good Lord will protect us from our greatest gifts until we're truly
mature enough to be able to hold them.
And so, you know, like I got my master's degree at the Command of General
Staff College ten, twelve years ago.
You know, so I read fifty, a hundred books on leadership and, you know,
wrote, wrote one on leader development.
And it was funny 'cause it was, you know, leader development, uh, let's
see, communication, trust, and legacy.
And, you know, I, I laugh as, as we're getting through this
and through our last forty odd minutes of talking, you know, we've
communicated, which is, is build trust.
And knowing that a couple of podcasters will continue to, you know, give this
out to others, you know, along the way.
And where I was gonna circle back with the reading is,
today I love to read, you know?
I can't read enough to know that, like somebody, if they write a book,
you know, like I haven't got into this one yet, but, uh, it's, uh,
Peak Mind by Amishi Jha or whatever.
But like, I'm just like, how many books did he read to bring me 350
pages and his life experience?
Like that,
you can, you can download somebody's life in a book and how many
other books that they've read.
And it really just, I mean, I'm just thinking of the doors that
can open that you don't even know exists inside of you yet.
One, 'cause, yeah, you're not emotionally mature.
You're not emotionally intelligent.
I'm sorry, that sounds harsh.
I know.
But what I'm trying to do is be that catalyst, be that spark, whatever
it looks like, because I know we have an army out there of folks that
your gifts are right, that close.
Like you're one x away from whatever it is, and you watch Netflix all night
long, or, you know, you're one y and you doom scroll, you know, on your phone
all night long, whatever it may be,
you know?
Um, you know, it goes back to discipline over feelings.
And, and like I said, I, I'm right there with you.
Like, you know, if you follow me, uh, on the world, you'll hear me get on
there, you know, in the mornings and I'm like, I do not want to do this.
Like, I'm doing it 'cause I have to do it 'cause otherwise I'll die if I don't.
And, and what does that mean?
Well, it, it just means that I will go back to doing the same thing I was
doing, you know, twenty odd months ago.
And, um, that won't be good, it'll hurt a lot of people, and it will,
I'll just be a detriment to society.
And, um, you know, maybe some folks out there will be like, see, told
you he couldn't do it, you know?
And that, that's still one of 'em too, maybe every once in a while it's like,
Hey, you know, like, just gimme time and, and I'll make, I'll make you proud.
And it's just one of those, and that's that side of it.
So put in the work and, uh, yeah.
Together we're stronger, so let's do it together.
That's right, that's right.
You know, and a little bit more value there is, I, I remember I used
to live in Salt Lake City Valley.
And I worked in Magna, Utah, lived in Sandy, Utah, and
it's way across the valley.
I mean, miles and miles.
And I was told, I'll be there at x o'clock pm to pick you up and here, here X o'clock
comes and nobody's here to pick me up.
I have a choice to stand around and wait, or I can start my way home and get there.
I started my way home so I could get home.
Don't, don't wait for somebody.
Because if they're going to tell you X this, and then you're waiting, how
long are you going to wait before you figure out it's an undependable person?
The quicker you deduce your situation to the most vulnerable, that's the answer.
So.
You're gonna, you're gonna spark some stuff then here.
Yeah, you're gonna open up that one of like seeing one's
potential versus their performance.
And, you know, we, uh, that can be something extremely
detrimental to all of us.
It's not, potential's potential.
That doesn't mean it'll ever happen, you know?
So, you know, look at performance, look at performance.
How well has that person performed?
You know, it could be, you know, your partner, could be, you know,
coworkers, subordinates, whatever it looks like, friends, family.
I mean, it's just one, like, you're always like, oh, I know they can do better.
Well, have they?
You know, have they?
And I get it 'cause I was one of 'em.
I mean, I don't, I, I like, Ryan's potential, way up here, whatever,
Ryan's performance, like was well, way down here, you know?
But, so, so, yeah, today it's like, you know, actions speak louder than words.
Just, you know, keep putting the work in, keep, keep, keep
your nose to the grindstone.
You know, it's okay to rest too.
It's okay to take a break.
And, uh, yeah, we could talk forever and it, it, it's totally okay to fail.
We all make mistakes.
Like I, you know, like I said, The, the stuff that I've done, terrible things.
And know that, um, I'll repent and change and, um, just do better, just do better.
Ryan, thank you so much for being here today.
Could you tell people how to get ahold of you, work with you,
and a call to action for people?
Yes, absolutely.
So, uh, yeah.
First off, uh, Our Protector Development is probably the
most centralized, uh, place.
So ourprotectordevelopment.com, uh, you can, you know, shoot me a discovery call.
I'm not gonna cost you anything, we can certainly chat.
Uh, first time's always free.
And, uh, you know, if you wanna order any of the books, uh, you know, Amazon,
Barnes and Noble, Target, walmart.com, any of the dot coms that are out there.
Uh, The Icarus Effect, if you want it right now, you would have to email me.
So yeah, just go to ourprotectordevelopment.com and shoot me
an email from there, uh, with your name, address, and, uh, we'll link things up
to get payment and all that good stuff.
But, uh, yeah, the big one's, uh, is, uh, Our Healer, Our Protector, um, on YouTube.
You can watch, you know, any of our, uh, podcasts out there.
And so, uh, but if you wanna follow me on social media, it's Ryan T Reichert
on Facebook, LinkedIn, all that stuff.
Or Army RT 1978 for like Instagram, TikTok.
Trying to think what else I have out there.
I don't know, it's either Ryan T Reichert or Army RT 1978.
And, uh, yeah, I just, uh, you know, I'm here to help and so
that's really what it comes down to.
So anybody out there that this resonates with you, like, you know,
let's, let's get you help, let's get you in the right direction.
Um, 'cause not all of us have, you know, or we don't feel, and I'm gonna
talk about feelings here, we don't feel that anybody's looking out for us.
Don't worry, someone's looking out for you.
You just haven't met him yet.
And so keep your chin up and be kind 'cause uh, He loves you and I love you.
So, I appreciate it.
Thanks, Ed.
Amen.
I, I like that a lot, Ryan.
Uh, thank you for being here, sir. And one more time, thank
you for your service, sir.
Thank you.
You walk through fire, war, the way, of battles far and choices made.
From broken roads to brighter days, grace met him in amazing ways.
The chains that held him fell away, when mercy called his name.
From battlefield to boardroom floor, through addiction's chains reborn to know.
Ryan leads where God commands, our protector heals broken lands,
service, faith, and second chance, he's living proof of Heaven's
plans.
Every scar tells of the fight, every wound that's brought to life
becomes a place where love breaks through, making something strong and new.
He stands for those who've lost their way, a voice that says you're not too late.
From battlefield to boardroom floor,
through
addictions
chains reborn to know.
Ryan leads where God commands, our protector heals broken lands,
service, faith, and second chance, he's living proof of Heaven's plans.
In the broken soul, he understands, he's been down low, he's reached for hands.
For in love he turned them around, now healings searched,
picked up off the ground.
From Battlefield to boardroom floor, through addictions chains reborn to know.
Ryan leads where God commands, our protector heals broken lands,
service, faith, and second chance, he's living proof of Heaven's plans.
He's living proof of Heaven's plans.
Second chance in God's own hands.