The Modern Man Podcast

Ted Phaeton, The Radcast Network

"The Modern Man" is a series focused on discussing the challenges and obstacles men face in today's society. It is an open forum of discussion where thoughts, strategies and ideas of men living a happy and fulfilled life are explored. The Modern Man aims to create a community of men not only sharing and connecting on a deeper level, but also exploring how to thrive and live a happy and fulfilled life. This is done through intentional conversations strategically aimed at issues that men face in today's society.

  1. 3d ago

    Fled Cuba at 4. Sold a Multi-Million-Dollar Company.

    Joel Gandara fled Cuba on an overcrowded boat at age 4, grew up in poverty, and built and sold a multi-million-dollar men's apparel company — without ever having a master plan. He joins Ted Phaeton on The Modern Man Podcast to unpack the arc, the tactics, and the brotherhood he now runs for men who want more.   Joel is a Cuban refugee, a former apparel entrepreneur (he acquired 13 of 14 businesses that weren't publicly for sale — using handwritten notes as the opening move), and the founder of 31 Daily Challenges and The Brotherhood — an invitation-only community of 119 men across the country who meet the standard through his 31-day challenge process. His wife runs the equivalent for women.   In this conversation: the Garbage Pail Kids origin story (fourth-grade entrepreneur, out of necessity), why he never had a master plan and figured everything out along the way, the $160K cash-withdrawal moment that shifted his identity, why 100% of his risks got green-lit by his wife (and the exit-plan discipline that earned that trust), the organize-organize-organize principle that made his apparel company sale-ready without a scramble, the handwritten-note tactic that led to 13 acquisitions, the Brotherhood model (invitation-only, intentionally slow-growth, 2–5 new invites per class), why the lone wolf is losing more than he thinks, how to vet mentors ("how are they living, not what they show"), the anti-vanity discipline ($49 Timex, no mortgage, used truck bought cash — the more things you own, the more things break), and the line every married man should stitch on his wall: pick the damn place. Chapters: 00:00 If It Was All You Knew 02:33 Growing Up in Poverty 04:50 The Garbage Pail Kids Hustle 07:21 Building a Multi-Million-Dollar Business 10:36 The $160K Identity Shift 12:57 The Midas-Touch Trap 13:22 Risk & Marriage 16:22 Organize Your Business 19:24 From Business to Brotherhood 22:40 Accountability & Brotherhood 27:31 The Lone Wolf 30:18 Choosing the Right Mentors 33:04 Success Without the Vanity 36:05 The 31-Day Challenge 39:05 The Handwritten Note 41:05 Face Your Fears 41:27 Be the Man 43:28 She's Not a Mind Reader 44:21 The Bigger Vision 46:53 Failure as a Gift 48:35 Ted's Recap Community: The Brotherhood (invitation-only, after the 31-day challenge) 🤝 Connect with Joel Gandara:  Web:                 joelgandara.com               31dailychallenges.com YouTube: @JoelGandara LinkedIn: joel_gandara Facebook: joel_gandara. Instagram: joelgandara   🤝 Connect with Jessica  Gandara.:  Tiktok: @jessica.gandara3 X: @jessicagandara YouTube: @jessicagandara24   👉🏿  About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.   Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🫱🏿‍🫲🏾CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🫱🏿‍🫲🏾 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessgandara/

  2. Aug 14

    220: From Terrible Teacher to Teacher of the Year (Twice)

    Daryl Williams Jr. was called a "detriment to student safety" his first year teaching. Two years later he was Teacher of the Year. He did it twice. On The Modern Man Podcast, Daryl sits down with Ted Phaeton to break down the transformation, the ceiling moment that made him walk away from his dream job, and the 3 Drivers of New Teacher Retention that any leader (in any industry) can steal.   Daryl is an educator, speaker, author of 99% Human, 1% Amazing, and the founder of a teacher-retention consulting company he launched in 2021 after sitting in a principal's chair being told he couldn't earn more than $64K as a first-year assistant principal despite years of impact. His mission: guide a million students toward lives of choice, not circumstance.   In this conversation: the terrible-teacher-to-2x-Teacher-of-the-Year transition (and what actually changed on the inside), the 99% Human / 1% Amazing framework (the DNA thesis that reframes your superpower), non-cognitive skills as the real predictor of long-term success (backed by University of Chicago research), the difference between settling and being content, the runaway question every operator needs to ask themselves — are you running to something or running from something — the 3 Drivers of New Teacher Retention (relevant far beyond education), the parent-teacher engagement research that fathers especially need to hear, and Daryl's signature line — everything is figure-outable.   Chapters: 00:00 Detriment to student safety 01:28 Welcome brother — Ted's intro  02:02 Terrible teacher (everybody said so)  03:38 The transition — MVP over Rookie of the Year  05:22 What authentic leadership actually is  07:44 99% Human, 1% Amazing (the DNA thesis)  10:14 Ikigai and the trap of working only on your weaknesses  12:26 Who wrote the script? (Ted's reframe)  14:17 Chart your own path — Thoreau's rule  17:20 Non-cognitive skills as the real predictor of success  20:06 Growth mindset — Carol Dweck research + Chicago data  21:48 Settling vs. being content  23:30 Ted's own apartment-in-Greenville revelation (28 years old) 25:34 Daryl's ceiling moment — the $64K conversation  28:11 How to actually stop teacher turnover  30:37 The salary question (and what it reveals)  32:27 Change happens inside before outside  32:48 THE 3 DRIVERS OF NEW TEACHER RETENTION  33:57 Who needs to hear this most — teachers vs. leaders  36:02 Leaving loud (Mick Unplugged's frame)  37:17 Running to vs. running from  39:48 Parents — the question nobody's asked  42:49 The father-engagement research every dad should hear  44:28 Master the subjects that matter (grit, resilience, tenacity)  46:13 Ted on pledging a fraternity and "figure it out"  47:31 Where to find Daryl  48:58 The heaviest question — called for greater  50:34 Ted's recap   🤝 Connect with Daryl Williams Jr.:  Web: darylwilliamsjr.com YouTube: h@DarylWilliamsJrOfficial Libsyn: @darylwilliamsjr Facebook: @darylwilliamsII Instagram: @darylwilliams__ Everywhere: @DarylWilliamsJr (1R, 1L)  Book: 99% Human, 1% Amazing Booking: 2026 & 2027 school partnerships — year-long teacher retention program   👉🏿  About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.   Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🫱🏿‍🫲🏾CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🫱🏿‍🫲🏾 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man #modernmanpodcast #nobleknights #darylwilliams #teacherretention #mensleadership #fatherhood #growthmindset

  3. Aug 7

    I Wasted 15 Years of My Sex Life. Here's What Fixed It.

    I wasted 15 years of my sex life. Alex Grendi, former professional soccer player turned certified men's sex coach, joins Ted Phaeton on The Modern Man Podcast to talk about the silent battle 20 to 30 percent of men face — performance anxiety, premature ejaculation, ED — and the 4-step method he uses to fix it.   Alex spent 15 years battling this himself while competing at the elite athletic level, hiding it behind marijuana and locker-room bravado. This is the conversation that unpacks how sexual confidence directly shapes how a man shows up in business, leadership, and marriage — and the exact steps to reclaim it. Alex walks through the Superior Lovers 4-step method: nervous-system regulation (why porn/masturbation-free weeks reveal your real stress load), non-genital pleasure and sound expression (the shame most men carry), edging as exposure therapy for arousal, and separating orgasm from ejaculation. Plus: why Kegels are an emergency brake and not a solution, why sobriety was Alex's real turning point, and Ted's rule — you can't heal what you don't reveal.   Chapters: 00:00 15 Years Wasted 01:44 Welcome, Brother — Ted's Intro 02:22 "Sex Felt Like Something I Had to Get Through" 03:39 How Every Man Ends Up in the Loop 05:59 Elite Athlete on the Outside, Suffering on the Inside 08:16 The Whiskey Dick Problem (And What Research Actually Says) 09:28 The Turning Point — Sobriety & Self-Discovery 10:36 Sexual Health IS Health 13:52 What Semen Retention Actually Is (It's NOT NoFap) 16:30 How to Move Your Sexual Energy 19:00 Ted on Breaking His Own Porn Habit 21:17 The Layers Underneath "Boredom" 22:46 What "Superior Lover" Actually Means 24:25 Why the "Quick Tip" Won't Fix It 26:56 STEP 1 — Stress Regulation & Nervous System Awareness 28:57 Ted's Ice Bath Aha Moment (120 BPM → 68 BPM) 30:03 The Ice Bath Erection Challenge 😂 31:01 STEP 2 — Non-Genital Touch & Sound Expression 33:52 The *When Harry Met Sally* Reversal 37:19 STEP 3 — Edging & the Stop-Start Method 41:28 The Kegel Myth-Buster (Emergency Brake, Not a Solution) 43:33 STEP 4 — Separating Orgasm from Ejaculation 45:35 The Taboo That Keeps Men Stuck 47:28 30–50% of Men Have Experienced This 48:50 "You Can't Heal What You Don't Reveal" 49:18 The Ejaculation Replacement Technique 50:39 Where to Find Alex 51:56 What Changed How Alex Sees the World (Sobriety) 53:21 Ted's Final Takeaways & Closing Thoughts   🤝 Connect with Alex Grendi:   Website: alexgrendi.com  YouTube Channels:  Alex Grendi Alex Grendi Coaching Instagram:  @alex.grendi Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: If you need emotional support, reach out to the national mental health hotline: Call, Text, or Chat 988    👉🏿  About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.   Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ thenobleknights    🫱🏿‍🫲🏾CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🫱🏿‍🫲🏾 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man

  4. Jul 31

    218: Ex-Special Forces on the 10 Minutes That Fix Every Day

    Ex-Special Forces commando Tim Thomas on why elite soldiers break — and the 10 minutes a day that fix every exhausted man. From down under, Tim joins Ted Phaeton on The Modern Man Podcast to unpack the Performance Pyramid, the Two Golden 5-Minute Windows, and the warfare tactic he learned in Afghanistan that maps directly to how modern men are burning themselves out.   Tim served with Australian Special Forces in Afghanistan, competed as a pro MMA fighter, survived PTSD, and has spent the last decade in the veteran recovery space. He's the founder of Breathwork in Bed (an app, a method, and a movement), author of Fight, Flight, Feel, and has raised over $1M for veteran mental health research. His message is simple — most men are trying to fix their life while exhausted. Fix the sleep first, everything else follows.   In this conversation: the Performance Pyramid (outcomes → actions → rest/recovery/healing art forms — and why most men build only the top two), the bow-and-arrow reframe for rest days ("bow days"), self-worth as our real center of gravity, how pain transforms into loneliness and isolation and what breaks it, the "energetic millionaire" metaphor, Tim's own path through the crushing weight of defeat, and the tactical spine — the 5 minutes before sleep + 5 minutes upon waking that determine the shape of your entire day. Plus: why breath outranks thinking, why the presence of oxygen is the absence of disease, and Tim's invitation to Ted (and to you) — the Breathwork in Bed 28-day challenge.   Chapters: 00:00 Elite soldiers break — not from lack of strength, from lack of recovery 01:42 Welcome brother — Ted's intro 02:12 The performance question no training manual prepares you for 02:55 The 20s vs. the rest of your life  03:15 The Performance Pyramid (outcomes → actions → rest)  05:22 Warfare tactic — attack the enemy's sleep, better than a bullet 05:53 Our center of gravity is self-worth  08:16 Ted on peace in the home  10:36 The bow-and-arrow reframe — bow days over rest days  14:02 Solitude vs. isolation  16:38 The danger age for men — 38 to 42  17:20 Tim's veteran suicide-prevention work — 40 lives in one year  21:23 The Noble Knights + the isolation break  23:14 The question that changes everything — how many other people? 26:04 The firefighter story — the problem wasn't my own  27:33 The Energetic Millionaire metaphor  30:37 The research on sleep + testosterone + performance  32:51 Speaking to the stubborn version of yourself  35:31 The pyramid vs. pyramid — the competitor's edge  38:24 THE TWO GOLDEN 5-MINUTE WINDOWS  40:41 Breath outranks thinking 42:30 What the breath work actually looks like  45:22 Sleep is the soil from which everything grows 46:27 The Breathwork in Bed 28-day challenge  49:13 The crushing weight of defeat — Tim's vision  51:25 Ted's recap   Connect with Tim Thomas: Breathwork in Bed app: Search "Breathwork in Bed" in your app store — 28-day free trial Book: Fight, Flight, Feel Web: breathworkinbed.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breathworkinbed 👉 About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.   Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🤝CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🤝 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man

  5. Jul 25

    217: My Testosterone Was 198. Now It's 800. All Natural. No TRT.

    Ted's testosterone was almost 200 — 198 to be exact — and he looked healthy on the outside. Muscle, working out, doing the podcast. On the inside his hormone floor was gone. Then he did the work Mark Holman coaches men through, and now he's at 800. No TRT. All natural.   Mark Holman is a mental/physical health and testosterone optimization coach. Creator of the Unchained program (formerly Revival) and the 5-Day High-T Leadership Challenge. He was on the Modern Man Podcast before — this is Round 2. He's since moved his own total T to 1,100, doubled his free testosterone, broke his own income barrier, and met the woman he's now marrying.   In this conversation, Mark and Ted go deep on why "normal" testosterone is a lie (74% of Americans are overweight — that's the population setting the normal range), Mark's named diagnostic concept — the Health Handbrakes — that a standard blood panel won't reveal, why TRT is like winning the lottery (no process, no struggle, and you're on it for life), the free-T-vs-SHBG conversation most doctors skip, the sniper-vs-shotgun reframe for supplements (and the Tongkat Ali standardization rule most brands hide), and the leadership-testosterone connection — why lower T makes you more risk-averse and quietly shrinks your ambition.   Plus: Ted's own before/after receipts (198 → 800 natural), the University of Chicago sleep study that showed a 5-hour night drops testosterone 10-15% in one week, the 2007 JCEM data showing modern men's T is generationally lower than their fathers' generation at the same age, and Mark's closer on the nice-guy generational curse he inherited from his father and broke.   If you're a high-performing man between 25 and 55 with a "normal" blood panel and a feeling something's off — this one's for you.   Key insights from this episode:   Testosterone as an on-demand hormone (not a fixed number) Why "normal T ranges" are a lie (74% of Americans set that baseline) The Health Handbrakes: the root causes of low T that a standard panel misses The Unchained standard: 700 total testosterone is the floor, not the ceiling Free T + SHBG: why total T alone lies to you TRT is like winning the lottery: no process, no struggle, and you're on it for life Sniper vs. Shotgun supplementation (and the Tongkat Ali 2% eurycomanone rule) The testosterone-leadership connection: why low T makes you risk-averse Ted's before/after receipts: 198 to 800 natural in 18 months Mark's N=1 story: 1,100 total T, doubled free T, wife met, business broke through   Chapters: 00:00 The confession — my T was 198 02:04 What's Changed About Testosterone? 04:25 Can You Naturally Increase Testosterone? 05:47 Why "Normal" Blood Work Isn't Enough 08:36 The Testosterone Range Doctors Miss 10:00 Ted's Testosterone: 198 → 800 Naturally 11:57 What to Do If Your Doctor Says You're "Normal" 14:20 Can You Come Off TRT? 15:42 TRT vs. Fixing the Root Cause 17:58 Stress, Sleep & Free Testosterone 20:15 When Is TRT Actually Necessary? 23:04 Why Men's Testosterone Keeps Declining 25:42 The Truth About Testosterone Supplements 29:43 Zinc, Vitamin D & Deficiencies Explained 30:36 Why Most T Boosters Don't Work 33:22 The Hidden Cost of Low Testosterone 36:42 Testosterone, Leadership & Confidence 39:22 Does Sunlight on Your Balls Work? 40:23 Mark's Results: 1,100 Testosterone 45:14 Health, Wealth & Love 45:47 Free Blood Work Analysis 46:47 The Lesson That Changed Mark's Life 49:09 Ted's Biggest Takeaways Connect with Mark Holman: Instagram: @markholmanhealth/ Free Master Class: testosteronemasterclass Linktree: Markholmanhealth   👉 About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.   Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🤝CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🤝 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man

  6. Jul 17

    He Was Terminated Twice and Filed for Divorce. Sober Since May 5, 2018

    He was terminated twice. He filed for divorce. He gained 60 pounds and drank on the highs AND the lows. Then May 5, 2018, he walked out of an AA meeting and hasn't touched alcohol since.   Nick Jonsson is a licensed specialized counselor, best-selling author of Executive Loneliness (the book coined a term that now has its own dedicated Wikipedia page), leads one of Asia's largest networks of senior executives, is a TEDx speaker on sleep, and an Ironman triathlete who splits time between Sweden and Asia. He's also the father of a 17-year-old son and a working husband.   In this conversation, Nick and Ted go deep on the drift that destroys high-performing men — the anxious-overachiever wound that made them successful in the first place, the 68% of executives who have nobody to confide in (per Harvard Business Review), the corporate stigma that keeps men silent even when they know better, the KLM Tenerife disaster that shows what fear of speaking up actually costs, and Nick's 5-Step framework from Executive Loneliness for the man ready to come back.   Plus the through-line Nick applies to triathlon, executive coaching, marriage, sleep, and time — the "principles that work in this work in all areas of life" reframe that turned a mediocre triathlete into an Ironman PR-setter and a man 60 pounds lighter with 30 years of marriage ahead of him.   If you're a high-performing man between 25 and 55 with more contacts than you have people to actually call — this one's for you.   Key insights from this episode: The anxious-overachiever wound that made you successful (and why healing it doesn't kill your edge) Why 68% of senior executives have nobody to confide in — and why 84% won't even tell HR Multiple purposes, not one — the "keep steady in the middle" reframe from 12-step recovery The KLM Tenerife disaster — what fear of speaking up actually costs Nick's 5-Step framework from Executive Loneliness Take Stock. Who Can You Talk To. Get Healthy. (Plus what comes next.) Sober since May 5, 2018 — the exposure sequence that changed everything Sleep half an hour more, break your Ironman PR (Nick's TEDx origin) Removing the TV from the bedroom — and other things Nick surrendered Own your shit — Nick's final answer, the biggest transformation of his life   Chapters: 00:00 The confession — terminated twice, 60 pounds, drinking on emotions  01:00 Welcome brother — Ted's intro  01:26 What keeps high-performing men isolated?  02:06 The anxious-overachiever wound  03:04 The wound that made you successful (and the fear of healing it)  05:44 Multiple purposes vs. one why  07:20 Keep steady in the middle  08:35 The Harvard 68% stat  09:58 Nick's own survey (30% / 75% / 84%)  11:00 If you break a leg you see a doctor. If you break your emotions, you hide.  11:43 Therapy as maintenance, not crisis  13:21 Stigma, the corporate ladder, and resilience  15:22 Real-world consequences of vulnerability  18:10 The KLM Tenerife disaster  20:19 Chernobyl, night shift, and mistakes made from silence  22:13 Step 1 — Take Stock  23:31 Step 2 — Who Can You Talk To  25:19 The May 5, 2018 exposure sequence (wife, doctor, friend)  27:00 The tribe found — the urge lifted  27:49 The primal fear of rejection 29:14 The three people you'd call at 2 a.m.  30:30 Build safe spaces in the good times  31:32 Being discerning with who you offload to  32:56 The through-line — from recovery to triathlon  34:23 Applying the same principles to everything  35:00 Signing up for a triathlon tribe (coach, cycling club, swim academy, running club)  36:14 The sleep experiment — 30 days of half an hour more  37:00 The TEDx that came from sleeping more  37:34 Ted on the sleep struggle  39:48 Discipline, accountability, and "just keep going"  41:19 The Ironman as a mini-life  41:50 Ted on Hyrox  44:06 How Nick manages time (paid to remove the bedroom TV)  44:45 Say a lot of no. Hit many birds with one stone.  45:30 Cycling with his 17-year-old son  47:09 Where to find Nick and Executive Loneliness  48:36 Own your shit — the biggest transformation  49:53 Outro and Ted's recap 🤝 Connect with Nick Jonsson: Website: www.nickjonsson.com Facebook: @jonhannah.berryhill3 Instagram: @jonssonnick LinkedIn:  @nick-jonsson YouTube: @NickJonsson Book: Executive Loneliness — Amazon (Kindle, paperback, Audible):  https://www.amazon.com/Executive-Loneliness-Overcoming-Isolation-Depression-ebook/dp/B091B1Y3WZ Wikipedia page: Executive Loneliness (dedicated page on the term Nick coined):  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Loneliness TEDx: "Nick Jonsson sleep on TEDx" 👉 About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life. Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time   Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🤝CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🤝 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man   #modernmanpodcast #nobleknights #executiveloneliness #nickjonsson #anxiousoverachiever #mensmentalhealth #sobriety #masculineleadership #ironmantriathlete #ownyourshit #highperformer #fatherhood

  7. Jul 10

    He Filed for Divorce After His Affairs. Then He Heard God at 2 a.m.

    I was having affairs on my wife. We filed for divorce. I woke up one night and God was showing me what I was about to wreck.   Jonathan Berryhill left home at 15 with no foundation under him. He found structure in the Army infantry, adrenaline in law enforcement narcotics and undercover work, and then success across real estate, healthcare, and government contracting — multiple seven- and eight-figure businesses. He's been married 30 years to his high school sweetheart. He has seven children and three grandchildren. He's the author of Warrior to Wealth and leads three real estate brokerages with 50+ agents — having gone from first licensed at 43 to seven figures in commissions in five years.   But the story that defines him isn't any of those. It's the marriage he almost wrecked, the man he had to become, and the 5 Pillars he built every day after on — Identity, Discipline, Execution, Ownership, Legacy.   In this conversation, Jonathan and Ted go deep on the drift that destroys male veterans and operators, the question that exposes it (what are the top three things you want to be best at, and where's your time at?), the contrarian operator reframe Jonathan uses with his team (pick your hard — broke is hard, successful is hard, pick), the 5-Pillar playbook from the book, and the loss of his best friend at 45 that re-anchored everything.   If you're a man between 25 and 55 carrying a marriage, a business, a family — and you can feel the drift but can't name it — this one's for you.   Key insights from this episode:  Why losing your military identity is a leading cause of post-service drift The diagnostic question every drifting man needs to answer Pick your hard: broke is hard, successful is hard, you don't get to skip both The 5 Pillars: Identity, Discipline, Execution, Ownership, Legacy "You cannot be a victim and a victor at the same time. Pick one." Why visualization beat motivation for Jonathan's college football and real estate runs The CrossFit-of-real-estate move: starting over at 43 (and what it built) Why faith is uncomfortable (and that's the point) The night his best friend died — and what changed in him   Chapters: 00:00 The 2 a.m. confession  00:40 – Introduction: Meet Jonathan Barry Hill  03:28 – Growing Up Without a Foundation 07:18 – The Army: Discipline, Structure & Purpose 11:40 – Law Enforcement and the Silent Drift 15:42 – Losing His Marriage & Finding God 20:35 – What Causes Men to Drift? 24:55 – The One Question Every Man Should Ask Himself 29:12 – Walking On to College Football at 25 35:18 – Becoming the Warrior Within 40:45 – From Premed to Entrepreneurship 46:20 – Building Multiple Successful Businesses 51:38 – Why Comfort Is the Enemy of Growth 57:04 – Starting Over at 43 in Real Estate 1:02:28 – Visualization & Identity-Based Success 1:07:44 – The Five Pillars of Warrior to Wealth 1:14:12 – Victim or Victor: Pick One 1:20:06 – Legacy: Building More Than Wealth 1:25:18 – Why the Last Man Standing Often Wins 1:30:05 – Seasons of Battle & Personal Loss 1:36:48 – Faith, Prayer & Living With Purpose 1:43:10 – The Wisdom of Proverbs 1:47:35 – Advice for Men Who Feel Stuck 1:53:22 – Everyone Is Fighting Something 1:56:10 – Final Lessons & Key Takeaways     Berryhill's Links: Website: jonberryhill.com Facebook:@jonhannah.berryhill3  Instagram:  @jon.berryhill LinkedIn:  jonathan-berryhill Threads@jon.berryhill Agent Blueprint Playbook: JonBerryhill: Agent Blueprint Playbook   👉 About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life.  Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights    🤝CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🤝 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man

  8. Jul 4

    214: You Won't Lose Your Job to AI. You'll Lose It to Someone Who Understands It."

    You're not going to lose your job to AI. You'll lose it to somebody who understands it. Chris Sowa has been inside the boardrooms where the AI conversation is theater. Senior tech executive at Accenture, IBM, and Oracle. Co-founder of Redacture, an AI security startup. He's also a Wim Hof Method instructor who walks into the Atlantic Ocean before most men are awake. He's a father of two sons. He buried a daughter almost five years ago. In this conversation, Chris and Ted walk through the gap between how AI gets talked about publicly and what actually happens inside enterprise — why most executives are clueless, why 75% of AI tools are wide open to prompt injection, why most enterprise AI pilots are million-dollar resume builders that never scale, and why this is a golden window for the small-to-mid business owner that won't last.  Then it goes deeper — into the operating philosophy Chris carries from his ice swims and his loss: if you can't lead yourself under pressure, you won't lead anything else. If you're a man between 25 and 55 carrying a business, a family, and a quiet sense that you're about to get left behind — this one's for you.   Key insights from this episode: The gap between AI talk and AI reality inside enterprise Why 75% of AI tools are open to prompt injection (what Meta admitted) The $1M AI pilot to "save" two offshore employees earning $10K (and why it never scaled) Why 70% of medium-sized companies are still clueless about AI "You won't lose your job to AI. You'll lose it to someone who understands AI." The golden window: months, not years How Chris's daughter's death rewired his sense of urgency The Wim Hof method as leadership training Chapters: 00:00 You won't lose your job to AI  01:00 Welcome brother — Ted's intro  01:55 The ice swim and Wim Hof method  03:49 The gap between AI talk and enterprise reality  04:30 "Officially we don't" — what executives say vs. what employees do  05:55 The democratization of strategy intel  07:07 Two reactions to AI: dread vs. hog-wild  09:30 The 75% prompt injection stat  12:25 The $20 million data layer most companies don't need  13:24 Settings, deletion, and what to do about open Comet  16:13 One programmer doing the work of ten  18:20 Should employees use the same LLM? Frameworks vs. tools  20:50 Why Chris tells ChatGPT to be skeptical  23:12 Why less than 30% of enterprise AI initiatives scale  24:46 The $1M pilot to save $20K in offshore wages  27:04 The plumber analogy — fixing a clogged pipe before adding pressure  28:32 What leaders three levels away from the work don't see  30:50 "You won't lose your job to AI. You'll lose it to someone who understands AI."  32:01 The internet boom comparison  33:50 Why this is a golden window (and won't last)  35:55 Why the data center economics will change  39:29 The conversation Chris has with his sons about AI  42:46 Redacture and the AI safety play  46:27 Where to find Chris and Redacture  48:15 The day Chris's daughter died  49:40 Outro and Ted's recap   Sowa's Links: Website: https://www.redacture.com Instagram:  @so_wa_cold Email: chris.sowa@redacture.com   👉 About The Modern Man: The Modern Man is here to provide the structural discipline required for men to scale their impact while enforcing a strict sovereign life. Tools of Time Course: Master your daily structure: Tools of Time Free eBook Here: Mastering Self-Development: Strategies of the New Masculine: https://rebrand.ly/m2ebook   ⚔️JOIN THE NOBLE KNIGHTS MASTERMIND⚔️ https://themodernmanpodcast.com/thenobleknights     🤝CONNECT WITH THE MODERN MAN🤝 Visit our website: themodernmanshow.com Follow us on Twitter: TheModernMan8  Follow us on Instagram: @TheModernManShow  Subscribe to our YouTube channel: The Modern Man

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"The Modern Man" is a series focused on discussing the challenges and obstacles men face in today's society. It is an open forum of discussion where thoughts, strategies and ideas of men living a happy and fulfilled life are explored. The Modern Man aims to create a community of men not only sharing and connecting on a deeper level, but also exploring how to thrive and live a happy and fulfilled life. This is done through intentional conversations strategically aimed at issues that men face in today's society.

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