MindForce: Mental Fitness, Leadership & Life Stories

Nathaniel Scheer
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome to MindForce: Mental Fitness, Leadership, and Life Stories.  Hosted by Nate Scheer.MindForce explores the power of faith, resilience, and personal growth through real conversations and lived experience.Each episode dives into stories of leadership, healing, and navigating adversity with purpose. Through honest dialogue and biblical perspective, Nate connects with guests who have overcome challenges, built mental strength, and found meaning in the mess.Whether you serve in the military, work in ministry, or are simply trying to lead yourself and others well, MindForce encourages you to lead with heart, live with hope, and grow through every season.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individual participants and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense, or any other agency of the United States Government.Intro and outro music by Jason Gilzene, GillyThaGoat.Apple Music  https://music.apple.com/us/artist/gillythagoat/1679853063Spotify  https://open.spotify.com/artist/60LWLaRPIWLUG2agvpKEH7

  1. May 6

    What If Your Next Breakthrough Feels Like Panic w/ Natasha Skolny

    I would love to hear from you! Pressure doesn’t just test your leadership, it reveals what you’re anchored to. When HR is balancing leaders, employees, and nonstop change, it’s easy to become the person who “holds it together” for everyone while quietly losing yourself. We sit down with leadership coach Natasha Skolney to talk about the moment resentment shows up, why it usually points to values drift, and how self-leadership brings you back to integrity. We get practical about self-awareness and emotional intelligence at work: the subtle signs you’re missing your impact, why “rough around the edges” often translates into avoidable harm, and how to give feedback without spiraling into conflict avoidance. Natasha also shares how fear tends to appear right before growth, plus a simple way to separate real risk from mind-made fear by tracing the belief underneath. If your body goes straight to fight, flight, or freeze, we cover nervous system tools like box breathing to help you think clearly when it counts. Then we zoom out to teamwork and communication. Great goals fail when teams skip the basics: trust, norms, working styles, accountability, and honest conversation. When those foundations are set, alignment gets easier and performance follows. If you want more influence, better team dynamics, and a calmer inner game, this one is for you. Subscribe to Mind Force, share it with a teammate, and leave a review, what value are you committed to living this week? Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    47 min

  2. Apr 29

    Resilience Without The Tough Guy Act w/ Omar Ritter

    I would love to hear from you! You can be decorated, promoted, and “doing great” while your inner life is on fire. That’s the tension at the heart of this Mind Force conversation with Omar Ritter, a veteran, mental health advocate, finance professor, and fractional CFO whose path runs from West Point to combat to Wall Street and, eventually, to treatment and real stability. We get specific about resilience, including Omar’s blunt split between dumb resilience and smart resilience. Dumb resilience is white-knuckling trauma, burying symptoms, and calling it strength while relationships and judgment erode. Smart resilience is knowing yourself well enough to step back, take the right care seriously, and build routines that keep you grounded. We also talk leadership culture in the military and corporate America, why people mirror what leaders do, and how visible habits like protected counseling time or morning quiet time can normalize mental health support without turning it into a performance. From there, we move into purpose-driven leadership and personal growth: the difference between chasing status and growing with intention, how “clout” can trick even successful people into wanting lives they don’t actually want, and how to choose goals without burning out. We close with faith, discipline, and the first steps to take when you’re leading under pressure while struggling silently, including why you’re not alone and why asking for help early can prevent irreversible outcomes. Subscribe for more conversations on mental health, resilience, and leadership under pressure, and if this helped you, share it with a friend and leave a review. What part of your life have you been trying to “outrun”? Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    45 min

  3. Apr 22

    Organized Life, Clear Mind: How To Build Systems That Beat Clutter w/ Takilla Combs

    I would love to hear from you! We rethink organization as a tool for peace, productivity, and purpose rather than a picture-perfect pantry. Tequila Combs breaks down the systems and mindset shifts that help you take control of clutter before it starts controlling your time, money, and energy. • defining an “organized life” beyond tidy shelves and containers  • building maintenance systems that make order stick  • addressing the emotional roots of clutter and why letting go is hard  • spotting consumer habits that quietly rebuild chaos  • using “space, time, energy, money” to measure the cost of clutter  • creating a complete laundry cycle and getting kids involved  • starting with your schedule and learning to say no  • connecting organization to confidence, clarity, and purpose  • designing rooms around how you actually live, not social media reels  ExtremeAudacity.com Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    41 min

  4. Apr 15

    How To Stop Your Brain From Micromanaging You w/ Kevin Gazzara

    I would love to hear from you! We talk with leadership coach and professor Kevin Gizarra about how mental patterns shape performance, then turn that insight into simple ways to build focus and avoid burnout. We connect positive intelligence, flow, and task balance so you can design a workday that supports engagement and creativity instead of constant strain. • Kevin’s path from corporate leadership at Intel to coaching and leadership development • The difference strong systems make in big companies and what startups often miss • Why most people want to do good work when the environment supports them • Holding “creative tension” between competing priorities without polarising the team • Positive intelligence as an operating system for mental fitness • Common saboteurs that hijack leaders and the “sage” powers that counter them • Practical ways to build awareness and quiet unhelpful mental patterns • Flow as challenge and skill alignment and why it boosts creativity • How leaders and individuals can create conditions for flow at work • The three task types and why the wrong mix creates disengagement • Cadence, feedback loops, and structuring the day for sustainable energy If this helped you, please pass it along to someone else. Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    45 min

  5. Apr 8

    Early Church History Shows Why Truth Still Matters Today w/ Paul Pavao

    I would love to hear from you! We explore what the first Christians actually believed and practiced, and why their unity, holiness, and courage still confront modern Christianity. Paul connects early church history to the living work of Jesus today, arguing that rooted faith becomes real when it turns into love, community, and restored lives.  • Paul’s path from lapsed Catholic to being “distracted by Jesus” in the Gospels  • how denomination conflict sparked a search for the undivided early church  • early Christian community as true family that shares support and resources  • the legalism misconception and why early believers used the Old Testament deeply  • persecution and martyr stories that test modern assumptions about comfort and courage  • what “the faith once for all delivered to the saints” looks like in daily life  • holiness, conscience, and final judgment as a central early church motivator  • why miracles feel rare in a culture shaped by low expectation and unbelief  • seeking the Holy Spirit as an ongoing command and practice  • modern healing accounts and how to stay open to Jesus’ intervention  • bringing theology down to love by restoring those who fall away  If this conversation stretched your thinking a little bit, share it with someone else that might need it. Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    49 min

  6. Apr 1

    How Intentional Design Shapes Your Life And Faith w/ Caleb Matthew

    I would love to hear from you! We talk with Caleb Matthews about the DNA of design, the night season of dreams, and why history still shapes how we live right now. We connect faith with practical strategy so you can stop conforming, read your own story with clarity, and pursue purpose with resilience.  • Caleb’s background in storytelling and speaking  • Nate’s path into the Air Force and lessons from basic training  • DNA of design as spirit soul body alignment  • intentionality as co-laboring with God instead of self-reliance  • separating Jesus’ teachings from institutional religion harms  • the kingdom of priests and pushing back on mediator culture  • night season dreams as meaningful signals not random noise  • spiritual gifts and finding the design that fits you  • David and Goliath as a warning against borrowed armor  • history as a living pattern you can learn from  • flipping pain into purpose and reducing worry with eternal focus  If something made you think a little differently today, pass this episode along to someone you love.  Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    48 min

  7. Mar 25

    What Exile Taught Us About Identity, Family, And Courage w/ Dr. Liz Matney

    I would love to hear from you! What if home isn’t a place you return to, but a strength you learn to carry? That’s the question we trace with Liz, whose life spans North Carolina and India, bridge-building across cultures—and then surviving an unlawful detention that forced her family into hiding before they made it back to Colorado. Her new memoir, Home in Exile, turns lived crisis into hard-won clarity about faith, belonging, and the courage to speak when silence protects the powerful. We get honest about the shape of faith under pressure. Liz describes how exile did not erase identity; it refined it, pushing her toward practices that grounded her body and mind: prayer, scripture, counseling, and the quiet discipline of journaling. We also look squarely at the politics that target communities, from Hindu nationalism to the erosion of press freedom, and how “polite” silence can become complicity. Yet the heart of this conversation is hope—how grace steadies a nervous system, keeps bitterness from rooting, and opens space to heal without losing sight of truth. Family runs through every scene as both refuge and responsibility. From late-night conversations to early-morning prayers, Liz shows how a shared spiritual life can rebuild what fear fractured. We talk about dignity over ideology, finding common ground across difference, and the small glimmers that signal you’re still held: a baby’s laugh in a grocery aisle, a break of sun through clouds, a double rainbow after a brutal week. If you feel displaced in faith, family, or identity, you’ll leave with simple first steps to re-anchor—start small, tell the truth, and protect each other’s humanity. Listen for a powerful reading from Home in Exile, vivid moments from the night of detention, and a reminder that freedom is a gift that calls for courage. If this conversation moved you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a review so others can find their way back to solid ground. Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    36 min

  8. Mar 18

    Stop Calling It Busy; Your Calendar Knows You’re Lying w/ Scott Maderer

    I would love to hear from you! What if the real problem isn’t your calendar or your bank account—but the way you decide? We sit down with Scott, a coach who rebuilt his life and marriage by reframing stewardship of time, talent, and treasure. The conversation starts with a hard truth: you don’t manage time or money; you manage yourself. From there, Scott shares a language shift that changes everything—replacing “I don’t have time” with “that’s not a priority”—and a simple audit that reveals where your hours actually go. The goal isn’t perfection; it’s honest trade-offs that reflect what you truly value. We dive into talent as the inner operating system: self-awareness, emotional regulation, and decision quality. Scott explains how fear and excitement run on the same biology and how renaming the feeling can unlock bold action, whether that’s a tough conversation or public speaking. His coaching stories bring the ideas to life, including the “Ken and Barbie” couple who looked affluent on the outside but slept on an air mattress while debt grew. By questioning “have to,” they downsized, paid off debt, and redirected resources toward hospitality, service, and joy—proof that money is a mirror, not the problem. You’ll leave with practical tools: a half-hour time log, a spending awareness check on your biggest leaks, and a why exercise to fuel goals across work, relationships, and finances. Scott maps how one year of aligned decisions can transform marriages, launch side businesses, and open space for travel or service. If you’re ready to move from busy and broke to clear and intentional, this episode offers a straightforward, human playbook for living on purpose. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs it, and tell us: what’s no longer a priority—and what will you choose instead? Support the show https://mindforcepodcast.buzzsprout.com

    47 min
See All (109)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Welcome to MindForce: Mental Fitness, Leadership, and Life Stories.  Hosted by Nate Scheer.MindForce explores the power of faith, resilience, and personal growth through real conversations and lived experience.Each episode dives into stories of leadership, healing, and navigating adversity with purpose. Through honest dialogue and biblical perspective, Nate connects with guests who have overcome challenges, built mental strength, and found meaning in the mess.Whether you serve in the military, work in ministry, or are simply trying to lead yourself and others well, MindForce encourages you to lead with heart, live with hope, and grow through every season.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individual participants and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense, or any other agency of the United States Government.Intro and outro music by Jason Gilzene, GillyThaGoat.Apple Music  https://music.apple.com/us/artist/gillythagoat/1679853063Spotify  https://open.spotify.com/artist/60LWLaRPIWLUG2agvpKEH7

Information