Coolsys posted me in a We Fight Monsters "Be a Badass, Save a kid" shirt. The company I work for celebrates November as a month of giving. I submitted multiple pics of volunteer work but was pleasantly surprised when they picked the lower right hand pic to post throughout the company. I told Ben Owen once that I didnt feel comfortable wearing that shirt because it implies I am a badass, which I don't consider myself as such but I love the message so much that I now wear it often. It's all about spreading the message to support the mission and what a great mission it is!!

Figured I’d share my thanksgiving thoughts with y’all. It’s all about mindset.

Sitting in the waiting room at the hospital while wife undergoes shoulder surgery reading We Fight Monsters book again. I highly recommend this book, its my second read but suspect won't be the last. My personal goal is to purchase 1,000 copies to send to recovery centers across the US. It may take me a minute to get there but thats my plan.

This is a small corner of the books that shaped me. This is not my whole library… just a fraction of the work behind the work. People often ask how I balance being a cop, a leader, a student of human behavior, a father, and a man trying to stay self-aware in a chaotic world. The answer is simple: I read. Constantly. Relentlessly. Across disciplines. My shelves hold psychology, trauma science, criminal behavior, philosophy, warfare, leadership, mythology, Meditations, the stoics, neuroscience, negotiation, human performance… and yes, Shakespeare, Khalil Gibran, Edgar Allen Poe, The Quran and the Bible. Because understanding humans requires studying every edge of the human condition. Every book here feeds a different part of my life: 📘 My Job: Understanding behavior, stress physiology, decision-making under pressure, conflict, violence, communication, and the mind of both the offender and the protector. Knowledge saves seconds, and seconds save lives. 📗 My Leadership: Studying people makes you better at serving people. It sharpens judgment, strengthens empathy, and keeps ego in check. I’ve learned that leaders don’t rise because of rank, they rise because they understand humans. 📕 My Personal Life: Books force humility. They break you open, challenge your assumptions, and expose the gaps between who you are and who you could become. They teach you balance, discipline, and self-awareness — the foundations of being a good man, husband, father, friend. 📙 My Self-Awareness: Every book is a mirror. Some reflect your strengths. Most confront your blind spots. Growth doesn’t happen without friction, and these pages provide plenty of it. ✍️ My Writing: People ask where my writing style comes from, the tone, the imagery, the philosophy, the raw honesty. It comes from here. From learning how Shakespeare captured the soul of men… How trauma researchers capture the weight people carry…How warriors and philosophers capture courage, fear, chaos, and purpose. These books sharpen my voice.