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In this episode, Horshack shares his unique journey from a swimmer and Teach for America teacher to a CIA consultant, highlighting lessons on adaptability, career evolution, and personal growth. In this episode, Chris Ritter shares insights on organizational strategy, leadership, and the power of faith, drawing from his extensive experience in government and community service. Discover how to foster divergent viewpoints, craft compelling missions, and lead with purpose. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 78 | Loneliness Isn't the Problem: Men Have No Mission. | The Whetstone 📌 THE MISSION (SUMMARY) Every few weeks another headline announces the crisis: men are lonely, isolation is the new smoking, and the cure is to go make friends. Dark Helmet calls it what it is: hacking at the branches while the root stays untouched. The Plague brings it home. For five years he has led a September run for suicide prevention, and every year he asks whether F3 should raise money for another organization. Every year he lands on the same answer. What men need is a brother who will put an arm around them and say, "Me too." The reframe is simple and uncomfortable. Loneliness is a byproduct of the fact that men have no mission. A man dedicated to a real mission quickly learns he can't finish it alone, and the community he needs forms around it. Through a food bank lawn that grew from one guy and a mower into a board seat, and through the Mountain (campers on the plateau, kings guarding the peak, and the few who go back down), Dark Helmet shows what real leadership looks like. Your role will end. Your job was never built to carry your purpose. The climb you survived becomes the curriculum you carry back down to the next man. ✅ HIGHLIGHTS ✅ Why loneliness is a symptom, not the disease ✅ Why men want to be needed more than wanted ✅ The levels of community leadership, from mowing the lawn to training leaders ✅ Why men disappear when the title ends ✅ Manager vs. leader: what your schedule reveals ✅ The Mountain: why the true leader goes back down for another man 💥 Power Quotes "Loneliness is a byproduct of the fact that men have no mission." — Dark Helmet "You're hacking away at the branches of the problem, but you're not striking at the root of the problem." — Dark Helmet "A guy doesn't want to be wanted as much as he wants to be needed." — Dark Helmet "I think they just need a brother to put an arm around them and say, Me too, or I love you anyway." — The Plague "I believe we are an organization of infiltration." — Dark Helmet "Walk into every room like God sent you." — Dark Helmet "Now go down and get one." — Dark Helmet ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 02:25 The Run: Why F3 Is the Solution 05:11 The Loneliness Article 07:02 From Skills to "So What" 07:57 The Arc of a New Man 10:59 Wanted vs. Needed 11:53 The Levels of Community Leadership 17:33 An Organization of Infiltration 19:47 "This Time, Don't Die" 21:58 Branches vs. Root 23:52 Building Leaders on Purpose 26:48 Deploying a Veteran as an Asset 27:54 Mission Builds Friendship 29:34 Why Men Fall Off When the Role Ends 30:36 Walk In Like You Were Sent 32:05 Purpose Is Not a Role 34:52 Your Job Can't Be Your Purpose 36:00 The Mountain 38:00 The Plateau 39:31 The Peak and the Ego Kings 42:15 Go Down and Get One 43:31 Holding the Middle 44:30 Your Climb Becomes Your Curriculum 47:38 Manager vs. Leader 48:40 Teaching Through the Close 📚 Mentioned in this Episode Mudgear Freed to Lead Minivan Centurion Marcus Aurelius "How to Make and Keep Friends as a Grown-Up, According to Science" 🔗 Connect with The Whetstone F3 Nation: https://f3nation.com Twitter/X: @dreddcnc | @Darkhelmetf3 | @F3ThePlague #TheWhetstone #F3Nation #Leadership #MaleLoneliness #MensMentalHealth #Purpose #Mission #Brotherhood #Mentorship #Fellowship #ServantLeadership #MensMinistry #Legacy #Community Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONES and Forge discuss some of the strategies they are using in their quest to lower body fat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jim Harshaw Jr., a former college wrestler and high-performance coach, shares insights on resilience, failure, and building high-performing teams. This episode explores how mindset, infrastructure, and faith can transform challenges into growth opportunities. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/success-for-the-athletic-minded-man/id990838400 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

📌 THE MISSION (SUMMARY) Most men don't think of themselves as approval-seekers. They think of themselves as discerning. They size up the guy who didn't say hello, the colleague who pushed back, the stranger who got in their way. And then they quietly wonder whether anything they do actually matters. The Plague names what's underneath both: "When I boil it down, it stems from this desire to actually get their approval." Dredd returns to finish the conversation Episode 76 started without him, and he opens with a confession. For six months he assumed a fellow regular at his local bagel shop didn't care for him. One Saturday hello later, the man turned out to be shy and barely knew what F3 was. Judgment, Dredd concludes, is "a series of assumptions based on maybe a fact or two," and it's the opposite of service. You can't serve a man you've already ranked beneath you. The tool is one question: what if I don't? What if I don't impute the motive or demand the apology? Dredd tests it the morning a custodian pushed him out of a courthouse restroom minutes before a complex motion. You have no dominion over what another man says or does. You only have dominion over your response. Then the trap turns inward. The Plague asks how he can know his service is making an impact, and Dredd answers with a question: "Tell me why you want to measure it." Six hours preparing a witness nobody will ever know he prepared. The airport bartender you'll never see again. Seek to be admirable, not merely admired. Stop waiting for the rating. The doing is its own reward. ✅ HIGHLIGHTS ✅ The approval trap underneath judgment and scorekeeping ✅ "The doing of it is its own reward" ✅ The regular he misjudged for six months ✅ Why you can't judge a man and serve him at the same time ✅ "Tell me why you want to measure it." ✅ Admired vs. admirable: the airport bartender test 💥 Power Quotes "I'm going to do it because the doing of it is its own reward. I'm not seeking accolades. I'm not seeking a promotion. I'm not seeking a merit badge." — Dredd "When I boil it down, it kind of for me at least stems from this desire to actually get their approval." — The Plague "That's kind of what judgment is. It's like a series of assumptions based on maybe a fact or two that lead you to a conclusion." — Dredd "Where does every other man fit in, compared to me? That's the heart of judgment. But instead, how do I serve these other guys?" — Dredd "I have no dominion over or control over what you say, what you do. I only have dominion over my response." — Dredd "Tell me why you want to measure it." — Dredd "We all seek admiration. But what we really should focus on equally is to be admirable." — Dredd ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold Open & Overcome by Events 02:16 The Man at the Bagel Shop 07:10 A Series of Assumptions 08:33 You Can't Judge and Serve 11:08 Nobody Asked Him 12:38 The Shield & Forgetting Yourself 16:02 Push-Ups in Public 17:09 The Approval Trap 18:23 What If I Don't? 19:55 The Courthouse Restroom 24:12 Judgment Is Self-Defeating 26:53 Can We Reverse It? 33:02 Tell Me Why You Want to Measure It 35:37 Admired vs. Admirable 37:34 Did You Plant the Flag? 39:36 The Doing Is Its Own Reward 45:19 More Fathering 47:44 Ground Your Ruck 📚 Mentioned in this Episode The Whetstone, Episode 76 Mudgear GoRuck Adam Smith Turning the other cheek 🔗 Connect with The Whetstone F3 Nation: https://f3nation.com Twitter/X: @dreddcnc | @Darkhelmetf3 | @F3ThePlague #TheWhetstone #F3Nation #Leadership #MensLeadership #Approval #Judgment #Service #Humility #Integrity #Character #Purpose #Fatherhood #Mentorship #Faith #LeadershipDevelopment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONES and Forge are joined by Shredder and Flea who are leading the charge for the men in Great Brittan who want accountability for their Queen. Learn what they are doing to improve their health and the PAX in their regions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, three brothers from California share their journey into F3, their experiences at the Kentucky Convergence, and insights on leadership, fitness, and community building. Discover how they got involved, their favorite workouts, and messages for men everywhere. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode follows the story of a young F3 AO in the UK as BammBamm and Screw talk about how Lightwater's location, or "The Foxhole", got planted, why it matters, and what it is doing for the men who show up. Along the way, the conversation touches on F3 Nation’s mission and how the credo of free, peer-led outdoor workouts, fellowship, and leadership is showing up in real life. At the heart of the episode is a clear overlap with F3’s core principles of plant, grow, and serve. The physical workouts are the hook, but the deeper value is the fellowship, accountability, and chance for men to lead in their community. Timestamps 00:00 - Welcome to In Cadence 02:17 - Cheese or chocolate warm-up and getting to know the guests 10:18 - BammBamm’s path into F3 through Piano Man and the landing 12:25 - Screw’s origin story and how Facebook helped open the door 14:28 - First beatdowns, being late, and the surprise of the gloom 20:09 - Why Lightwater was the right place to plant an AO 23:42 - Scouting the site and the improvements at Lightwater Country Park 26:20 - Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday sessions at the Foxhole 28:11 - The Thursday run group and Couch to 5K momentum 32:09 - Who is showing up and why local men are joining 44:31 - Serving at the Lightwater fate and building community ties 48:52 - Planning the first 30:30 session for the Foxhole 50:24 - Why mental health and the third F are a big driver 56:24 - Why showing up matters, even when only two men are there 62:48 - Million pound questions: potatoes and favorite chocolate bars 68:40 - What it means to be free to lead 72:03 - T-claps, welcome homes, and Iron Pax updates 83:41 - Final thoughts from BammBamm and Screw 85:58 - Flea’s outro and the cake run challenge Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

📌 THE MISSION (SUMMARY) The Plague opens with a confession: judging other men — a colleague who disagreed with him, a friend who left F3 for a different men's program, a version of himself that isn't Dredd — might be the exact thing standing between him and his own mission. It isn't a hypothetical. He's been testing it on himself for a week. Dark Helmet takes it apart from every angle. Years spent trying to become Dredd — same mission, same skills — were years spent setting himself up to lose; a man can't become someone else. A joke about AI making PowerPoint obsolete gets stopped cold: the praise was never for the tool, it was for the gift underneath it — taking big, strange concepts and boiling them down into something people can act on. Then the framework, live on-mic, built out of a workout that went sideways: a site Q publicly overrides another Q mid-run, and the question underneath the awkwardness is the whole episode in miniature — is a leader trying to lead men to advantage and the mission, or to his own way? Management, Dark Helmet argues, isn't the absence of leadership. It's leadership pointed at control instead of the mission. It closes on Theodore Roosevelt's "Man in the Arena," read in full — a shirt Dark Helmet didn't plan to wear on the one day it would matter, read to his daughter that morning, then to the show. The critic never sets foot in the dust. The man who strives is the only one whose place is earned. Stop judging from the stands. Get in the arena. ✅ HIGHLIGHTS ✅ The full "Man in the Arena" reading, live on air ✅ Judgment as the thing quietly blocking your own mission ✅ Why trying to become Dredd was setting himself up to lose ✅ The Episode 75 callback: PowerPoint isn't the skill, the gift underneath it is ✅ Leadership vs. management: advantage and mission, or just your way ✅ Let it be a dumpster fire — when to intervene, when to let men fail 💥 Power Quotes "The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly." "Comparing yourself against somebody else really means you're not focused on your mission. At best, it's a distraction." "You're effectively setting yourself up to lose. You can't actually become that other person." "Are you getting praised because you're good at PowerPoint? Or because you're really good at taking big, strange concepts and boiling them down into something people can act on?" "Am I trying to lead men to advantage and accomplish the mission? Or am I trying to lead men to my way?" "As soon as I start pointing and going, you did it wrong — I think you're moving from leadership to management." "The highest form of influence is to be a model, not a critic. A light, and not a judge." ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold Open: The Sock Market & Nantan Update 05:46 Does Judgment Block Your Mission? 07:23 Comparison Is the Thief of Joy 09:49 Trying to Become Dredd 12:32 The Emotional Lamborghini 14:43 The Chameleon & the Parade 20:53 Model, Not Critic 23:48 You Can't Compete With F3 28:50 Back to Unrationed 31:21 Who Gets the Credit 32:51 The PowerPoint Problem 35:22 If You Lost the Gift Tomorrow 38:45 Universal Purpose, Then Covey 40:12 The Workout That Went Sideways 42:58 Leadership vs. Management 44:55 Let It Be a Dumpster Fire 48:38 Fail Public, Correct Private 52:55 He Remembered for Four Years 55:51 The Emotional Bank Account 58:54 Talk to Your Whetstone 1:01:46 The Man in the Arena 📚 Mentioned in this Episode Mudgear F3 Nation Core Principles & Mission Stephen Covey (stewardship) Theodore Roosevelt, "Citizenship in a Republic" Art of Manliness Unrationed 🔗 Connect with The Whetstone F3 Nation: https://f3nation.com Twitter/X: @dreddcnc | @Darkhelmetf3 | @F3ThePlague #TheWhetstone #F3Nation #Leadership #MensLeadership #ManInTheArena #Judgment #Comparison #Stewardship #Mentorship #Fatherhood #QSource #AccelerateYourLife #LeadershipDevelopment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONES and Forge discuss some of the changes they are making to their wellness strategies including Saunas, Intermittent fasting, Carbohydrates, and lifting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Skiff shares his journey into F3, his faith, overcoming health challenges, and his upcoming All For One Endurance Challenge to raise funds for charity. Discover how faith and community can inspire men to push beyond limits and serve others. Instagram - @allfor1endurance https://www.bikereg.com/all-for-1-endurance-challenge Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

📌 THE MISSION (SUMMARY) A man finishes the tasks of young manhood — married, started a family, built the career, bought the house — and then runs out of boxes to check. The first half of life is concrete. The second half has no parameters at all, and Dark Helmet is blunt about the cost: most men will not enter it. They manufacture new concrete things instead and run the same loop until they are stuck. The Plague brings it home. He is forty, secure in his faith, and can recite his universal purpose without thinking. He still cannot tell you what he is specifically for. A friend told him on a road trip that he was already living his purpose and had already made an impact, and all The Plague could ask was: why can't I see that? Dark Helmet works it from the outside in. The dolphin, the daffodil, and where they cross. Why he is reconsidering what to call the third P. Why an assessment locates a pattern but never hands you a purpose. Then the diagnosis: a fish cannot tell you about water. The thing you are best at is so natural you assume everybody has it, so you discount it for thirty years. Then he stops teaching. He strips the question to the kernel, refuses the hedge — "tell me it again without crapping on yourself" — and four exchanges later hands The Plague his own sentence back: I take frustrated people and create clarity to get them to the next right step. Your talents do not set your worth. They set your scope, and measuring yours against another man's is beside the point — the point of a flower being planted and growing is not to become a cow. Purpose is broad and it never expires. Mission has a clock on it. And the reason the gift was withheld this long is the last thing said on this episode: any earlier, and you would have spent it on yourself. ✅ HIGHLIGHTS ✅ The dolphin, the daffodil, and where they actually cross ✅ The obedient half and the creative half — why most men reprint the first one ✅ "Did you ask him who made the easel?" ✅ Why a fish can't tell you about water ✅ "Tell me it again without crapping on yourself" ✅ A purpose statement pulled out live, in four minutes, on tape 💥 Power Quotes "You did what you were told — obedient half. And now you are in the creative half. And this is a terrifying half, because there's no parameters to it." "I realized that none of this was for me anyway. I only got it so that I could give it." "It's so natural to you that you can't even see it. It just feels like, well, that can't possibly be a strength, because isn't everybody good at that? No. They're not. They're terrible at it." "Tell me it again without crapping on yourself." "I take frustrated people and create clarity to get them to the next right step." "The point of a flower being planted and growing is not to become a cow." ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold Open: The Sock Market 00:55 What Makes a Week Effective? 01:45 The Dolphin and the Daffodil 02:51 Pissed Off, or Passion? 04:43 Forty and Still Looking 06:31 The Tasks of Young Manhood 07:58 The Obedient Half and the Creative Half 09:39 Who Made the Easel? 13:23 Why You Can't Audit Your Own Purpose 14:37 I Only Got It So I Could Give It 17:33 What's the Grocery Cart at Work? 20:11 Universal Purpose and the Movie Credits 24:22 What Are You Actually Good At? 28:18 Jonah Didn't Want Nineveh 32:23 Nobody Told Me I Couldn't 35:58 This Is Water 42:57 The Excavation 48:26 Purpose Is Broad. Mission Has a Clock. 52:33 Now Go Find Every Other Time You Did It 📚 Mentioned in this Episode Freed to Lead (F3 Nation) MudGear "This Is Water" — David Foster Wallace commencement address The Book of Jonah Myers-Briggs StrengthsFinder Poison — "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" 🔗 Connect with The Whetstone F3 Nation: https://f3nation.com Twitter/X: @dreddcnc | @Darkhelmetf3 | @F3ThePlague #TheWhetstone #F3Nation #Leadership #MensLeadership #ThisIsWater #Purpose #FindYourPurpose #SelfLimitingBeliefs #Mentorship #Fatherhood #QSource #AccelerateYourLife #LeadershipDevelopment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONES and Forge discuss using AI to help with health strategies, reaching 10% body fat and BONES' experience with the Blue Ridge Relay. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

**[EPISODE DESCRIPTION - Ready to publish]** Ever wondered how the camaraderie of fitness can transform your life? In this episode of *In Cadence*, host Shredder is joined by fitness enthusiasts Sake and Pike, as they delve into the challenges and triumphs of their physical journeys, revealing insights that every fitness lover needs to hear. Join Shredder, Sake, and Pike as they explore the importance of community in fitness, sharing personal anecdotes that illustrate how working together can push you beyond your limits. Sake, a seasoned marathon runner, shares his experience of striving for that elusive sub-four-hour finish, while Pike reflects on his own marathon adventures and the mental fortitude required to keep going when the going gets tough. You'll discover: - The unique workout formats that keep fitness fresh and exciting, including the infamous "11s" that test endurance and teamwork. - Why community-driven workouts can redefine your fitness journey, providing motivation and accountability. - The secrets behind successful beatdowns and how to make every session feel rewarding. As they discuss the highs and lows of their own experiences, you'll learn that the journey is just as vital as the destination. Not only do they share workout strategies, but they also highlight the emotional resilience built through these shared experiences. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to enhance their fitness routine and connect with others on the same path. Whether you're a fitness novice or a seasoned athlete, this conversation is packed with wisdom that will inspire you to embrace challenges and foster community. Tune in to hear how camaraderie can elevate your fitness game and get ready to ignite your passion for working out together! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

📌 THE MISSION (SUMMARY) Every man has two fights waiting on him. One is tangible, winnable by Friday, and completely unimportant. The other is nuanced, expensive, and might take a decade. He picks the first one every time — and calls it a matter of priorities. The Plague brings both of his to this episode. At work, a process he has strong opinions about and no authority over. Down the street, a friend whose marriage is coming apart. Both have him worked up in exactly the same way, and he wants to know which one deserves the energy. Dark Helmet refuses to answer it. He names why a man reaches for the easy fight instead: because it feels like influence, because it feels like control, and the feeling is what he's actually buying. That's bunny slope crap — and man stuff always requires more. Then the razor that cuts the episode: if you don't know what you're for, how would you decide? Purpose is eternal. Missions change with the season. Tasks get discarded. And your big rocks aren't sitting in a mason jar on a stable table — they're in a wide bowl, on a roller coaster, and something is always flying out. The back half is the method, laid out on-mic for the first time as four: Patterns, Pain, Pissed Off, People. What happens when you show up. What was given to you that you'd hand back if you could. What makes you refuse to live one more day the way things are. And who you were built to serve. It isn't a quiz you take. It's a long, painful, iterative uncovering. But once you have it, you stop ranking priorities. You just compare. ✅ HIGHLIGHTS ✅ Why gentle influence is the wrong tool for a man on the verge ✅ "That's bunny slope crap" — why the winnable fight always takes your energy ✅ Displacing the concentrica: how work moves to the center without anyone deciding ✅ Purpose, mission, task — three levels, three daughters, three seasons ✅ The big rocks jar, corrected: it's a bowl, and you're on a roller coaster ✅ Patterns. Pain. Pissed Off. People. — the four P's, assembled live on-mic 💥 Power Quotes "A man cares about the work stuff because he feels like he can have influence over it. Because he feels like that is a thing he may be able to control." "Man stuff always requires more. You have to have done a large amount of internal work in order to be effective as a man." "If you don't know your personal purpose, if you don't know what you're for, then how would you decide? How would you know?" "The tasks change over time. The mission might change over time. But the purpose — the overarching purpose — is eternal." "It's not a thing that happened to you. It's a thing that was given to you. It was not an accident. That pain was engineered specifically for you to overcome." "No matter where you go, you know why you're there." ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Cold Open: The Mudgear Haul 04:29 Nantan Update: Houston's Ten Year & a Florida December 06:17 Two Phones, Two Grievances 08:15 A Friend in Trouble 13:23 Proximity, Severity, and Time to Influence 16:40 The Real Question Isn't the Phone 20:57 Why the Easy Fight Always Wins 21:57 Bunny Slope Crap vs. Man Stuff 27:03 If You Don't Know What You're For 30:27 Purpose, Mission, and Task 35:15 Love and Protect. Be an Asset. Hold the Middle. 36:51 A Bowl on a Roller Coaster 41:47 The Promotion and the Objective Standard 44:04 Do You Even Have One? Who Put It There? 50:32 The First P: Patterns 51:32 The Second P: Pain 55:16 Pissed Off and People 56:33 It's Not a Quiz You Take 📚 Mentioned in this Episode MudGear — the official sock of F3 Nation The QSource F3 Nation Core Principles & Mission Minivan Centurion D2X The Bible — Exodus 20 The Whetstone, Episode 3 Myers-Briggs Working Genius "Peace of Mind" — Boston 🔗 Connect with The Whetstone F3 Nation: https://f3nation.com Twitter/X: @dreddcnc | @Darkhelmetf3 | @F3ThePlague #TheWhetstone #F3Nation #Leadership #MensLeadership #Purpose #FindYourPurpose #Concentrica #Masculinity #Fatherhood #QSource #AccelerateYourLife #LeadershipDevelopment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices