📍Captain Andrew Parks — Bronze Star recipient and Marine Corps officer — joins David Rutherford to break down what truly builds warriors, leaders, and resilient men. From growing up around Vietnam veterans, to failing out of the Naval Academy, to unexpectedly becoming a Stinger missile platoon commander, and eventually deploying as an advisor during the most violent phase of the Iraq War, Parks’ story is the blueprint for courage, accountability, and leadership under fire.

He and David dive deep into OCS, TBS, mentorship, the Marine brotherhood, Iraq’s counterinsurgency fight, and the brutal lessons every young man must understand to lead others and lead himself.

Next Steps:

• 🏫 Get coaching by David Rutherford: https://www.froglogicinstitute.com/
• 📕 Get David's novel, The Poet Warrior: https://www.ballastbooks.com/ballast-bookstore/the-poet-warrior
• 📰 Sign up for David's weekly newsletter for free coaching tips, updates, and more: https://davidrutherfordletter.substack.com/

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

02:44 - Why Did You Join The Marine Corps?

09:30 - Never Quit mindset, Leadership, & Discovering Who You Are

25:35 - Leaving OCS, First Assignment & Brotherhood

48:30 - Deploying to Iraq

56:50 - First Operation

01:01:00 - ROE’s, Leadership Having Your Back

01:07:20 - Leading In Combat

01:25:30 - The End of The Deployment, Coming Home, Lessons Learned

01:37:44 - Advice For Young Men

Follow Clay & Buck on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/clayandbuck

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