There are few examples where this is more dramatically demonstrated than with the Blue Angels. That's nobarrierspodcast.com. So, you're trying to keep your airplane within a three inch circle on the other airplane. I mean, clearly, you know what I want to do, I want to sit around a campfire with you and sip on just a little snifter of some good bourbon sometime. Jeff:Because by the time this airs, everybody's going to know, so let's see what the forecaster is. Erik Weihenmayer:Does the glad to be here, the gratitude somehow abate or change the game on the pressure of high performing people? The Navy's really good about debriefs, and the LSO, landing signal officer, walked in that day and he goes, it was very clear, he goes, Gucci, Gucci's my call sign. When you were going through that process, John's like 12 years old and he's committed, I'm going to be a pilot, and all Now you're going to be the best pilot, you're going to be this best pilot. Visit our updated, This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. It's the mental side and the emotional side, probably is, you'll have to tell me, but in flying and with the blues, I like to say you needed to connect the heart and the head because it wasn't enough to be just in your head. John Foley:When I start to hear the G of the go, I'm starting to push back on my stick. John Foley draws upon his experience as Lead Solo of the Blue Angels to inspire audiences and show them how to achieve substantially higher levels of performance. The Blue Angels have the unique ability to highlight the importance of naval aviation while honoring its historical significance. I'm grateful to be in this moment. I know why it works and that allows you to do the how. If they're aware, usually it's usually like, they're just not aware. We're constantly in a state of training. We're all playing our guitar. Jeff:You got nervous, you and I have known each other for decades, you got nervous a few months ago playing in front of me. Erik Weihenmayer:John, you guys were talking about these parameters, but how big of a can you make? You've really tapped into it, and I think this is good news for everybody, right? Erik Weihenmayer:I lose my sort of my micro coordination. She joins hundreds of other women who have served with the Blue Angels . Jeff:You have been up on stage for countless hours and thousand, tens of thousands of people, but you're shit at guitar right now, but you're getting better. I used a trigger. I have been training. John Foley:All of a sudden, telephone poles are going by quickly. I feel grateful and a lot of pride for the men and women who are doing that. John Foley:Yeah. Do we have the right setup? Our first conversation of the new year is with a former navy jet pilot. Erik, I've been following so many stages, and JB, I know both of us. He says, "You know those orders to the midway? This isn't working. He flew A-4 Skyhawks. Actually, the glad to be here is a proactive way to not only snap you out of that downward spiral. John Foley:And you learn from them. A third of my support crew is new every year. If I actually got out parameters and I recognized it, and I did the right procedure, not a safety. That map, that way forward is what we call no barriers. Because you can't do the middle part without the pre and the post, right? Lt. Amanda Lee has made history as the first woman to serve as a demonstration pilot in the Blue Angels. If you acknowledge that empathy, that compassion, and then actually take the action to reach out to them, amen. And then, I guess maybe reflect on that flow focus that you had then and how now that perhaps has given you the ability to be able to get in that meditative pocket now. That means you're not in position. I come down, I get waved off. That is what's happening to me in the jet. Tax ID Number: 06-1693441. Join Erik and Jeff for this high energy chat with John Foley. I want to do stuff that I've never done before, and I didn't know how to do it. Are you there in Denver right now, by the way? I don't have those all the time. John Foley:I mean, that's what saying. It exists. You finally get to the air show, and you can feel it. And you just go, okay, I'm in the zone. Here's what's interesting. John Foley:No, 100%. What if I knew this back when I was on the team? Scared to me means I'm aware, I'm present. It can mean so many different things depending on who you ask and what day of the week it is. John Foley:Yeah. they have even more significance to me today. I'm not doing it as a career. But since then, yeah, I had a lot of inadvertent mentors. We all know the science behind appreciation and gratitude, how it changes the way your brain thinks, the neurons fire and all that. You didn't get it for all you know. Let's bring it out. Get the best deals on Staffordshire Old Foley when you shop the largest online selection at eBay.com. Yeah. And behind many of those awe-inspiring stunts and scenes was John Foley, Blue Angels pilot, entrepreneur, real estate investor, public speaker, and all-around inspiring human being. By closing this banner, scrolling this page, clicking a link, or continuing to browse this site, you agree to this use. I remember my daytime went well. And it's different. I'm going to guess ask, were you doing breathwork and meditation when you were with the Blue Angels or is this-. But I spent six months working for three for that individual learning the business. John Foley:In the Blue Angels, we did things a little bit differently. Happy 2022 listeners. That you were appreciative of or that you enjoyed. Then just this year, Georgia brought me in. But it was a dream that I remember in my heart. Because they probably know it anyhow. Jeff:Yeah. And it's my new mantra. Erik Weihenmayer:How do you elevate people's belief levels? Because I'm not trying to teach people to be a Blue Angel pilot. Because think about when you're teaching someone to climb. Erik Weihenmayer:My hands sweat, my hand shake. Because my mind is starting to take over my body. "Blue Angels are Navy fighter pilots. Disappointed with the assignment at the time, Foley now reflects that the three years he spent flying the A-7 were critical in his development as a Navy pilot. Now, to answer that gut feeling JB that you asked about. You finally get in the airplane and that's totally different. John Foley:You'll be flying jets off aircraft carriers, but it is your time to go. John Foley:Once you learn how to do it, it's easy. Is that Jeff:That's maybe what the difference is. I don't mind that. John Foley:Well, guys, I want to say the honor's mine, and the thanks are for you. But the point is that-. Now, for me, personally, so when I left the team, it was not a big deal. We're going to cross within a wingspan, right? During . We proudly represent the heritage, agility, flexibility, and. You have to be What's crazy is though I practiced and practiced and practiced and know these songs, it's just, when I get in front of the group, it's when everything sort of falls apart, I forget what I'm supposed to do. That's exciting to me. I'll just be very too transparent as I'm closing here. Block out your own mind. Whichever podcast platform you enjoy, were already there. We brief every Monday mornings on the week and stuff. Then what I do in the morning, Erik, is I do what I call my glad to be here wake up. So, you have to do well in your landing grades. I've been doing trauma for a long time. At some point, you've got to snap out of that and snap into pure focus. You're flying six inches apart from each other. The Blue Angels travel at speeds between 120 mph and 700 mph. I remember, I had to think that night had to do some self-reflection and not get overwhelmed, and just realize, you know what? Thank you, Gucci, man. Employee Commitment Glad To Be Hereis a mindset that enables higher performance. Erik Weihenmayer:How do you handle that, John? You know what I mean? Every organization depends upon the performance of their people and their teams. Let's take that even to the next step for somebody who's perhaps not a climber or an aspiring pilot or an athlete, or in any way, but is someone who gets up, puts their pants on, brushes their teeth, and goes, and knuckles down at work for a 10 hour shift. I actually suck at it. To me, that's operating from a fear based mentality, as compared to, wait a minute. Even the, if you've ever seen a briefing of the Blue Angels, the boss's tone of his voice is exactly what we're going to experience together. I had the privilege this week to hear John Foley, former lead solo pilot for the Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron, as one of the keynote speakers at a technology conference I was attending. I do that through meditation in the mornings. He retired from active duty after 27 years of distinguished service and joined Check-6, a global leader in optimized performance and safety solutions serving the most demanding industries, where he directed business development and corporate strategy for the North American Division. You have this interesting mindset around focus and how it's really Is it hard to multitask, or we think we're multitasking but we're really not, we're really focused on one thing at a time? If we back up to your adolescence and you started your training, and someone would've told you you're going to be a Blue Angel when you were like 20-years-old, you would've been obviously happy, but would that have been believable or were you just, in your mind, fast tracking and you knew exactly where you were going and how you were going to get there? His message and personal stories, delivered with his trademark enthusiasm and charisma, emphasizes principles of trust, alignment, clarity and commitment, positioning individuals and teams to achieve and sustain higher levels of excellence than they ever dreamed possible. Learn more about glad to be here foundation. It's not straight and leveled. Jeff:The difference though is 10,000 hours. You do, in a way, you have to, I don't know, maybe you have to suspend the gushy parts because you've done all that hard work. And then what happens? I started to emotionally well up a little bit. Plus, he admitted the origin of his call sign "Gucci," helping out on the original "Top Gun," and some of the . What I am trying to teach is show you, is how to be a better team member, how to focus better, how to be prepared, how to be more open and honest in your debriefs, how to lay it on the table so that your teammates can grow and you can grow. I've spoken to all three, both teams and the officials. That gives me way more joy than the actual climbing or the flying. And it was a light bulb moment, Erik. The fifth and sixth jet fly in solo formation. I'm telling you, it's probably like climbing whatever the roughest pitch you went up. I also ran into, in the speaking world, it was so funny, Erik, I went to an event and they were talking about this power of visualization. Show notes can be found at nobarrierspodcast.com. We're talking to each other. Foley has served as an adviser to Fortune 500 corporations, professional athletic teams, venture capital companies, professional associations and educational organizations and successfully connects the high intensity of the Blue Angles with your organization. We started with this, what I call general safe. I mean, athletes don't know that. John Foley:Oh, well, tons of them. Jeff:You can say I'm grateful for coffee, and then you immediately go like start the coffee maker. Then you start all over again because you've just raised the game. Or am I just present with you right now going, hey, this is the best, this is the best thing I can do is to be present. Erik Weihenmayer:Now, you can't do that when you're a Blue Angel.