For thousands of years, war has been waged. And for thousands of years, enemy forces have looked for positions of superiority and tactical advantage to surprise and overwhelm an unsuspecting enemy force as they move through this compromising position. These surprise attacks are called ambushes and a well-trained force can utilize high ground, superior firepower, and violence of action to absolutely overwhelm and devastate their enemy. Most forces caught in a well-executed ambush do not survive. The amount of firepower and devastation causes them to freeze, lose their will to fight and most die on the spot where the ambush occurs. In military jargon, this location is known as the X. The only way to survive a real-world enemy ambush is to GET OFF THE X. As quickly as possible, you must recognize the ambush, fight back and get off the X and out of the kill zone.
I served all my adult life in the US Navy SEAL Teams and trained for years learning how to execute vicious and devastating ambushes on enemy forces if given the chance. In Sept of 2007, I felt first-hand what it feels like to be on the receiving end of this overwhelming firepower. The feeling of devastation. The feeling of helplessness. The desire to just hunker down and hope the pain, cacophony of sound and raw firepower would just go away. But after years of learning how to deliver an ambush, my team and I knew, the only way to survive was to fight back and get off the X. This is what we did and thanks to my teammates’ tenacity and courage, we won the fight and everyone made it home alive.
I quickly learned that I got off one X only to step into a new ambush and a new X. It was the life ambush that erupted due to my injuries and the four-year journey of surgeries, rehabs, setbacks, and successes that led ultimately to my medical retirement from the SEAL Teams. I could have gotten bitter. But Thanks to my training, I recognized the mechanics of an enemy ambush were the same as the real-world ambush I found myself in and the only thing I could do to survive was to GET OFF THE X!
Today, I have come to learn and appreciate people all over the world have been crushed and overwhelmed by life ambushes. And like so many bewildered enemy forces caught in the crossfire, they sit on the X and wither and die. Maybe not physically, but emotionally and mentally, they cease living after this catastrophic event. I am here to tell you, in order to survive and thrive, you have to GET OFF THE X. There are principles I am now teaching. How to build that strong overcome mindset. How to lead yourself to balance and success through the Pentagon of Peak Performance. And most importantly how to be ready for those ambushes when they come and to immediately GET OFF THE X!