Making Motivation with Dr. Drill

One family's account of a bucket list vacation interrupted by the violence of the October 7 attacks.

In October of 2024, my cousin and I went on a bucket-list journey to the high desert of Utah and Zion National Park. The experience was life-changing. Here is our official debrief, recorded while driving back from a day trip to the Catskills.

The play-by-play of my October 2024 trip to the beautiful, Zion National Park.

I have conducted many podcasts with Devildogs from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion 6th Marines. When leadership comes up and I inevitably ask who was among the most influential and squared away individuals, a handful of names come up. Judd Baker is always at the top of the list. During my four year enlistment, I was fortunate to serve among some tremendous individuals but I must concur that then, Sgt/SSgt Baker was a PT stud, highly motivating, stern but fair and the epitome of leadership-by-example - he exemplified the kind of Marine we all wanted to be. This podcast is to reflect on Baker’s time in service and determine the nature vs nurture of things; what inspired him to inspire others to such a degree? Who inspired him? How does one cultivate such character and pay it forward? And ultimately, how can more people live their best lives and make a positive impact in what sometimes seems like a cold cruel world? Since retirement from the USMC, JD has successfully extrapolated his service to the civilian sector, starting a company called OMNA International: "OMNA provides support services for leaders with vision and good moral character. If you are such a leader, we invite you to explore our website to learn what we can offer your organization. Our specialty is in designing and delivering experiential leadership development events -- especially leadership and decision-making staff rides. We thank you for your interest, and hope that we can be of service to you and the organization you lead." https://theomna.com/about-us.html [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbmhxYnNaU3d2SDdRenlnNjMxYWN4VU5lcWxEd3xBQ3Jtc0trblVXZEY0dVI4R0pCd1A1Z3BubkF2YzF6R1FFb3hTTlQ0bEh4c0lmRzVuZTRLaUl4LWswUERnWTZHSHJ0Q0tMMnNiT3pNUV8tMGVJT0xyeTN1Z3JBc18tMldMYmV5Wlh2QzdXaXdFS2hPMWE0Sl92Yw&q=https%3A%2F%2Ftheomna.com%2Fabout-us.html&v=KSCo5sLQ5_w]

Jon Martin is a former US Marine and outdoors enthusiast. In this podcast, we discuss the similarities and differences between humping a pack in the Marine Corps and the civilian sector. There is a lot to discuss and we get quite philosophical in this podcast. Over the past several years, Jon has literally stepped up his game, to the point that he hits the trail as often as his schedule permits and has become very active with local hiking groups. Jon even accompanied his daughter on parts of an AT thru-hike she was doing. In 2025, Jon will be embarking on his own thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, which stretches 2198 miles, through 14 states! It will take him 3-4 months to complete this journey. This was a great conversation with an outstanding human being.