Transforming the Ocho: TC Curtis & Col. Robert Magee on Leadership, Legacy & Culture (87 characters)

The Mike Litton Experience

Mike Litton

Careers, Kids & Family, Business, Parenting

5 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 November 2025

⏱️ 74 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this powerful episode of The Mike Litton Experience, Mike sits down with Colonel Robert Magee and TC Curtis—two extraordinary leaders whose experiences shaped one of the most influential leadership cultures in modern Air Force history.

Colonel Magee shares how he transformed organizations downrange during high-pressure operations supporting the fight against ISIS, building what became known as the legendary Ocho culture—a tribe where people matter, voices are heard, and everyone rises together.

TC Curtis opens up about hitting rock bottom during a painful divorce, facing career setbacks, and finding new purpose, confidence, and identity under Colonel Magee’s mentorship. His journey from “not being seen as a leader” to becoming an empowering force for young officers today is nothing short of inspiring.

What viewers will gain from this episode:

A masterclass in human-centered leadership
How to build trust, culture, and unstoppable momentum in any organization
Real stories of hardship, resilience, and triumph
Lessons you can apply immediately in business, military, and personal life
A blueprint for shaping legacy through service, compassion, and standards

If you want authentic leadership insights, emotional storytelling, and tools to elevate your team or your life—this episode delivers.

If you enjoy deep leadership conversations and real transformation stories, make sure to LIKE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE to our channel. Your support helps us bring more incredible guests like these to the show.

Transcript

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0:00.0	My wife at the time told me she wanted a divorce.
0:03.5	I was no longer loved with me.
0:05.4	I was not attracted to me anymore.
0:07.3	That crushed me.
0:08.3	We had two boys at the time as well.
0:09.9	So that crushed me.
0:10.5	So I just went downhill.
0:13.5	So when I went from the staff down to the LRS.
0:16.6	And she says, mom, Bobby just signed up to join the military. I need you to tell him he made a mistake. And she gets on the phone and she says, Mom, Bobby just signed up to join the military.
0:21.3	I need you to tell him he made a mistake.
0:23.1	And she gets on the phone and she says, why would you do that?
0:27.8	You know that your grandfather died in the military and you're your mother's only son.
0:33.6	You're my only grandson.
0:36.2	And you're smarter than that. I ended up working with my chief at the time, Chief Sean Smith, who was really big on people matter,
0:45.4	and we came up with this idea that we want to build a program called Human Leadership Development or HLD.
0:53.4	And the intent is, you ready for this?
0:56.2	Chief goes, and he was big on numbers.
0:59.2	He goes, sir, how are we going to measure this?
1:03.3	Like how are we going to measure the success of human leadership development
1:07.0	and whether or not it works?
1:08.5	We started driving around with a megaphone playing ice cream songs and handing out ice cream.
1:13.7	I remember that.
	...

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