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Mike Drop

Vice Admiral Navy SEAL Bob Harward | Mike Drop Episode 238

Mike Drop

Mike Ritland

Society & Culture, Documentary, Politics, News

4.96.3K Ratings

🗓️ 5 May 2025

⏱️ 130 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Robert "Bob" Harward is a retired United States Navy SEAL and a former Deputy Commander of the United States Central Command (USCENTCOM) under General James Mattis. He served for 34 years in the U.S. Navy, retiring in November 2013 as a Vice Admiral. As a Navy SEAL, he had extensive combat experience in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Yemen, and Bosnia, where he led the U.S. Special Operations invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11 and oversaw the Navy SEALs role in Iraq in 2003. He also served as Deputy Commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command, and even served as a SEAL Leader back when Mike first enlisted at SEAL Teams at only 19 years old. Since then, Bob has served on the National Security Council during the Bush administration as well as having commissioned the National Counter Terrorism Center. He also was the Chief Executive for Lockheed Martin Middle East for eight years, and was recognized by Forbes as one of the top 50 most influential CEO's in the Middle East. In 2017, he was offered the position of National Security Advisor by President Donald Trump, but declined. Recently he authored a book titled "The Gouge!: How To Be Smarter Than the Situation You Are In," which shares his leadership philosophy based on his military and corporate experiences. Subscribe to the Mike Drop Patreon Page to see Ad-Free Episodes Early + Bonus Content at https://www.patreon.com/mikedrop ---------- Support Bob Harward - Get Your Copy of Bob's book, 'The Gouge!: How to Be Smarter Than the Situation You Are In' at https://www.amazon.com/Gouge-How-Smarter-Than-Situation/dp/B0CSBSCDCR Shield AI - https://www.shield.ai/company-executives/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-harward-7a760575/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thegougebybob/ ---------- Sponsors: C. Crane When the internet goes dark, radio still works! Order Your C. Crane CC Radio 3 today when you call C. Crane's U.S. based Customer Service at 800-522-8863 or visit https://ccrane.com/drop and use code DROP at checkout for 10% off orders over $75! ---------- BUBS Naturals The BUBS namesake derives from Glen ‘BUB’ Doherty, who was heroically killed in Benghazi, Libya in 2012. In addition to remembering Glen for the patriot he is, the BUBS ethos centers around the passionate and adventure seeking life that Glen lived. BUBS Naturals products are rooted in sustainably sourced ingredients and controlled consistency to provide our customers with the highest quality Collagen Protein & MCT Oil Powder that help you feel amazing and live a fuller life. Our mission is simple. FEEL GREAT. DO GOOD. 10% always goes back to charity, helping military men and women transition back into civilian life. Go to https://www.bubsnaturals.com/mike and use code MIKE for 20% off your order. ---------- TEAM DOG FOOD, TREATS & SUPPLEMENTS Be Your Dog’s Hero: Veteran-owned by a former Navy SEAL and Special Operations K9 Trainer, Team Dog provides a complete diet of science-backed premium dog food, treats, and supplements to optimize your dog’s health, forged from rigorous standards and real-world expertise. https://www.teamdog.shop TEAM DOG ONLINE TRAINING Mike Ritland – a former Navy SEAL & Special Operations K9 trainer – shares his simple and effective dog training program to build trust and control with your dog. Based on Mike’s bestselling book “Team Dog, Train the Navy SEAL Way”, join tens of thousands of families that successfully trained their way to a better dog. https://www.teamdog.pet SHOP ALL THE MIKE RITLAND BRANDS Get all your Mike Ritland branded gear - Mike Drop | Trikos | Team Dog https://shop.mikeritland.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Race the rudder, raise the sails, raise the sales!

0:05.0

Captain, an unidentified ship approaching, over.

0:07.0

Roger that.

0:08.0

Wait, is that an enterprise sales solution?

0:13.0

Reach sales professionals, not professional sailors.

0:17.0

With LinkedIn ads, you can target the right people by industry, job title, and more.

0:21.4

To get 100 pounds off your first campaign, go to LinkedIn.com slash lead to claim your credit.

0:26.7

That's LinkedIn.com slash lead. Terms and conditions apply.

0:30.2

In my time, as I see what's separate, we were physically harder than anyone.

0:35.0

I'd heard all these horror stories about Hell Week and all that kind of stuff.

0:38.6

My attitude was, okay, bring it on, man. That competitive nature, you're going to make me

0:43.2

break? I'll get you. My first deployment was as an OIC, and then I went from there to Seal Team

0:49.1

6, and then from there out to Japan, then to Philippines. I was doing the planning for Panama.

0:55.6

I stood up and ran a task force in Bosnia.

0:58.5

So I was always deployed, so to speak.

1:01.7

You mentioned 9-11.

1:03.2

You took command 10, 11 days prior to.

1:06.2

What was going through your mind as you saw those events unfold?

1:09.8

Knowing we were going to war, we got the call, I think that day, go to Afghanistan and hunt

1:15.1

these guys down, capture them or kill them. And I had a unique perspective since I grew up there.

1:21.2

I used to spend summers in Afghanistan. I knew Afghanistan like the back of my hand. I knew

1:26.1

Danor, I knew the language, I knew the people, so it's just fate put me as the right

...

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