Meeting with Andy Stumpf – former NAVY Seal
After a 17-year career serving the SEAL Team, Andy Stumpf decided to teach the lessons learned from over a decade of sustained combat in Special Operations to the leaders and managers of corporate America.
We decided to ask him some questions to gain insight into his incredible experience.
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What has been your favorite speech that you’ve delivered?
I can’t think of one speech I have delivered that stands out above all others. Each audience is unique in their own way, whether that be age, sport, business sector, etc.
What I enjoy most is seeing the lightbulb come on in the audience, when they realize and understand that the lessons I have learned in the military, and the lessons they have learned in business are defined by their similarities.
I have found that most people need a third party to reenforce what they have heard, seen, and experienced. When that third party comes from a background of military service, the connection can be very powerful.
What you are currently working on?
I am currently working on improving my efficiency, in all aspects of my life. I am trying to streamline process across everything that I do, hopefully enhancing the results, without incurring any additional burden.
What’s next for you?
My goal for 2017 is to increase the reach of my message. I feel it is my obligation to pass on the lessons learned from nearly a decade of sustained combat operations, and that it is the best way I can honor those that I had the privilege to serve with.
What is your favourite subject to speak on and why?
My favorite topics are teamwork and leadership. Both are not difficult to define, but extremely difficult to turn into a reality.
The theories of successful military leadership and successful business leadership are identical, only the arena is different. I try to leave every audience with simple, and practical takeaways that they can begin using immediately. Neither successful teams or leaders occur by accident. They are skills that must be learned, practiced, and refined.
How do you see the world in 10 years’ time? Challenges companies face? How you can help?
The world is moving so quickly that I can’t even fathom a guess as to what it will look like in ten years, let alone the problems we will face.
I believe in teaching problem solving, not just solving one problem.
At the end of the day, being a member of a special operations force means that your single biggest strength is non linear problem solving. Teaching people how to approach problems, assess them, and then work through them is a skill that will serve them well today, and ten years from now.
What are your thoughts on 2016?
2016 was a tumultuous year in the United States. It highlighted how divided we are, and how unwilling we are to adapt to new ideas and realities.
I believe it also highlighted how reliant we are on outside organizations for information, instead of using the incredibly powerful tools we have at our fingertips to educate ourselves. Most people experience the world through electronic devices, which delivers a substantially different understanding and perspective then experiencing it first hand.
What are your hopes for 2017?
My hope for 2017 is that we increase our tolerance and compassion, while reducing our desire to jump up to take uneducated action. Sometimes the best thing to do is take a knee and a moment to gather more information, as opposed to blindly running forward into the unknown.
More about Andy Stumpf
Andy Stumpf is a former Navy SEAL. He enlisted for military service in 1996, after completing the necessary military training, Stumpf began his SEAL career assigned to SEAL Team Five, in Coronado California. Throughout his 17-year career, he served on both East and West coast SEAL Teams.
In 2015 Stumpf founded Razor 01 LLC, a consulting firm dedicated to teaching the lessons learned from over a decade of sustained combat in Special Operations to the leaders and managers of corporate America.
In addition to his consulting work, Stumpf began a campaign to raise 1 million dollars for the Navy SEAL Foundation.
To read Andy Stumpf’s speaker profile, click here. To have a look through his Twitter, click on the following link: Twitter
To book Andy Stumpf for your next event, click on our ‘contact us’ page or email us at enquiries@londonspeakerbureau.com
