Optimist Optimized

Before I deployed for six months to Iraq I thought that I would write about the many lessons learned throughout my time there. If you read my last post you know why that didn't happen. I thought that upon my return I would write about some of the lessons learned during my deployment once I had some time to reflect on all that I had experienced. That really hasn't happened either so far. So I find it a bit ironic that after a week back in the states adjusting to my old (but seemingly new) life that my first inkling to write again is not on the topic of what I learned in the desert of the middle east but what I have learned about my life stateside.

I have always been an optimist. Not a blind idealist by any means, but definitely someone who seeks to find the best in most situations. However after being purged of all but a few remnants of my stateside life for last six months, I now find my optimism optimized.

Like balance in anything else sometimes it takes the tough times to appreciate the good times. Although I never want to deploy and be away from the life I have built again, I am grateful for the experience because it has given me the ability to truly see how blessed my life really is.

The first few days I was back in Boston with my wife I could not stop gazing outside at the colors that were almost blinding after six months of different shades of brown. The sight of people living, working, and playing together in the neighborhood was suddenly a beautiful glance into what we have in this country and what our freedoms are all about. Holding my wife on a nice comfortable couch enjoying some good tea and even better conversation was the most fulfilling and enjoyable experience in the world.

I feel that with my small contribution overseas I have been given the gift that many great men and women veterans before me have been given; the gift of perspective. I can see now why most veterans are passionate people that enjoy life and love their country. They have seen what other areas of the world are missing. They have tasted the bitterness of sacrifice, many of them much more so than I ever did. They have felt the deep longing for loved ones and for a simple life back home. Most importantly, veterans have experienced the overwhelming feeling of a return home to a familiar life with a completely unfamiliar but glorious clarity of just how great the gift of life truly is.

Vote For "Leveraging the Vet Effect" In The Pepsi Refresh Project

Lots has been going on since I last posted. A ski trip, some hockey, a lot of GMAT studying, and more. However, I am most excited about an opportunity I was blessed to take part in last night. I am pleased to announce that I am currently involved in another nonprofit start up. My formal role going forward remains unclear but I am excited and happy to help in whatever way I am needed.

The venture I have signed onto is called Leveraging the Vet Effect, and although it is in its infancy I am very optimistic for what the future holds. The goals of the soon to be company are simple: 1. Educate our nation to view veterans as a valuable asset 2. Educate employers and academic administrators regarding the “Vet Effect” 3. Educate veterans in preparation for a successful civilian life. Not only is it a cause that is near to me personally, it is a cause that we all have a stake in as the well being of our military members affects all of us.

Although the details of how this national campaign will be unveiled are in the extreme beginning stages, there are a few things in the works that are really exciting. First is that the Leveraging the Vet Effect venture will be affiliated with MyVetwork in some way. MyVetwork is an online community serving all members of the U.S. military — whether active duty, veteran or retired, and regardless of age or conflict — as well as their spouses, families and supporters. It was founded in 2008 by a group led by John R. Campbell, a decorated veteran Marine officer. I had the pleasure of meeting John last night and he is actively involved in getting Leveraging the Vet Effect off of the ground.

MyVetwork has submitted the Leveraging the Vet Effect project under the name "Refresh Every Vet" in the Pepsi Refresh Project. Pepsi is currently giving away $1,300,000 every month to fund great ideas. Pepsi is accepting 1000 entries every month from people, businesses, and nonprofits with ideas that will have a positive impact. These ideas are then voted on by users which determines who wins the grant money. The grant sizes include $5k, $25k, $50k, and $250k categories. Leveraging the Vet Effect is currently sitting in 12th place overall in the $250k category.

This is where you come in! You may vote once a day the 1st through the 15th. Please vote and more importantly get this going viral! If you take five minutes and post it on your facebook or twitter or whatever vehicle floats your boat you can help an extremely worthy cause. Thanks and look for more updates on my Leveraging the Vet Effect journey.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR "REFRESH EVERY VET" AND GET LEVERAGING THE VET EFFECT OFF THE GROUND!

Obama, Veterans Benefits, and Combat Related PTSD

Veterans have served and sacrificed in defense of our Nation. When they complete their service, we must do everything in our power to assist them in re-entering civilian life and finding employment. Government as well as private employers should play a prominent role in helping veterans who may be struggling to find jobs. As one of the Nation's leading employers, the Federal Government is in need of highly skilled individuals to meet agency staffing needs and to support mission objectives. Our veterans, who have benefited from training and development during their military service, possess a wide variety of skills and experiences, as well as the motivation for public service, that will help fulfill Federal agencies' staffing needs. It is therefore the policy of my Administration to enhance recruitment of and promote employment opportunities for veterans within the executive branch, consistent with merit system principles and veterans' preferences prescribed by law. The Federal Government will thereby help lead by example in promoting veterans' employment.

Not sure how enforceable any of these policies are as I am not well versed in reading through government legislature, but I am happy to see the president making strides in this direction. Not just because I am currently serving. It is just the right thing to do. Trust me there are many in our Armed Forces that have sacrificed much more than I ever will and I think it is a shame if those who have put forth tremendous sacrifice defending the country aren’t able to reap the rewards upon their return. I am still a firm believer in the meritocracy, however I think often times people both in and outside the service fail to recognize the parallels between military service and many other seemingly unrelated careers. There are many lessons learned that transcend job experience that are valuable in any life situation, job, or team scenario. Here is the full executive order.

Employment is one thing, but I would love to see greater strides made towards mental health and wellness of soldiers returning from combat. One of the most rewarding acquisitions I ever made in the military was purchasing Combat Related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder training for medical practitioners treating returning veterans. Given the expeditionary nature of our services, the decreased size of our force, and the extended and intensified operations tempo there are a lot of our defenders returning with combat related PTSD. Not only are many of these veterans not being treated when they return home, many are being sent back over again.

More than 600,000 Americans have served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Psychological trauma is cumulative," explained Dr. Paul Ragan, a former Navy psychiatrist who is an associate professor of psychiatry at Vanderbilt University. More deployments can mean more mental stress, and for some, more mental illnesses, he said.

Army surveys show that for those soldiers deployed once, the rate of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder is 12 percent. For those deployed three or more times, the rate is 27 percent.

"People who have psychiatric symptoms, actively symptomatic with PTSD or depression, are being sent back to the very situation that caused their PTSD and depression," Ragan said.

The Army's chief psychiatrist, Dr. Elspeth Ritchie, agrees with the Rand Corp.'s estimate that 300,000 service members have demonstrated post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. Some are returning to the battlefront, although the Army is not keeping track of how many.

Happy Easter! Another Feel Good Article

Happy Easter everyone. A great man named Dickie Dunn once said, "I was just trying to capture the spirit of the thing Reg." That quote is a throwback to the great movie Slap Shot and a tribute to the late great Paul Newman. I, like Dickie, am also trying to capture the spirit of the thing. And that thing happens to be Easter. So I am following up with another feel good article that I came across the other day. Do yourself a favor and read the full article here.

Retired Navy Captain Ed Nicholson has put together something that I find pretty incredible, and something that I can relate too on a couple different levels. He has put together a foundation that seeks to rehabilitate wounded soldiers through fly fishing. The Project Healing Waters website can be found here.

"The demons of war, you just don't set them aside," says Nicholson, 67. "But once you get out on the river, the serenity is incredibly healing."

While recovering from cancer surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in 2004, Nicholson witnessed wounded and disabled men and women -- many of them amputees -- struggling with their injuries.

"Other than being in Vietnam and seeing people in the process of getting hurt, I never really had a full appreciation for the recovery part and what happened after they came home. My recovery was nothing compared to what they were facing. It planted the seed that maybe there's something I could do," Nicholson says.

Now I am not even going to pretend I can relate to what these wounded soldiers are going through. However, I feel as though being in the military gives me the ability to relate to their situation a little more. Maybe it just makes my empathy a little more real. I also relate to this story because I used to call myself a fly fisherman. I grew up camping with my Mom, Dad, and Brother in Oregon and we would always go fly fishing. I have some amazing memories from those days and I look forward to continuing them after my own service. I continued fly fishing in college in Colorado, but when I moved to New Jersey I stopped. So while I cannot truly call myself a fly fisherman today, I am a fly fisherman at heart that fully appreciates the serene and soothing effects of fly fishing and just being amongst the glory of nature.

I am always amazed by people like Ed and their ability to just pick up and do something astonishing for other people. I can only hope that one day people will describe me in the same light.