Strong Towers

What do you do when you hit the phase where your kids start playing sports? You do a podcast about it, obviously. The nostalgia of our childhood, the challenge of being a sports parent, all of it. So put me in, coach!

"What's not working?" It's possibly one of the most disruptive and reorienting questions we've been asked. Disruptive because no one likes to acknowledge it, but reorienting because there are few things more helpful than taking an honest look under the proverbial hood. Put another way, "where are you fighting bravely and dying quickly?" Join Mike, Tom, and Jon as we answer that for ourselves and invite you to do the same.

Getting to our 100th episode feels like a pretty big accomplishment. Fortunately, Mike provided us with the perfect topic for this milestone -- undertaking the Pine Creek Challenge 100 Mile Ultramarathon. You truly don't want to miss hearing Mike open up about the motivations that brought him to such an endeavor and the things he learned about himself afterwards. It's powerful...just what 100 should be!

We’re back! Kicking off Season 4 at Strong Towers, we are psyched to be back in the studio again. We are looking forward to an incredible slate of topics, including our 100th episode! Welcome back to the journey of building up and becoming strong.

In this episode, we discuss. Transitions. “the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.” Recently while Mike was running, the topic of Triathlons and the importance of your transition times came up in conversation. Often most athletes focus and train on the main disciplines, Swim, Bike, Run. However, your PR is achieved with the improvements of your transitions. This got me thinking, oftentimes in life, we focus on the state or condition we’re currently in and where we will be next, but what about that transition time, have we prepared for that?

We're wrapping up this "influential people" series with a final reprise from the vault. We recorded our conversation with Allen Arnold back in Dec of 2020 -- you remember 2020, right? -- and the echoes of his message have been reverberating in my head ever since. Creativity isn't a side project. It's not the thing you do in retirement or after all the real work is done. Doing something creative is actually core to who we are and essential to the world around us. So take a listen, and then do something crazy -- go create.

When we think of the word "challenge", we most often think of pushing our body to the limit. One of our friends, Nathan Bramblett, has a lot of experience with that and so we'd thought we'd invite him to join our conversation. You won't want to miss this!

Our last episode on influential people brought back a host of memories of others that have been pivotal in our growth. One of those phenomenal people is Morgan Snyder. We had the pleasure of interviewing him last year on the topic of Mentorship, and it quickly became one of our favorite episodes. So as a tip of the cap to our friend and guide...and to ensure you don't miss this powerful episode...we wanted to run it back to the top of the list. Enjoy!

As we were reflecting on last week’s episode, we got to thinking about all of the cool people we have gotten to have conversations with on the show. That got us down the road on recognizing the people who had influence on our lives in all sorts of areas. Join us as we dig into who these people were and what they mean to us.

We got to sit down with Shawn Bolz and Bob Hasson for an incredible conversation on combining faith and work. Shawn & Bob encourage anyone and everyone that hearing God’s voice is not just for those in traditional ministry; and that there are Kingdom marketplace ventures waiting to be birthed through those who would lean into what God is saying. Check out their new book - Wired to Hear: Connecting God’s Voice to Your Life, Influence, and Career.

It's time for the lightning round! Welcome to Part Two of 21 Questions -- there's still no points and no prizes, but we're having a blast nonetheless! Life-changing purchase under $100? Advice you would give your 18 year-old self? Get your buzzers ready, 'cause it's game time!

Thought it might be fun to take a short break from interviews and topical conversations to ask the hard questions and get some hard answers. What superpower does Mike wish he had? What's Tom's favorite childhood toy? Join us for 21 questions that provide a little levity, a lot of nostalgia, and more depth than we were expecting.

After releasing "Listening - Pt 1" last week, we realized there was some serious potential for a follow-up conversation that included the feminine perspective. Fortunately, our wives were ready and willing to join us and offer their insights, wisdom, and vulnerability as we all continue to improve on this essential relationship skill. They're pretty much the best...we know you'll agree!

"Are you listening?" Heard that one before? In school, in relationships, at work...we often think we do a good job of taking in information and acting on it. But what if there's more to listening? Join Tom, Mike, and Jon for Part 1 of a 2-part episode on moving beyond information to the heart behind communication.

We know things have been a little uncertain for a while now, but spring showed up as promised! And with it the reminder of just how powerful, essential, and...if we're being honest...dangerous HOPE can be. Join Mike, Tom, Jon, and special guest, Shawn Ludeker, as we dare to let hope come out of its 2020 hiding place and play.

A little late this week, but definitely worth the wait! Earlier this year one of our good friends, and a member of a solid group of guys we do life with, moved away to be closer to extended family. While sad for us, the move has disconnected our brother from a support system that we have all come to truly appreciate in our lives. Join us as we sit down with our buddy Shawn to talk about the importance of having a strong men’s group in your life and how to find or start a group when you find yourself without one.

We're retooling some things here at Strong Towers in preparation for the launch of Season 4 later this year. Rather than sweeping changes, we're continuing to tweak and fine-tune...making micro-adjustments in favor of whole-sale change. I think there might be a larger lesson there than I first realized.

Happy anniversary! It's been a year - almost to the day - since virtually all of our lives underwent unexpected and uncomfortable change. What better way to wrap up this series on Discomfort than by doing some honest soul-searching in the ways we were tried, tested, and transformed over these last 12 months.

Discomfort in finances? Of course! Discomfort in faith? Absolutely! Discomfort in brotherhood? Amen! Discomfort in creativity? You betcha! Turns out your creativity is absolutely on the same level...just as critical, just as opposed. Join Tom and Jon as we revisit some pearls of wisdom from the star of S3e12, Alan Arnold, and talk about the need to fight through the discomfort in creativity as fiercely as we battle for finances, faith, and brotherhood.

Money - check! Faith - check! But rather than politics, let's get to the uncomfortable 3rd rail in many conversations between men: deeply personal brotherhood. Not with your colleagues. Not your poker buddies. Rather, the one or two guys that would walk through fire with you and know you better than your own parents, How do you work through the discomfort to get that kind of friendship? We're not 100% sure, but we've got a couple thoughts.