The 11 Days One-Man Play

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Scott, welcome back to the podcast. How are you doing today, sir? Thank you, George. Thanks for having me. It's so good to be here. I feel like it's becoming a family affair. Like I'm coming back on. You've had my dad on. Like, you know, it's it's like it's like coming home.

George Blitch 0:28

Yes. Well, we'll keep doing that, man. Every time you got another project or book, of which you have plenty. I know you got the play going on right now. You're traveling around. Why don't we start with that and then we'll kind of jump into Generosity of Scars?

SPEAKER_00 0:39

Yeah, thanks. So the play uh is 11 Days, the story of Operation Pineapple Express. Um, it is uh it's my second play that I've written and performed. Um it's uh it's about the uh botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, the uh 11 agonizing days that veterans and Afghans work together to try to, you know, get out of the country, um, or that veterans work to try to get their Afghan partners out of the country. Uh and I think it's uh it's one of those things like you know, it's based on my book, Operation Pineapple Express. Um, and I've spent about 14 months, George, putting this and adapting this into a one-man play. And the reason I wanted to do it was because we're, you know, yes, it's the 250th anniversary of the of the country as we record this in 2026, but it's also the 25th anniversary of 9-11, and it's the fifth anniversary of the withdrawal from Afghanistan. And I feel like, A, a lot of our military community members who experience that are feeling it. It's very edgy and raw. And I wanted to let them know they're seen and heard. And also, I feel like there's a lot of civilians, unfortunately, who have forgotten or didn't hear the real story of the impact of that withdrawal and what it meant to our community. And so I want to make sure that we do, you know, we we educate and inform uh as well. And it's yeah, and so, you know, the the thing about the play is that we want to get this thing in front of folks uh at a community level because there were so many people that were impacted by this 20-year war. But there's also a lot of people who frankly just didn't get the full story. You know, they got it on 24-7 news or they got it uh, you know, political sound bites, but they just didn't really hear the impact this had on the veteran community, the impact this had on our allies, and and that's just not right. And and, you know, we want to make sure that the best we can that we put this story out there at a time when it needs to be heard. So we're traveling the country. Um, we're gonna be uh in Arkansas uh in a couple of days uh at the recording of this, at the dropping of this. We're uh we're gonna be uh 16 and 18 May. We're gonna be in Arkansas Hot Springs in Mount Ida, my hometown, uh taking it, which is kind of cool to go back there. We're also gonna be um in July, we're gonna be in Leesburg. Uh we're gonna be in uh Fort Bragg, Southern Pines, uh in uh I'm sorry, June in Leesburg. July, we're gonna be in Fort Bragg, Southern Pines. August 26th, we're gonna be in um in New Jersey, Carteret, New Jersey on the anniversary of Abbey Gate. Uh September 11 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Uh uh September, later in September, like the 18th, we're gonna be in Dallas at the Medal of Honor Museum, and then wrapping up in November in Carolina, North Carolina. And all of those locations, dates, and times are on the website of tfpineapple.org.

What Generosity Of Scars Means

George Blitch 3:23

Good deal. And I'll have those in the show notes below. So everyone make sure you go there, get your tickets early. Uh, this is an incredible thing you've been doing. Obviously, with the other play Last Out, this is a lot of people really supported this. It went all around the country, uh, a lot of fanfare and just some great feedback. And, you know, here we are at the heels of another project that's that's coming out, right? The Generosity Scar is another amazing book. Uh, I had you on last night for Nobody Is Coming to Save You that I have here behind me, a must read. And it kind of incorporates some of those things we talk about. Um, and if you want to maybe, you know, kind of talk about that jumping off point of the churn and maybe what's going on with that. Uh, but I'd love to, you know, just kind of give a, you know, a very 101 basic uh introduction to Generosity of Scars. What is this about? What inspired you to write it? And we'll jump into some more questions as as we go.

The Four-Part Storytelling Framework

SPEAKER_00 4:11

Yeah, I mean, so thanks. I did the Generosity of Scars is um the second book in my leadership trilogy. Nobody's coming to save you as the first generosity of so leaders, the nobody's coming to save you as a book really on uh rooftop leadership and and the power of human connection in this time of churn that we live in. The Generosity of Scars is all about um really the number one modality we have to navigate through the churn is storytelling or what I call narrative competence, where we repurpose our struggles into stories that serve other people. And then the third book that'll be coming out probably in about a year and a half uh is Leaving Tracks. Uh that's something that my dad coined and I talk a lot about in my first book. Uh it's all about purpose and legacy, the purpose and legacy that we can put into this world uh that lasts well beyond our time, uh, as my dad uh, I believe so aptly did. And that was his phrase. And I really had the opportunity to interview him and do a lot of work on the book before he passed this last summer. And so that'll be a really special thing to put that book out. It's a trilogy. This book that's coming out, though. Well, I'll start with the general uh Nobody's Coming to Save You. You know, I think we, George, we live in, you and I have talked about this, we live in some unprecedented times uh where disconnection and disengagement and distraction are just, you know, keeping us apart from one another. And uh it's it's really causing challenges in how we navigate the world. And this book, Nobody's Coming to Save You, is designed to help people understand the enemy of connection, which is what I call the churn, and also better understand our human operating system, you know, how we're biologically wired to actually come together and connect. And we've just buried these drivers, these innate drivers that we have, meaning and emotion and storytelling. So the book's all about how to reawaken those. And then the generosity of scars goes another step, and it really helps you to really refine okay, if meaning and emotion and social connection and storytelling and struggle are the drivers that help us navigate the churn, then how do we put storytelling at the forefront of that and really use storytelling and struggle to connect more effectively? And that's what the book's just chock full of stories and instructions on how to do that.

George Blitch 6:22

Well, and you kind of break it down as far as like a four-part book. Let's go ahead and talk about those. Um, you know, I'll let you go ahead and take the lead on that, on those four parts, and we'll kind of dive in there.

SPEAKER_00 6:32

Yeah. So the first part is getting below the water line. And so it harkens back to um the the nobody's coming to save you. I re-introduced the reader to the churn, the enemy of human connection, uh, the external environment that we live in, um, the volatility, the uncertainty, the complexity, the ambiguity, but also the four D's of distraction, disengagement, uh, disconnection, and distrust, and then our own internal resistance, the self-sabotage, that frankly all of us feel when we're dealing with um pressure uh from the outside. We we experience self-sabotage, we pull ourselves back. And then I I put forward this idea that you know, all of us as humans, we're we're we're wired for struggle. It's actually how we navigate the world. It's we find ourselves in struggle. Everything in life starts with struggle. And it's something that we just understand at a primal level. And the more that we can integrate struggle into what we do as leaders, as parents, as coaches, the more relatable we come we become to people. And so I introduce this idea that throughout history, human history, we've used stories of struggle that go all the way to resolution. So you start in a struggle and you resolve, you change and you learn. And that's the stories that we've told each other for thousands of years to survive, to thrive. And now with neuroscience and some of the stuff that's coming out on storytelling, we've got a real opportunity to become far more intentional on that and really get clear on it. So the first part is all about getting below the waterline and understanding the churn that we face and how storytelling works on the brain. Yeah, so so that's part one. Part two is uh is really living the life of a storyteller. That's something that I try to encourage people to do, is rather than think about yourself as a presenter or a corporate executive or a business founder, business owner, nonprofit leader, you know, is to maybe think of yourself first as a storyteller, right? And the reason is because we live in what they're calling the trust recession right now, where there's just an absence of trust all around us, this onslaught of AI and um, you know, technology, people are wondering what's real. People are wondering what's really out there, you know, what can I trust? And one thing that we know, we know storytelling. It's it's one thing that can't be outsourced, it's one thing that can't be uh artificially created in a real authentic way. Uh story, we know it when we see it. It's in a it's innately human. And so I to I encourage folks in this part of the book to, and I just give stories. It's just chock full of different stories from insurance producers to gold star moms to uh folks that are advocating for certain species that are you know endangered. Uh and I just give all these different examples of how they live the life of a storyteller, and it's that universal thing that brands them together. Some are Democrats, some are Republicans, some are conservationists, some are not, but uh they all come down to storytelling. And so that's what that part of the book is. And then the last two parts of the book really are um is designing your scar story, and that is what that's a big chunk of the book, and and how to build a story that really resonates with the with the brain of your listener, and then how to deliver that scar story like a tribal storyteller, like you know, the way that you know, storytellers in the old days with all those arrowheads you got behind you would don pelts and dance around a fire and and literally captivate the audience into a trance state. Well, we can do you know a similar version of that in today's corporate world without the pelts and the and the fire pit. We can still uh deliver stories in a very uh physical way that that makes the audience forget they own a cell phone. And so it's both design and delivery uh that we need to be an effective storyteller. And then all those parts come together uh to kind of wrap up uh into action and way ahead for people to use storytelling in every aspect of their life.

Wounds Scabs Scars And Shame

George Blitch 10:19

Well, and it's it's our ancient gift, right? This is something that the oral tradition has been something, and obviously when I worked with all these, you know, Indigenous elders and stuff, it's kind of they're on the cusp of this idea that it was what we used to gather around and tell people, you'd educate the elders would sit down and all the things that they'd learned from their experiences, and a lot of times their scars are the things that they'd be able to tell their stories in that resonance too of the authentic storytelling, the the narratives of our lives, which we you know, we we kind of lose these things like you talk about the middle of the churn, these distractions, everything that divides us. But there's things that you know we all united for unite in our struggles that unify us. And a lot of times, you know, your scar, like you said before, it doesn't have to be big to be uh something that's important and impactful, and you being able to tell things. And when you tell something to somebody that, you know, this is a struggle, they can relate to it. And that relatability is something that connects your audience. And you talked about that from you know, that first time you talked uh on a TEDx stage, right? And having that uh also that that the fear that makes you want to quit, that resistance from maybe taking that brave step to move past that. Um, maybe if you'd like to even talk a little bit about that experience too, because you kind of you resonated, and I know you talked about it before, but I think it's very powerful in the idea that sometimes you got to push past that discomfort to become comfortable.

SPEAKER_00 11:40

Yeah, I think one of the things that I appreciate you bringing that up, but one of the things I encountered, for example, coming out of the military, you know, a scar that I I mean, there's you know, the way I think about it is scars are simply metaphors for struggle in this sense, right? There's they're metaphors for struggle. Um, and there's different points that we can be at with our struggles. Uh, they can be a wound where they're, you know, you can't all you can do is just kind of cover them and you know, keep stop the bleeding. Uh you're really not ready to share it. Um, and it could even be harmful to do so, then they're then they can become a scab. You know, the struggle can become a scab where you've gone through this lived experience, maybe trauma, grief, but to immediately unearth it would be like ripping a scab off, right? And it's just not, it's not healed properly, and and there needs to be therapy and work through that continued. But then, you know, we get to the point where um it's a scar, it's a scar and it's uh it's it's more of a blemish. It's uh it's it's a reminder that we've struggled, but it's resolved. You know what I mean? And uh I look at scars can be external, internal, um, but they are blemishes on the soul where we've, you know, they're evidence that we've lived a life full out. Uh and I think they're gold in terms of what they offer other people when we can repurpose those scars, those struggles in the service of other people. But to your point, because we're social creatures, because we worry about our status and how we're perceived, we oftentimes bury those scars and we are reluctant to share them because of how we'll be judged or the shame that we feel. And the re the irony of it all is that when you share your struggles in the service of others, not as dumping or therapy, but true service to other people, and there's resolution on the other side of it. Here's how I changed, here's what I learned as a result of that. Even if you don't accomplish your goals, even if you fail, it's the most generous thing we can do. And the reason is because of what you said, George, which is when someone shares their struggle, the minute we hear it, we know it. We go in, it's called narrative transportation. We're drawn into that story, we locate ourselves in that story, and now we start to listen autobiographically. And now my father's cancer becomes, you know, someone in your family who had cancer, or your own scare with cancer, or crap, I hope I don't get cancer. But you're processing your own lived experience and the safety of my story, and that creates reciprocity between you and me, creates a connection, it accelerates trust. And that's something our our ancestors and those elders have known for thousands of years, but it's something that we need to get back to in a very big way.

George Blitch 14:20

Well said, and I like the idea that it's in the safety of your story because it's, you know, it it I talked about this uh recently on another podcast. The idea of this woman told me one time, you need to make sure that you're a conduit, not a catchers mit. When you when you are able to receive information that you think is important, you actually need to be a conduit. You don't just keep it for yourself, you got to spread it out there and share it. And I think some of these times, and especially in vulnerable discussions, like you know, you and I had uh talked about before, and you were one of many veterans that I've had on who talked about this idea that they were at the brink of suicide. And the ability to move past that, and you talked about it in in your book too, and your friend James was on the verge there, and you talking about your vulnerable uh story being there and how difficult it even was, and you're physically shaking, but then that made it help save his life. And if one of these stories can help save or enrich someone's life in whatever way, that impact is it's a necessity to share it, I think. And I think that when we talk of when I've talked to all these veterans, that my my goal is that hey, if if one person can have their life changed from sharing these stories, then all these 150 plus podcasts I've done has been worth it because it's made a difference in someone's life. But anytime I've had on someone and they're storytelling, they're telling about what they're passionate about, it's making an impact. And uh therefore I feel like a conduit to to that as well. Whether if I'm on the stage or not, I'm out there helping to share these stories. And whenever I read this book and you know, I'm looking at you know some of the things you've done before in your leadership and your seminars and your you know, your courses that you've done, the ability to give people the tools in the toolbox to uh unravel and unlock this uh skill set that we have that's intuitive, that's ancient, of being able to be storytellers, but being able to give people the form and formula to do that, I think is so impactful because it's only going to help us to be able to be better communicators and to be able to help unite us better in that whole idea of what the churn is trying to keep us apart. Man, you're building these threads of leadership that I think are going to continue to bring us closer together through storytelling. And I am just so happy that you you've put this out and that the work that you're doing, man, you've made an a tremendous impact on my life and others. And uh with that, I want to say thank you.

SPEAKER_00 16:41

Oh, that means a lot. Thank you. You're welcome. Um, you know, it's I'm I'm just a conduit. Honestly, I'm I'm Rex and a new man's son. That's what I try to be every day. Um and I mean that. Like that's the to be that's the that's the best thing I can live into. Um, and just be that instrument, be that vehicle for the stories to pass through me to other people. Um, because I believe stories are gifted to us from another place anyway. I really do. I don't think, you know, stories are, as you said, I mean, they're they're we get to borrow them for a while and then pass them on. Um and they're meant to be passed on. And, you know, you talked about like my mental health and my suicidal ideation. I came very close a couple of times. And um, you know, and I saw combat, but I don't bear a fraction of the scars that many of my peers have externally, internally, but I certainly have my version of them. And it got really dark for me um a couple of times. And and I was isolated, I'd lost my purpose and my identity, and and it was hugely embarrassing. And frankly, it still is, you know, to to think about that, you know, especially when I talk about it and my boys are in the room, or and I just think, man, like you what there's a part of me that wants to withdraw from that, but then, you know, invariably it'll come up in the play, it's a scene in the play, or it'll come up, uh, someone will watch my TED talk, or someone will just hear me talk and they'll come up to me quietly afterwards, and they can hardly speak. And they're like, Yeah, I was in that closet, man. Thank you. You know, and you that is not unique to veterans, that is not unique to first responders, and it's not unique to the military community. W this book, yes, 100%. I hope veterans and those folks will pick it up because it is a field guide to repurposing your struggle to serve other people. However, you and I both know that veterans and first responders do not have the market cornered on struggle, right? It is a biological necessity for all of us, it's a universal singular. And so it to me offers parents, teachers, business owners a foundational way to repurpose the stuff that scuffed us up and put it out there in a way that serves other humans. Um, and it's informed not just by the art of storytelling, which I've done a lot for a lot of years, but also the science. There's a lot of science in this book, not in an ultra geeky kind of way, but it hopefully in a framework kind of way that lets you know that even though this feels a little bit awkward and maybe it feels a little bit like you're sticking your jugular out there, this is exactly what people need right now.

George Blitch 19:21

Yeah. No, it's a it's a breakthrough, right? Like you you talked about, even you know, going back to to my mention there, like the TED talk, like there's a there's there's a resistance sometimes to share the the scars, physical, mental, whatever it is, emotional, spiritual. Like we we want to protect this thing within us that we're not proud of these uh ugly parts, or the things that weren't even like something that's ugly, but just were done to us or what we're brought into, whatever the circumstance. I know that's kind of vague, but whatever these things are that are the struggle, uh, it's hard for some of us to share that. But you know, I've gone through things in my life where I've opened up and talked about something, maybe it was alcoholism, you know, and like mentioning that that, and then all of a sudden some listener is like, hey, I'm struggling with that right now, too. It was really good to hear your story. And I'm like, the impact. If I'm able to tell it and somebody is able to respond and it helps them, that was worth feeling super uncomfortable talking about this thing. That I don't want to admit that I had a problem with that. I don't want to admit that this is like this dark side of me, but it's who it's the black, white, the full color, it's all who makes up who I am, right? And it's like it's tough for some people to be able to do that or know how to talk about it to others. And I think you going in, writing this book, giving people those tools and being able to talk about those things, and especially you know, in the later parts too of the book that you mentioned there too, with the designing delivery, it's it's going to help people uh unite. And you've been doing this where you're traveling around the country, the world, and working with different people with your courses, your coaching, your leadership, your seminars, the speaking engagements. Um, and you know, there was a time when that wasn't a comfortable thing for you, and now it it is, and it's a part of who you are. And I'd love for you to talk about that idea too, because obviously, you know, you're you're you every time I'm talking to you, you're uh in a different hotel room because people are having you come in to teach these things and to better their companies or their organizations, their groups. And so maybe you kind of talk a little bit about that idea of what it is that you offer so that if people who are listening who might want to have you come in and be a part of their organization can understand what that uh what kind of impact that they can have by having you be a part of them.

From Identity Loss To The Stage

SPEAKER_00 21:34

No, I appreciate it. You know, I started out in special forces as a Green Beret. I was pretty comfortable being up in front of people, even speaking in a target language, because that's what we do, right? Green berets are teachers and advisors. So, you know, it wasn't uncommon, even as a young captain, to get up in front of an ambassador in Colombia or maybe uh uh, you know, a parliamentary and parliamentarian in uh Peru. And even when Afghanistan kicked off, you know, you're sitting in there and you're facilitating. These jurgas and Shura council meetings with all these tribal elders and the stakes are very high. Um, I was very comfortable in doing that. Um, but when I came home from the military, George, I really had a rough transition. I I struggled with my identity, I struggled with my purpose, a lot of survivor's guilt. I I pulled back from the world and really my own resistance, my own self-sabotage started to get the better of me. And I just started to feel um like an imposter when I got up in front of people. And so I couldn't even get in front of veterans. And so I really struggled with that for a long time. And I had to train really hard to just, and it was storytelling that helped me get back to that. And I started by using telling stories to kind of heal myself and because story is a sense-making tool, what the brain uses it to make sense of trauma and grief and fill in the gaps. And that's what started to happen for me over time. Then I started working with like with James and other that I talk about in the book and other veterans one-on-one, and it grew. And then at some point I got on a TED stage and I didn't want to do it. I was super reluctant about it, but I I did it and I I it went pretty well. It resonated. Um, and then I just kept going. I was kind of off to the races after that. I did a TED talk and another Ted, I did three TED talks. I started coaching TED speakers, hundreds of keynotes, going on the news, and basically anything that scared me uh when it came to storytelling. I decided like whatever Tim Ferriss is to high performance, I'm gonna be to storytelling. Um, you know, what Sean Ryan is to edgy journalism, I'm gonna be to storytelling. Like that was kind of my mindset. And I just threw myself, even acting, writing plays, never done any of that. And so, to your question, what I found was after about 15 years of doing that, um, I got to where I can get on stage. I've done a lot of time on stage and I can I speak for a living, uh telling stories about human connection and building trust, but I do it through storytelling. Um, I train a lot of what I found myself lately doing is training a lot of leaders who have built businesses, who have built, like they've run the miles, but at night when everybody else is sleeping, there's something poking on their chest cavity that they have a story to put into the world that's bigger than them and they're frustrated or terrified on how to do it. Is anybody gonna listen? I don't even know how to do that. And maybe it's about their company, maybe it's about something they went through in their life, maybe it's a health scare they went through and they survived, but they know they need to be on a stage, podcast, TV, uh, live. And that's what I help them do. You know, that's become my favorite thing at 57 years old because I know I got more runway behind me than in front of me. Is I now coach people and I have a whole stable full of high-performing coaches, and I train people how to take that mic and tell their story at a strategic level. And I absolutely love it. Like 13 weeks watching someone who's a complete introvert who really worries about their story, all of a sudden they walk out there and they're just owning the room, man. It's like my favorite thing to do.

George Blitch 25:03

Well, it's it's amazing too, and like that kind of idea, you know, you know, I talked about it when I had your dad on, and this idea of like leaving tracks and like the ripples, the effect that you have, and it's like an exponential thing as you're doing this and helping other people to be able to better themselves and to then inspire the next generation and then the listeners that are in the room or whoever they're working with, or whatever it may be, you know, we're we're continually leaving these tracks and leaving things better than we found it, right? And that's our goal, especially in this time in chaos, and especially, you know, I mean, just look at the where the where the world is on any given day, right? You know, doesn't matter when you're listening to this podcast, there's something going on that can get your attention and can make you down. But there's a lot of things in this world that are inspiring that should bring us together, that should bring us joy, that should bring us inspiration to kind of unite and build something better, because I think that's the goal of humanity, right? Is to be able to make these connections and to build something better and leave it better for the next generation. And you know, when you were just talking about that, it made me wonder too, when was it and what was it, or maybe who was it that helped inspire you to then actually start telling these stories? Because you you talked about how you kind of retreated from the world. And you know, and we kind of talked about it a little bit in the last podcast, but and what was it, when was it, who was it, that helped you to be able to say, okay, I am gonna step out in my vulnerability, I am going to use my relatable struggle to connect with other people and build those threads of connection. What was that?

Mentors Legacy And Saving Lives

SPEAKER_00 26:32

A great question. There were really two primary people that I look back on. Uh, one was uh Bo Eason. Bo was a former NFL football player in the 80s. Um, his brother was Tony Eason. Bo played for the Houston Oilers uh when Earl Campbell was was a running back. Uh, and Bo was a farm kid, grew up a runt on a ranch in California. Never probably should have even made it into the NFL, but he just he's he was the runt of the litter and he worked his butt off and and he and he got picked and and became a great free safety in the NFL. He blew his knee out uh and became a speaker. Well, actually became an actor, then a playwright, and then a speaker. And uh I was recommended to go study under him because he was probably the best in the world, uh, arguably maybe still is at the bet at storytelling with physicality and uh and really bringing your story alive. And and I went and just fell in love with what he was doing and and studied under him for like two straight years. He's still my mentor, we still train together. Um I'm I'm just forever grateful uh for him pouring himself into me. And now I find myself doing a lot of what he does, pouring myself into other people. So Bo. And then the other one, he's uh lesser known, but he's an amazing human, and he's one of my coaches now in my program. His name is Jason Cannon, straight up theater guy, never did anything except theater in his life, amazingly good at it. Coach, actor, producer, director. Um, and he trained me from jump street when I came to him and said, I'd like to do a play. I have no idea how to write it, I have no idea how to perform it. And he said, I'll help you. And he has ever since then has been, you know, my one of my dearest friends and helped me put a voice to this story that was haunting me. Um and those two men um will never know how much they enabled me to put my story into the world. And as a result of their generosity, I think I've been able to help a lot of people. But uh that's pretty much how it unfolded for me.

George Blitch 28:36

Wow. Well, thanks for sharing that. You know, there's a this is a question too, and and I'll have a little separate replay on this. So when I talk to your dad about the idea of legacy, and um, I'm gonna approach the same the question to you. Is it you know, here you've served this country, you have an incredible family, uh, you have done so many amazing projects through the plays, through your books, you've gone and helped so many different people through your coaching, your seminars, your speaking engagements. When you think about legacy and what it is that you hope to leave behind, what is it that you are encapsulating in that thought?

SPEAKER_00 29:16

Um I think people helping people find their voice and tell their story. You know, I think that's what I God put me on this earth to do. And I feel like the way that my father, you know, um he fought wildland fire for almost well, almost 43 years, and he put his heart and soul into it. He gave so much for this nation, and like so many of our wildland firefighters do, a real thankless profession, frankly. Um, and he he never flinched. He would always just tell me it's a test. And he'd he'd march off in his yellow fire suit covered in smoke, and he'd just say, It's a test, Scotty, you know. And he always said that up until even when he was dying of cancer. Um and the fact that I was able to help him uh find his voice and put a story to the restoration of the American chestnut tree in a TED talk and other talks that he gave to the Cherokee Nation. And um, those live now. Those live, they're they're alive. Uh, we still have them, you know. Um there was a veteran that came up to me not long ago. I did a talk on my play, and I was just asking people to come see it. And he came up to me and he was in tears and he said, You don't know me. He goes, I was in Delta uh for years. He goes, but your play saved my life. He said, I came to your play, I was about to check out, I had my plan in place. But after I saw it at the Straz in Tampa, I went out in the parking lot and sat on the suicide hotline for three hours. And you know, to tell you that um that play saved my life, that story saved my life, and now I'm helping other veterans with suicide you know overcoming their. And I just, I mean, we both just broke down. And that's it for me. I I have no other aspirations in life, no other ambitions in life. It is truly to help people find their voice and tell their story, whether it is through the book, Generosity of Scars, whether it's a gold star mother sitting in the play, locating her son and herself in that play, or whether it's me coaching, you know, a Fortune 500 business executive on how to how to share their story to help other people find courage. Uh, I just I feel I feel like it's divinely inspired and I just kind of I just go where I'm led. But that's it. Find help people find their voice and tell their story. Like that's my job.

Where To Get The Book

George Blitch 31:31

Well, you're doing an incredible job at it. And uh it's it's an honor to have you on once again and to be able to help facilitate uh, you know, just sharing this amazing book, Generosity of Scars. Uh obviously, I'd I'd love for people to get all of your books and it why don't you tell them where they can go to your website and your socials so they can learn more and play some orders.

SPEAKER_00 31:50

Yeah, so the Generosity of Scars is dropping now. I'd recommend honestly read uh nobody's coming to save you first. I really would. Um they build on each other in a really helpful way. If you just go to Scotman.com, uh that's where all my stuff is, all my books, um, the even information on the plays there. If you want to work with me on coaching you to tell your story, you can get that as well. Um, but that's really you know, that's a big one, Scottman.com. We also have a community of rooftop leaders on school. You can navigate to that from there. Um, that would be probably the best place to go to find out like more and how to how to do this kind of work.

George Blitch 32:30

And all the socials are on the website too, but I will have everything listed below so you guys can go and place your orders for this book. Go get your tickets to the play as it's coming through in an area near you, and make sure you're following along with Scott's journey and all the amazing things you got going on. Man, it's always such a great time to connect with you. And especially now when there's so much chaos in this world, uh, man, it feels nice to ground down and just have a wonderful conversation with you once again.

SPEAKER_00 32:57

100%, George. Thank you, man. And we definitely need to get together, get our families together. I know that's gonna happen at some point, but uh thanks for just being a voice of common sense and connection out there. We need it, uh, and uh appreciate all your your audience too, because I know they're doing big work in the world.

George Blitch 33:13

Indeed, man. Well, we'll keep it on and uh keep pushing forward. Can't wait to have you on again next and talk about the trilogy, the next book that comes on. Is there a date and time in mind of when that uh third book might drop, or is this uh kind of still in the works?

SPEAKER_00 33:26

I'm not completely certain, but it's gonna be pretty soon. I'd say I would say just pay, you know, be watching uh Scottman.com in the socials. I would say within a year and a half. Excellent.

George Blitch 33:36

Excellent. Well, it takes time to put these together, folks. So, you know, it's but it's well worth it. Well, Scott, thanks again for joining me today. And uh yeah, we'll see you on the road or sometime sooner there.

SPEAKER_00 33:45

All right. Thank you so much, George. Take care, brother.