Forging Mettle Podcast

29/04/2024

Just received feedback from my speaking event at Boeing LX. Great event I was thrilled to be part of.

Book me for your next event!

10/04/2024

Embrace your hero’s journey.

You are built for this

“The Art of Forging Mettle” available on Amazon and B&N

26/02/2024

Sneak peek at the table of contents of “The Art of Forging Mettle”

21/02/2024

In honor of

The ten maxims of Harmonic Leadership from “The Art of Forging Mettle”

1. Embrace empathy
2. Cultivate understanding
3. Nurture compassion
4. Inspire excellence
5. Empower trust
6. Foster collaborative harmony
7. Continual growth and reflection
8. Prioritize humanistic mental toughness (mettle)
9. Foster interconnectedness
10. People-centric approach

19/02/2024

Welcome to another

Introducing a new model of leadership for our times.

In the book, I present what I call harmonic leadership. To create it, I incorporated the best qualities from transformative, resonant and humanistic leadership to create a fusion model.

“Harmonic leadership is a resonant and integrative approach to leadership that combines inspirational vision, adaptability, and human-centric values to foster a collaborative, noncompetitive environment.

It emphasizes personal excellence and positive influence while utilizing coaching, mentorship, and leading by example to achieve both individual and collective goals.”

16/02/2024

06/02/2024

Embrace your “all is lost” moments.

The day has arrived. On Dec. 10th, 2016 I hatched an idea to write a book. I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to write about or even how to do it, but I felt compelled to go on an adventure to figure it out.

Today, that idea, planted 7 years ago, becomes reality. Today, “The Art of Forging Mettle: A Blueprint for the Evolution of Mental Toughness and Leadership for a Shifting World” is live. Unveiled to the world.

This is the finish line of my latest adventure.

Along the way, there were many “all is lost” moments in the dark forest. Times when I wondered if I would ever finish. Times when I wanted to give up. Times I wondered what the hell I was doing.

Every first time author will tell you it’s a scary proposition when this day comes. To put your work, your art, your passion out there for all the world to see, and criticize.

An artist has to have the courage to be vulnerable to the critics. That is no easy feat.

I’ve done valuable work with wonderful folks at Heroic Public Speaking where Amy Port and Michael Port often espouse the notion, “be a performer, not a critic.” I love this notion, and I hope you do to.

The performer is in the arena doing the hard, gritty work. Bringing value to the world. The critic sits in the stands and only mocks those who have the courage to put themselves in the arena.

The fact is that we’ve always had the critics and the trolls. The internet just makes their job far easier. Do not let the trolls under the bridge scare you in the dark forest. They are harmless creatures.

Ignore their noise and focus on the signal. Do not allow the trolls to prevent you from sharing your message with the world.

You are building a superhero, do not be discouraged in your journey to be great. Embrace those moments that test you.

You are built for this.

21/01/2024

The chapter on “facing our mortality” was fun to write, and resonated with my editor.

17/01/2024

"At its core, this book is about forging mettle, not just in ourselves but also in those we lead. A commonly cited definition of mettle is “a person’s ability to cope well with difficulty or to face a demanding situation in a spirited and resilient way.” The Oxford English Dictionary defines it a similar way: “A person’s spirit; courage, strength of character; vigor, spiritedness, vivacity.” In essence, mettle is revealed when challenges arise." (from the book)

Now available on Amazon, get your copy!

13/01/2024

After about 7 years, the time has come. A new challenge awaits.

My first book, "The Art of Forging Mettle: A Blueprint for the Evolution of Mental Toughness and Leadership for a Shifting World: is ready for pre-order on Amazon. Publish date is Feb. 6th.

I appreciate your continued support!

What is it all about?

Its about leadership of self, and others. It's about how we show up in the world, and why. It's also about a new way to think about mental toughness. A more compassionate, humanistic view that is open to all.

I share personal stories from the cockpit, the mountain trails of ultra's, Ironman courses, playing baseball at Coors Field and even some old rodeo stories.

Here is an excerpt...

"As we slowly emerge from the grip of a once-in-a-century pandemic, the world finds itself nursing a collective hangover. The strain on mental health has transcended cultures and continents, leaving us all grappling with the consequences of a massive disruption to which our collective response has been less than optimal. Our shared resilience and mental toughness have been tested and, in many cases, found wanting. This book is designed to address these challenges, providing tools not only to help us recover from our present condition but also to enable us to fortify ourselves against future storms that are inevitably waiting to test us once again."

31/12/2023

Goodbye 2023, it was nice to hang out with you for a while. I’ll miss you.

19/12/2023

Arrived in Sedona, Arizona for some R&R

17/08/2023

🚀 Exciting News! 🚀 Our upcoming book (Forging Mettle) is set to take you on a transformative journey through mental toughness, human-centered leadership, and self-efficacy!

In a world grappling with the hangover of a global pandemic and the dawn of an AI revolution, how do we keep our humanity intact? How do we prepare ourselves for challenges and grow stronger from them?

Our book offers tangible solutions, strategies, and insights that will not only equip you to face today's world but also thrive in the uncertainty of tomorrow.

From understanding the beauty of boredom to unlocking the key components of confidence, this is a must-read for anyone looking to elevate their life.

📖 Stay tuned for exclusive sneak peeks, pre-order details, and more. Together, we'll discover how to embrace our unique human qualities and turn them into powerful tools for success.

🌟

03/06/2023

Happy Thats a wrap on Augmented World Expo. It was a great experience and met some good folks.

I learned a lot about where the technology is (so many headsets and glasses) and a sense of where it's going. In a word, it's exciting.

From my viewpoint, most of the technology is rightly focused on "augmented reality" (AR) for consumers. I am not convinced consumers are going to ever wholesale adopt VR like smartphones. AR glasses is the future.

But I see ample opportunities for this technology (VR and AR) in training and education. That is what gets me excited. It is a vastly superior way to learn, backed by research.

The first time I used a VR headset, a friend let me try a game that was meant to scare you. I was amazed at how real it felt. My heart rate and blood pressure went up and my hands sweated. You couldn't convince my brain this wasn't "real" and the associated fear felt very real.

Fast forward to today, I have my own Meta Quest 2 headset and I use it mainly for meditation and exercise. Which is flat out amazing. I do some gaming, but that's not really my thing.

If my brain was convinced that a virtual world was real, and created real fear. How might this be helpful to simulate pressure environments? Like a presentation, a job interview or negotiation. What can we learn? How can we improve?

Practicing in high pressure environments in a safe, inexpensive way is what VR offers. I would add a layer of measuring and assessing arousal levels, and then coaching/training to help you improve so that you can nail the "sweet spot" more consistently.

As Kevin Costner said in the golf movie Tin Cup, "you either define the moment or the moment defines you." Soon, we'll be able to help you nail your defining moments.

That is where Forging Mettle®, Inc., and our newly created immersive leadership performance lab "LeadSim" is going. I hope you join us.

Have a great weekend. Rest, recharge, reload.

27/05/2023

How do you rest and recharge? For me, it’s flying…

03/05/2023

Boom! Another great conversation coming to you from the Forge.

Janey McGill and I debate the meaning of life, people pleasing, pain, doing hard things, being curious, learning and so much more.

Take a listen. Links in the BIO

02/05/2023

It's kind of fun being on the other end of the microphone. Thanks AQR International for the lively conversation.

Do winners quit?

Are you uncommon?

Perfection vs. excellence, which one is better?

Have we grown soft?

What is burnout and how can we insulate ourselves from it?

This is a two-part conversation.

Part one:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-toughness-ep19-featuring-ron-duren-part-1/id1633477524?i=1000600471903

Part two:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-toughness-with-ron-duren-part-two/id1633477524?i=1000611378417

‎Show Talking Toughness, Ep Talking Toughness with Ron Duren (Part Two) - May 1, 2023

28/04/2023

Happy ...the weekend is almost here! I hope you take some time to rest, recharge and get outside and get your adventure on.

Musings on mental toughness...

As I started writing my upcoming book, "Forging Mettle," it was going to be mostly about developing mental toughness and doing hard things.

But as I wrote more, did research, and reflected. I knew it had to be about more than just mental toughness. To excel at life takes more than that. But there was a whole other side I was missing.

I like to say mental toughness is like a hammer. It's a great tool when you need to drive some nails. And sometimes in life, that is exactly what we need to do.

Drive some nails and get hard s**t done.

But a hammer can also be destructive. Like when you smack your thumb with it while driving the aforementioned nail. It's not always the best tool for the job.

Enter empathy, understanding, compassion, and savoring. The softer elements of the hard stuff.

Most discussions around mental toughness leave these out. I believe this is to our detriment for leadership of ourselves and others. I will be elaborating on each of these in my forthcoming book.

What do you think? Is there space for the softer, human side of being tough?

See you in the arena.

Forging Mettle®, Inc.