Resilient Mental State – Details, episodes & analysis

Kit Perez | Grey Cell Systems is a mother, wife, counterintelligence and deception analyst, liberty activist, trauma counselor, teacher, homesteader, writer on Substack of The Shepard Scale, host of Change the Game podcast, co-author of Basics of Resistance and author of The Mindset of Resistance. She holds two master’s degrees, one in Intelligence and the other in Trauma Counseling and Crisis Intervention. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in Counterintelligence with additional studies in Criminal and Intelligence Profiling.

Kit is one of the most brilliant writers and speakers I know. She developed Grey Cell Protocols to assess human conditions and systems to detect vulnerabilities and opportunities. While her work and all of her credentials are impressive, it’s the experiences behind them that make her truly interesting, credible, and inspiring.

In this conversation, Kit shares the history behind her Why. From the military, to abuse, loss, militias, the dark web, reorientation, transformation, and faith, she doesn’t hold back. We discussed trauma, healing, growth, vulnerability, validation, weirdness, communities, and interconnectedness.

Kit’s story demonstrates the power of resilience and how adversity can be used to elevate your purpose and life. Anything is possible for those who are willing to endure, explore, and evolve.

On April 30th, Kit’s newest book she co-authored with Donald Vandergriff, a retired US Marine and Army Officer who specializes in military leadership, decentralized command, and maneuver warfare, will be released. It is titled Mission Command & The Grey Cell Protocols. Pre-order here.

Kit’s Substack and podcast will sharpen your thinking and orientation to reality. I highly recommend both.

Some of her recent written work includes:

* The Discipline and Process of Synthesis

* Spotting Deception Under Pressure

* Orientation is the System

* Why I’m Leaving the Three Percent (a powerful article she wrote ten years ago)

* Why Good People Become Infiltration Vectors

* Personality vs. Pathology

* Pornography and Orientation: An Operational Hazard

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Patrick Van Horne co-authored one of the best books I’ve ever read — Left of Bang. Since it was released over a decade ago, he has continued to evolve his company and work to create and apply this powerful concept at an organizational and team level.

Now offering Left of Bang Strategic Briefs and advisory work focused on preparedness as a capability, he has made getting left of bang actionable beyond military operations.

In this conversation, we discuss his strategic framework for getting left of bang, preparedness vs. readiness, experience-based vs. proactive preparation, patterns in preparedness, the value of projects, personal preparedness, and much more.

Patrick Van Horne is one of the best writers and speakers on applying strategic thinking.

Being a paid member of The CP Journal has been one of the best investments I’ve made over the past two years.

Use links below to access his work that inspired this podcast:

* Preparing the Organization You Will Need

* The Three Levels of Left of Bang

* The Four Preparedness Personas: Where Your Organization Fits

* The Individual Readiness Playbook

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Chris DeMuth Jr is an incredibly successful hedge fund manager for Rangeley Capital, the investment company he founded in 2007.

As impressive as he is in the financial realm, it’s his personal life that makes him truly remarkable. A husband, father, mixed martial arts practitioner, fitness enthusiast, outdoorsman, writer, and interviewer, Chris invests in all domains of life.

In this conversation, we discussed:

* Presence

* Enjoyment vs. competition

* Cross-training

* Continuous improvement

* Passion paired with curiosity

* And much more

The interview series Chris conducts through Vale Tudo, his Substack account, is outstanding. Highly recommend checking out all of his work to include investment strategies to improve your life financially and in every other domain.

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Vicente Júnior is a 5th degree Black Belt, IBJJF World Champion, and multiple time IBJJF Pan American Champion. At 15 years old, Gabriel Silva is a 3x IBJJF Pan Kids Champion, 3x European Kids Champion, and a AJP Abu Dhabi World Youth Pro Champion. In 2023, Gabriel was ranked #1 in the IBJJF Kids Gi rankings followed by being ranked #1 in the Kids NoGi rankings in 2025. Both are widely regarded as two of the best Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) competitors and coaches in the world. They’re also father and son.

I’ve had the chance to learn from and train with these two exceptional human beings for the past four and a half years. As you’ll hear in our conversation, their wisdom extends far beyond the mats.

In this conversation, we discuss:

* A champion’s mindset

* Knowing your why

* Managing pressure

* Setbacks vs failure

* Lessons from BJJ for life

* Curiosity

* Transcendence

* Remaining good while becoming great

* And much more

To become the best in the world at anything requires significant time, effort, and intention. While you need to be willing to make sacrifices to become great, you never need to compromise your character.

The stories and perspectives VJ and Gabriel share in this podcast can be applied to any life domain to become the best version of yourself. Find your path and use it to live life to the fullest.

Find more from VJ and Gabriel through their gym - Conquest.

More of VJ’s story and competition history can be found on BJJ Heroes.

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Lara ”LJ” Johnson is the founder of the Global GRIT System, a published author of the bestselling book “Hunt or be Hunted,” an international keynote speaker, a competitive Hyrox athlete, an executive coach, and a 9x Stevie Award winner to include “Woman of the Year,” “Female Executive of the Year,” and “Female Entrepreneur of the Year.”

What she has overcome in her life, however, is even more impressive than what she has achieved.

In this conversation, we discuss:

* Lara’s incredible story

* Grit components and types

* Pillars of health

* Adversity and trauma

* And much more

As a gift, Lara offered her Global GRIT Guide for free if you text “GRIT” to 33777.

LJ has one of the best personal websites I’ve come across. All of her resources and offerings can be found at: https://officiallaraj.com/.

She’s also very active on LinkedIn.

Her book, “Hunt or be Hunted,” outlines her Global GRIT System while delivering practical strategies to improve yourself and the teams you operate within. An easy read packed full of wisdom, I can’t recommend it enough.

Her passion is intoxicating and it spans beyond her direct work with GRIT Global. She’s a board member of Warrior Rising, a nonprofit organization focused on veterans transitioning out of military service, and a committee member of Dignity Health’s Foundation “Heaven Hummingbirds,” a program that offers various kinds of support for parents who have lost children.

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Shane Copeland is the writer behind the fantastic Substack newsletter - In Contrast. A man who has lived through many of life’s extremes, his work illuminates the benefit of the fulfilling middle between self-indulgent chaos and rigid order, specifically in the areas of fitness and nutrition.

As entertaining as he is wise, Shane understands the nuance. I constantly look for knowledge from experts who can simplify concepts while creating practical applications. Shane thrives in this area while also being hilarious.

In this conversation, we discussed:

* His powerfully transformative story

* Embracing life through exploration

* Leaving your comfort zone

* Limitations of discipline

* Intentionality

* Alignment

* Effective coaching

* And much more

I can’t recommend Shane’s platform, In Contrast, enough. In it, you will find thoughtful essays on practical approaches to fitness, nutrition, and life.

I brought up one of the best podcasts I’ve listened to between Shane Adam PT. Find it here:

The website Workaway was mentioned several times in our conversation. This is an online community that anyone can use to find exchange, volunteer, and/or house sitting opportunities around the world. Embracing life’s unknowns and using this platform led to Shane meeting his wife and becoming the man he is today. More info here:

Some of my favorite posts from Shane:

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Chris Wojcik is a professional jiu-jitsu athlete, published author, and extremely wise man.

At only 28 years old, he’s had success at the highest level in the biggest grappling competitions, recently was on the winning team of a $1M tournament, is known to be one of the best leg lockers in the world, and even has a move named after him - the Woj Lock.

You rarely find an elite athlete, especially one still on the rise with the success he’s already had, that is willing to be as open, honest, and vulnerable as Chris.

For as talented as he is, it’s his character and curiosity that make him most impressive.

In this conversation, we discussed:

* His evolution as a professional grappler and writer

* The power of consistency

* Mental health

* Resilience

* Skill development

* Success through failure

* Fear

* Lessons for life from the mat

* And much more

I’ve been a paid member to his Substack for over a year and have received tremendous value both from his content on grappling and writing. Highly recommend checking out his work:

His book, A Grappler’s Diary, is outstanding. For anyone who enjoys or is interested in jiu-jitsu, this book is an easy and insightful read.

Some of my favorite posts of Chris include:

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Dr. Julie Gurner is one of the world’s leading executive performance coaches. With more than 15 years in the arena, she has become a credible expert who helps high performers become exceptional.

In this conversation, Julie delivers insights as powerful as her writing. We discuss:

* Her origin story

* Clinical psychology concepts on the spectrum of performance

* The importance of caring

* Prioritizing commitments

* Emotional intelligence

* Cognitive flexibility

* Resilience training

* Psychological pain tolerance

* Compatibility

* Premeditation of future adversity

* Organizational resilience

* And much more

I’ve been a paying member of Dr. Gurner’s Substack account “Ultra Successful” for over a year and it has produced an incredible return on investment in both my personal and professional life. Her weekly posts will transform your mindset, strategies, and skills for approaching all aspects of life for anyone committed to growth. I can’t recommend it enough:

She also has an enormous platform on X where she shares more of her wisdom from over a decade of supporting the most successful people in the world:

Some of my favorite posts from Ultra Successful:

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Some conversations will stay with you for a lifetime. I just had one with one of my favorite living authors, Donald J. Robertson. No one is better at explaining the connection between ancient philosophy and modern, evidence-based psychotherapy.

There are levels to understanding and integration of concepts just like there are levels to writing. In this discussion, Donald demonstrated why he’s at the top of the heap in both.

Some of the topics we covered include:

* Human resilience

* Stoicism and CBT

* Stoic virtue and core values

* Limitation of strategies without an aligned identity

* Self-awareness and self-efficacy

* Social support

* Impressions of externals and yourself

* Dichotomy of control

* Voluntary hardship/intentional stress

* Acquisition vs application of skills

* Cognitive flexibility and coping flexibility

* Anger and fragility

* Emotional anger vs rational aggression

* Being the example as a parent

* Expressing your feelings and the why behind your actions

* Process vs outcome related goals and feedback

* The benefit of emotional labeling

* And so much more

If I hadn’t had to get my children to swimming lessons, I could have talked to this man for the rest of the day. I feel like he delivered five different master classes relating to resilience in the span of ninety minutes.

A conversation I’ll be listening to again to take notes in order to capture the pearls of wisdom he dropped in each sentence.

Donald is one of the primary reasons I came to Substack in the first place. His account continues to be an endless source of knowledge that I do my best to turn into personal wisdom. Can’t recommend it enough:

Several of his books rank among my favorite. Each one brings its own angle and insights. They’re all worth adding to your bookshelf if you read philosophy in any way:

Here are some of my favorite posts of his on Substack:

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Danny Cieniewicz is my brother-in-law and a man who has significantly impacted my perspective and life in countless ways.

His energy, passion, faith, character, and love of life continuously motivate me to be a better man.

I’ve written on an experience with a close friend who lost his daughter as well as my own experiences with losing babies through miscarriage that have changed me.

Danny and his incredible wife, Carly, have their own devastating yet inspirational story of loss that illuminates the power of family, faith, and fortitude.

This was one of the most impactful discussions I’ve ever had.

Danny courageously reflects on the most difficult trial in his life while providing perspective-setting insights we all can consider before our own inevitable trials.

Along with his personal story of losing his stillborn son, we discussed:

* Family and support systems

* Trauma response

* Signs

* Love

* Faith

* Connection

* Grief

* Gifts

* Limitations of preparation

* Compatibility

* Presence

* Control over your story

* Perspective

We can’t change the past but we can definitely choose how to frame it.

We can’t control the future but we can definitely prepare to meet it.

This episode provides mental, physical, and spiritual considerations to both frame the past and effectively meet the uncertain future.

Danny provides insight and wisdom that can help anyone resiliently respond to life’s most challenging forms of adversity.

I will cherish this conversation for the rest of my life.

Resilient Mental State is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.