Life on the X shares strategies used by the world’s highest performers. In this guide, you will discover tactics that elite athletes, military special operators, and successful business leaders use to thrive under pressure and deliver world-class results.

You can triumph when you are deliberate in how you prepare for, execute, and assess your actions in the most important moments in your life. By learning the skills and methods of top-performers, you can meet the X with courage and confidence.

Are you ready to bring your A game to life?

In the SEAL Teams, the X refers to the most critical and dangerous point of the operation; fast roping from a helicopter onto the rooftop of an enemy building, a coordinated attack on an enemy compound, or operating deep behind enemy lines. This is the point of NO RETURN where a SEAL must be at their best.

No matter where and no matter the circumstance, it’s critical that SEALs perform at their best “on the X” in each of these moments.

While in the boardroom instead of the battlefield it may not be life or death, but there are still critical moments where the pressure is on, and we absolutely need to bring our A-game. 

When the stakes are this high, we must be focused, resilient, and well prepared.  

As the Co-Creator of The U.S. Navy Warrior Toughness program, Stephen teaches how the same techniques used by the Navy & SEALs, elite athletes, and top-performing CEOs operators can be applied to leading & developing high-performance teams in business as well as by individuals in their personal and professional lives.

In this presentation, Stephen shares proven performance psychology techniques and training methods used by the world’s most elite performers and shows how it can easily be applied to any high-pressure business situation or personal event. Each presentation will be customized around the audience’s specific goals and challenges

After you learn to perform on the X, you and your teams will not only learn to face challenge and adversity with courage and resilience, but you’ll also learn concrete methods that will allow for:  Increased Employee Engagement, Stronger Collaboration, High-Performance Under Pressure, Agility, Stress Management, Increased EQ, Proven Preparation and Rehearsal Methods for Important Events, Proven Team and Individual Lessons Learned Framework, Adaptability & Change Management

Takeaways:

• Learn how to develop to true resilience in the face of adversity and set-back

• Face the most pressing life and business challenges head on

• Execute with agility and flexibility when everything is on the line

• Develop a deliberate process to study lessons learned in preparation for what’s next

• Implement effective strategies for leading teams through dynamic change

Sample Workshop Format:

• Opening story and Commit content

• Purpose and personal philosophy 

• Objectives and goals

• Obstacle forecasting

• What are some potential obstacles to our success?  Daily and long-term

Story and Prepare content:

• Performance Psychology skills

• Skill development practical

• Recalibrate-breathing exercise/Breathing habit training

Story and Execute content:

• Situational Awareness

• Variable Focus

• Agility/Flexibility 

• Scenario Discussion on above content

Story and Reflect content:

• Your process for: Assess, Analyze, Reflect

• Giving and receiving feedback

• Body Scan or Progressive muscle relaxation exercise

Closing Comments and wrap-up

“Steve’s presentation was entertaining, riveting and inspiring. His speech left a lasting impression with our entire audience. We look forward to partnering again in the future.”

• V.P. Fuel Sales & Marketing ǀ Parent Petroleum, Inc.

“Stephen is a phenomenal keynote speaker! His experience with the Navy SEALs and his ability to relate that to civilian life through stories and insights is one of a kind. He’s also a pleasure to work with and a great guy.”

• Head of Sales, Wealth Management Solutions, Schroders

“Stephen’s talk was much needed and truly motivating. Thank you again for sharing your story and your insights on how to stay motivated & productive. Your content was easy to follow, and the prompts in the chat helped people actively reflect.”

• Global Sales Training Specialist, Spotify

“Steve Drum’s energetic and motivating presentation on his experience as a Navy SEAL and “Warrior Toughness” trainer demonstrated how preparedness, collaboration, mindfulness and execution are skills needed to achieve your personal best in high stakes situations – a mindset that is increasingly important as companies look to deliver innovative solutions for their customers.”

• Head of Programs Zurich North America

“I recently had Steve speak at our annual Sales kick-off. Steve’s presentation was engaging, spoke to the focus areas for Accertify and really resonated with our organization. I was really impressed with the time that Steve took to get to know me and the context for which I was asking him to present. One the day of his presentation he turned-up several hours ahead of his presentation and stayed to mingle and answer questions afterwards. Steve is a powerful speaker who imparted meaningful and well thought-out messages to my team. A class act in all respects!”

• V.P. Global Sales and Partnership, Accertify

“Steve’s (virtual) presentation was thought-provoking and tremendously inspiring. From lessons learned over two decades as a Navy Seal, Steve provided our audience with the tools and tactics necessary to achieve and sustain high performance as leaders. Steve is a must-see presenter for those looking for inspiration, motivation, and ideas on how to perform your best and face adversity”

• Regional Vice President, Hartford Funds

“I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Steve Drum present his strong message on commitment, preparation, execution and reflection multiple times. Steve’s presentation style and delivery are both engaging and captivating. He will leave you thinking differently about your approach, your mindset and how you deliver on results. Steve’s humility, realistic and proven techniques will help you and your teams perform better.”

• Director, Dept. of Defense CDW-G

“Over the past four years I have interviewed over 300 people on leadership. I just heard Steve speak and he is #1 on my list! He effortlessly taught me to apply what he learned during 27 years in the SEAL teams to my life and organization. His framework of Intentionality, Proficiency, Agility and Accountability is brilliant, simple to apply and Steve provided tools that were immediately actionable.”

• CEO, Beyond Influence

“I first heard Steve speak as he was entering retirement from his 27 year career as a Navy SEAL. Although I was interested in hearing his fascinating experiences and stories, I was doubtful I would see how they related to me. Boy was I wrong! His method of linking each story to his various leadership insights made them both inspiring and practical at the same time. Steve challenged me to strive to be a better leader and gave me the tools to get there.”

• Owner, Gwen Borner Consulting

“I recently participated in a virtual presentation led by Stephen. His professional background with the Navy Seals is inspiring. And then how he uses that as background to help create high performing teams is very relevant for any business leader. I highly recommend Stephen if you are looking for someone with a fresh and innovative perspective on team building.”

• V.P. Application Engineering, Waystar

“I had the honor of attending a virtual presentation led by Stephen recently for our team and key clients. Many people are getting burned out on webinars, but Stephen brought a unique approach leveraging his background as a Navy Seal which was very inspiring. He leveraged his Navy Seal experience to guide us on how to create high performing teams and shared suggestions on how to be a high performing leader and individual. I highly recommend Stephen if you are looking for someone with a fresh and innovative perspective.”

• Director of Enterprise Sales, Magenic

“It gives me great pleasure to highly recommend Stephen Drum as an exceptional speaker. Steve was our lead speaker on the first morning of our 56th Annual Conference in Chicago last week. Steve was prompt, easy to work with and communicative prior to the conference and kept the interest of our delegates with an excellent presentation on Using the Warrior Mindset to Meet All of Life’s Challenges - Performing on the X. While Steve began his talk with stories of his service as a Navy SEAL Master Chief, he was able to connect his experiences to any professional setting. Therefore, both our Veterans and other service members could relate, as well as those who had never served in the military. It was the perfect mix.

Steve filled the General Session room with positive energy and a dynamic presence, and he kept the attention of 250 people for 30 minutes with an impressive presentation.

Thank you, Stephen, for starting our conference on a very high note! Well done.”

• Conference Manager DCUC

“I’ve had the privilege of hearing Steve Drum present multiple times now, and each time I have walked away with a new valuable lesson. Steve brings a unique vantage point that can’t be duplicated by other corporate speakers, and as a result he garners instant credibility with his audience. Most of us can only sit back and listen in awe when Steve shares stories from his esteemed Navy SEAL career as we’ve never faced anything even remotely similar. However, Steve has a natural ability to translate his experiences for the average listener, and to distill the lesson from each down to an actionable take-away. Steve allows all of us to benefit from his years of training by offering his strategies around preparation and execution, and thereby enabling each of us to learn how to excel in our own pursuits. I highly recommend engaging Steve to come speak with your team! “

• Vice President Product and Partner Management, CDW

“If you are looking for an impactful and ridiculously inspiring keynote speaker, I highly recommend Steve Drum. I have attended many sales conferences and have had the pleasure of listening to a variety of keynote speakers, but Steve's was different. He left a lasting impression. It has been three weeks since listening to Steve's talk and by this time, I would expect his message to be drifting away amidst the bustle of daily life. However, instead I find myself regularly reflecting on the stories Steve told whether I am preparing to walk into a high stakes client meeting or helping my daughter with her homework. One doesn't have to be a Navy Seal to recognize the importance of mindfulness, emotional regulation and discipline and the role that plays in every area of life. Steve articulated the importance of having a high-performance mindset and how to get there through planning and visualization. Steve shared personal stories on and off the field with authenticity and compassion. He has a wonderful sense of storytelling combined with humor and sentiment. I highly recommend Steve to any organization that wants to inspire their people through a meaningful, effective and inspirational speaker.”

• Co-Host of the Leadership Podcast | Executive Coach