Todd Wilcox has a fascinating career journey, truly living the American rags-to-riches story. Born in a low-income neighborhood in South Tampa with a single mother Todd grew up helping raise his siblings when a mentor changed his life. Convinced that education was his path out he earned an Army ROTC scholarship to the University of Tampa. Upon graduating, he went on to serve as a rifle platoon leader with the 101st Airborne Division during Operation Desert Storm. Upon promotion to Captain, Todd volunteered to transfer to the US Army Special Forces branch, and after earning his Green Beret, he commanded a Special Forces A-team in counter-terrorism in East Asia. After 8 years of military service, he resigned to accept a position with the CIA to join the global war on terrorism. Todd left the CIA in 2006 to create Patriot Defense Group (PDG), a defense contracting company dedicated to serving those who defend America. Since then, Todd has started multiple other related businesses and has been recognized by the Wall Street Journal and through awards such as the Orlando Business Journal “Veterans of Influence” and the Ernst and Young "Entrepreneur of the Year." Todd serves on the board of the National Defense University Foundation, the Rand Corporation Center for Middle East Public Policy and the Orlando Economic Partnership. He has a degree in Finance from the University of Tampa and is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Presidents Program. Todd is also an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO).

Show Notes:

3:00 – Todd shares how to prepare as an entrepreneur for future threats and the importance of instilling resilience in yourself. 5:00 – Todd gives insight into the events that are happening in the Middle East and Ukraine. 9:00 – Bob asks Todd to share what he has learned throughout his career as he has accomplished a myriad of different disciplines. Todd shares his upbringing, beginning in Tampa. He opens up about the key learnings that he believes contributed to his future success. 15:00 – Todd touches on the culture shock that came with joining the army. He then talks about the biggest inflection point that he noticed moving from a young army officer to special forces and the challenges that accompanied these transitions. 23:00 – Hollywood vs. Reality– Todd touches on the differences he sees in his career in the agency as opposed to the way it is depicted in media that we consume. “It would be a really boring show if they showed you everything that actually went on.” 28:00—Todd discusses how much of Patriot Defense is working with the US government versus commercial services. Todd defines “open source intelligence” and “big data analytics.” “The amount of data that is publicly available is kind of scary.” 35:00 – Todd gives his advice as an intelligence officer to traveling business executives and young people looking to limit digital exhaust, those wanting to be more mindful of their data. 41:00 – The popular topic of TikTok is brought up as Todd discusses his thoughts on whether or not the app is tracking and collecting your data as you use the app. He shares that he doesn’t know what the firewall is and doesn’t trust it. 48:00 – Bob asks Todd to delve into his unique experiences. He shares how he took the leap to pursue hybrid training with multiple organizations. 53:00 – Entrepreneurship is growing rapidly. Todd shares his advice on where he believes young people who are wanting to pursure entrepreneurship should focus their time and energy on this journey. He believes that you should pursue a business in what you know best and are passionate about. “Do what you know best. Build your business around what you know.” 58:00 – Todd talks about what originally motivated him to pursue making a difference in politics in Washington DC. 1:03:00 – From his pursuit in politics, Todd shares the skills and insights he adopted from his experiences. He learned his limits and how to manage his time, energy, and focus. 1:07:00 – Bob asks Todd what words of encouragement or advice that he would give if he were in the position to give a State of the Union Address.

Taking the Leap
Episode 62
April 18, 2024

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