Bob Dixon talks with a retired Army officer and avid mountain biker, David Haines. David shares his remarkable journey of resilience after being injured in Baghdad, his passion for coaching youth mountain biking, and his commitment to community well-being. Discover how David’s military leadership experience informs his work with young athletes, his insights on transitioning from military to civilian life, and the importance of finding purpose beyond the paycheck.

Key Takeaways:

• The importance of resilience in the face of adversity. His ability to recover from injury and find solace in cycling emphasizes the power of mindset, support systems, and finding purpose. 
• Finding purpose-driven work and adapting communication styles are key aspects of successful transitions.
• The universal applicability of military leadership principles, including the importance of clear purpose, taking care of your team, holding people to standards, empowering subordinates, and making decisions at the appropriate level.

David Haines is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel with 30 years of service as both an enlisted Soldier and commissioned officer. Severely wounded in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2006, David completed his military career as the battalion commander for the Fort Knox Warrior Transition Battalion from 2010 to 2012, where he led efforts to provide care and support to wounded, injured, and ill servicemembers and their families.

Following his retirement, David continued his work in leadership development, working for Veteran-focused nonprofits, serving as a Department of the Army Civilian within the Leader Development Division at The US Army Human Resources Command (HRC); a Project Management Professional (PMP) certified consultant for HRC, Cadet Command, and V Corps with Booz Allen Hamilton; and a leadership development contractor with the United Arab Emirates Land Forces, where he helped design their NCO Career Progression system.

An avid lifelong cyclist, his experience as a wounded warrior has enabled him to ride mountain bikes with former President Bush numerous times and be featured in the former President’s book, Portraits of Courage.

Today, David channels his passion for leadership, coaching, and community service into his roles as president of a local nonprofit, Greenspace Inc., a founding board member and coach developer for the Kentucky Interscholastic Cycling League, and head coach of the Hardin-Elizabethtown Stampede, Kentucky’s 2024 state champion mountain bike team. He is also establishing Heartland Cycling Development, an organization dedicated to fostering outdoor activity, teamwork, and personal growth for youth and families through cycling.

Quotes from this episode:

“I think an important part of it is getting out there and really, you know, what I lost sense of is I think a connection with purpose. It’s easy to have a purpose in the military, right? And, you know, I got out and I was focused on the paycheck and getting a good job and, and really didn’t have the connection with the purpose that I did in the military.”

“I think every person needs real connection, and, and I think it’s getting harder and harder as we get more technologically connected to do that. So you have to build this ability to put your phone down and get out and get in touch with people, get in touch with the outdoors and get active.”

“Leaders make more leaders…it’s easy to be a textbook expert in leadership, but then, you know actually executing it is, is the hard part, right? And sticking to it. So, like, we all know the principles, but sometimes we, we forget because, you know, our, our feelings or our pride or whatever else may be involved.”

Resources Mentioned:

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