Field Notes

June 17, 2026 3 min read

This Father's Day, one book your husband will actually read

Gretchen wrote the foreword to my parenting book.We have been divorced for over ten years. We raised three kids together across different cities, different schools, different seasons of life that neither of us planned for. She’s an amazing mom and co-parent. When I finally finished writing Puddle Jumpers she was the first person I asked to write the opening pages.She... Gretchen wrote the foreword to my parenting book.We have been divorced for over ten years. We raised three...

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June 16, 2026 8 min read

I Left the Navy SEALs Broken. New York Fixed That. Now the Knicks Are Reminding All of Us Why.

I want to tell you something about New York City that I have never said out loud before.When I lost my best friend Glen Doherty in 2012 , I realized I was not okay. I had buried a lot of trauma of what I’d seen in war, the friends I’d lost, and when I lost Glen, the weight crippled me,... I want to tell you something about New York City that I have never said out loud before.When...

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June 10, 2026 4 min read

The moment I almost protected my daughter from a great life lesson

She was only eight years old.The taekwondo studio in Paso Robles smelled like sweat and dirty socks. Black mats on the floor, an American flag on the wall, a room full of parents sitting in the back watching their kids get evaluated one by one for the next belt level. Her older brother Jackson had gone first. He ended up... She was only eight years old.The taekwondo studio in Paso Robles smelled like sweat and dirty socks. Black...

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June 5, 2026 9 min read

Someone Left a 1-Star Review of My Book and I Want to Frame It

I have been shot at in two countries . I have finished Hell Week . I’ve eaten bugs in survival school. Went to the bathroom in a Folgers coffee can in prisoner of war training . None of this prepared me for the intellectually challenged and aggressively un-self-aware Renfreds of the literary world.Renfred found my book on Amazon. Renfred had... I have been shot at in two countries . I have finished Hell Week . I’ve eaten bugs...

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June 2, 2026 14 min read

Post Traumatic Growth in Parenting

I believe that a lot of parents who have been through the most often raise the most resilient kids.I was sixteen years old in Tahiti, with a few hundred dollars, a half-packed bag, and the particular kind of existential dread that arrives when you realize your safety net just evaporated completely, and nobody is coming to help you figure it... I believe that a lot of parents who have been through the most often raise the most resilient...

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May 21, 2026 8 min read

Your Kids Don't Need More of Your Time. They Need More of Your Presence.

On why quality time is not a parenting concept. It is the whole game. And why one intentional day with your child is pricelessMy oldest son graduated from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland in 2024. He walked across that stage, came outside in the sunny centuries-old courtyard among the crowd, found me, and hugged me. It was an... On why quality time is not a parenting concept. It is the whole game. And why one intentional...

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May 18, 2026 2 min read

NY Post Puddle Jumpers Interview: Tough Love

Below is an excerpt from the NY Post’s Sunday edition. -BWWith his new book, “Puddle Jumpers: Powerful Mental Techniques from a Navy SEAL Performance Coach and Father of Three” , he offers tips for a different kind of battlefield: modern parenting.He thinks many moms and dads aren’t doing well by their troops. Despite their best intentions, they’re raising kids who... Below is an excerpt from the NY Post’s Sunday edition. -BWWith his new book, “Puddle Jumpers: Powerful Mental...

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May 15, 2026 6 min read

From the Wall Street Journal: A Former Navy SEAL on How to Raise Confident, Risk-Taking Kids

I wanted to share my recent Wall Street Journal Interview with Pamela Paul …I’ll share some other great podcasts and interviews in the coming weeks. Thank you all for buying or gifting my new book, Puddle Jumpers, and please share this with someone you think it would help. Full Interview from the Wall Street JournalBy Pamela Paul Brandon Webb is... I wanted to share my recent Wall Street Journal Interview with Pamela Paul …I’ll share some other great...

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May 12, 2026 4 min read

The Parking Lot Moment That Changed Everything I Thought I Knew About Raising Kids.

We had just come off the mountain after a long day of skiing. Legs smoked. Everyone ready to get home. And my youngest, Tyler, spotted it in the parking lot.A half-frozen puddle of mud and slush so gnarly it looked like it had its own ecosystem.His face lit up. He started running straight for it with the delight of a... We had just come off the mountain after a long day of skiing. Legs smoked. Everyone ready to...

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May 4, 2026 8 min read

What a Handwritten Postcard From My Daughter Taught Me About Twenty Years of Parenting.

My daughter Madison and her friend, Tali, from grad came to visit me in Lisbon recently. They flew in from London, where they are both studying, and we spent a week doing what I love most when my kids show up here. Good food. Long talks. Movie night and a bit of spoiling. When they left, Madison put a postcard... My daughter Madison and her friend, Tali, from grad came to visit me in Lisbon recently. They flew...

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April 27, 2026 7 min read

AI Is Eating White Collar Jobs From the Bottom Up. Is Your Kid's College Major in the Way?

Kids and school can be tough, and it’s gettin’ tougher! My youngest, Tyler, was on the verge of failing out of eighth grade. I am not talking about a rough semester. I am talking about a kid who had checked out of the system entirely…Turns out he just had a bad teacher and that was affecting him in a negative... Kids and school can be tough, and it’s gettin’ tougher! My youngest, Tyler, was on the verge of...

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April 23, 2026 6 min read

I Sent Two of My Kids to College in the UK. Most Americans Have No Idea What They’re Missing.

My son went to St. Andrews. My daughter studied design at Goldsmiths, University of London. We saved hundreds of thousands of dollars compared to what their American peers paid. Here is exactly how.In 2024, my daughter Madison visited me in Lisbon during her summer break from Goldsmiths, University of London, where she was finishing her design degree. We sat down... My son went to St. Andrews. My daughter studied design at Goldsmiths, University of London. We saved hundreds...

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April 20, 2026 11 min read

Nobody Is Coming to Teach Your Kids About Finance. Except You.

Inflation, student debt, outrageous medical expenses, and a housing market that is starting to look a lot like the movie, The Big Short, all over again…Our kids are inheriting a financial mess in America.Most Americans still talk about the “American Dream,” but the data looks more like an American Nightmare.A few years back, I attended a one-week seminar by a... Inflation, student debt, outrageous medical expenses, and a housing market that is starting to look a lot like...

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April 17, 2026 6 min read

Your Kids Are Swimming in a Sea of Garbage. Here Is How to Teach Them to Swim.

I want to tell you something nobody in your social media feed has the spine to say out loud: the world your kid wakes up to every morning is, in large measure, a professionally engineered slaughterhouse of confidence. Algorithms tuned to outrage.Comment sections that would make a seasoned priest question humanity. Influencers selling manufactured cynicism like it is a lifestyle.... I want to tell you something nobody in your social media feed has the spine to say out...

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April 14, 2026 4 min read

The Art of Raising Leaders

If you want to raise a leader who can walk through fire, you have to stop protecting them from the world and start preparing them for it.As you know from my writing, I’ve always been a proponent of the Puddle Jumper mindset. It is that “ordinary magic” of being allowed to fail, get dirty, and realize you are the one... If you want to raise a leader who can walk through fire, you have to stop protecting them...

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April 7, 2026 4 min read

A Navy SEAL's 3 Tips to Keep Your Family Safe on Vacation

I love extreme family trips. Skiing, SCUBA, travel, and more…Recently I was reading about the skiers who perished in the Tahoe Donner avalanche in February and it became clear that it was a textbook failure in risk mitigation.For those of you unfamiliar, a group of fifteen experienced skiers were on a guided backcountry ski trip near Donner pass in California... I love extreme family trips. Skiing, SCUBA, travel, and more…Recently I was reading about the skiers who perished...

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April 6, 2026 5 min read

How Fun Adventures Keep Your Kids Coming Back to Visit

Right now, you might be surrounded by the scattered blast radius of young kids…stray socks, dirty clothes, half-eaten sandwiches, and the constant glow of screens reflected on your kids faces. But there is a silent, inevitable date approaching. One day soon, the house will be quiet, and the only thing that will determine if your adult children want to spend... Right now, you might be surrounded by the scattered blast radius of young kids…stray socks, dirty clothes, half-eaten...

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March 27, 2026 4 min read

A Father’s Guide to Raising a Confident & Capable Daughter

A lot parents spend too much time trying to protect their kids. Especially the first one. The second? Go ahead and bang your head on the table, you need to learn…haha. Am I right?We see a jagged edge and reach for the foam tape. Some build fences instead of giving kids the gate key and the freedom to roam. Then... A lot parents spend too much time trying to protect their kids. Especially the first one. The second?...

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March 25, 2026 3 min read

The Bubble Trap: Why Safety is Your Child’s Greatest Risk

The world is a rough place, and it doesn’t have a “safety” switch. Then there’s the irony that a lot of parenting advice comes from Madison Avenue’s advertising agencies and people in government pushing policy and opinions on us parents. Most have never had to juggle dirty diapers with no sleep. All while trying to make ends meet and still... The world is a rough place, and it doesn’t have a “safety” switch. Then there’s the irony that...

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March 24, 2026 4 min read

Sometimes Saying "I'm Sorry" Is the Ultimate SEAL Team Move for Your Family

I heard laughing, and then a loud crash and boom that sounded like it came from my guest bathroom.Oh sh*t. I walked out to find Madison running for cover, and my youngest, Tyler , looking guilty. , Tyler, and I at his high school graduation. I told he was big!) I stepped in and took a look in my newly... I heard laughing, and then a loud crash and boom that sounded like it came from my guest...

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