The Prepared Mindset Podcast

Chris Aboussafy is a retired Law Enforcement officer with a unique background - having spent the first three years of his career in Canada, then move to the U.S. to spend the thirty years in Nevada and Phoenix. It brings a rare perspective, and experiences that hold a lot of value. Chris spent time working with multiple federal task forces, and rebuilding the fugitive apprehension team while in Phoenix. Today, he runs Bishop One - a training company that takes the lessons learned first hand, and helps officers today be more successful, while reducing risk. Through implementing things...

Hard to believe it's already November, and time for another SITREP episode. On the plus side, at least we're nearly past the political mailer season and can finally go back to normal mail! With the ramifications of this mid-term election being so great, considering the momentum through the year fighting the NFA, we have to talk about it. There are large stakes here with the election outcomes in many states, including my home, Michigan. It would be a shame to see all the momentum and the large victories this year all go to waste in the states that are...

Tourniquets are one of the most common and essential pieces of equipment within our community. The amount of preventable deaths due to blood loss justifies this. Snakestaff Systems took this a step further, and made it their mission to get a tourniquet out into the world that would help not only enable those that face mortal situations in the military and law enforcement realms, but the everyday carry and well trained civilian audiences too. The ETQ they developed has won over the hearts of many with its effectiveness and small form factor. I sit down with Jefferson Colledge, the...

2026 has been a year of major, foothold victories, for the 2A communities battle to restore our rights, and push back the overreach of the National Firearms Act. The latest victory comes in from an announcement by ATF director Robert Cekada indicating that his agency will halt enforcement of rules on short-barrel rifles, short-barrel shotguns, and suppressors. While this is more a half measure, than a true victory, it's important we celebrate it. Also, acknowledge that even though this is more forward progress in ten months than we've had in the last ten years, it cannot stop here if the...

I got a bunch more questions from all of you, my audience, and we're sitting down to go through them! From underrated gear, to the rapidly diminishing faith the community has in gun-tubers and influencers, there's a lot in this one. I love getting the opportunity to explore these questions - it allows me to directly speak on the subjects and unique topics that matter most to all of you. While obviously, I can't guarantee that I'll have the most complete answer, or even that I'll be the best source of information on a given subject, I absolutely can...

Medical training is one of the most overlooked parts of preparation - including by us, here on the podcast. To remedy this, I sit down with Joe, the owner of Buckeye Tac Med, for a dive into medical training, his background, the community, and more. We dig into tactical medicine, and more specifically which parts of it are applicable to folks like you and I - the tactically minded civilian, who wants to be better prepared. Truly, the medical skillset has much less to do with the supplies we carry, than the knowledge we have. From being able to...

One of the largest, and I'll add most upsetting trends I've seen within our social media space over the past few months, is the accepted trend of using a gaslighting, and victim mentality, as a rebuttal for accountability and discussion. This community is one, I assume, where one can seek out information and mentorship. Where a individual can come to develop their own skillsets, learn from their peers, and build lasting relationships. It's honestly a big part of why many of us have stuck around. Lately however, it seems there's an ever-growing portion of our community who has pivoted...

If you've built out a full kit - plate carrier, tactical belt, helmet, etc. you know that the gear in our community is a true investment. Many times, the investment is too great for folks, and they're left to try and make the best of a rough situation. However, all of this changed a few years ago with the introduction of the Vakarian from Rebels Raiders - an "all in one" kit that provided everything a prepared citizen would need, at a very attainable cost. To dive into this effort and understand the mission behind the company, we sit...

When we talk about building skill, creating your "toolkit" as a prepared individual, do we really understand what we're chasing after? Civilians here in the United States are afforded many, many more opportunities than those in other countries, and often don't exercise them to the greatest extent they can. It's not for lack of desire, but I think, because we've let social media, and to some capacity, consumerism, drive us on our journey. The reality is that the conversation is much larger, and more all-encompassing that what we probably realize. While yes, the term "Gunfighter" implies that you'll use...

Joe Farewell is a former law enforcement officer, and current competitive shooter who is also the owner and founder of Farewell Firearms Training. Having spent time working on various units and task forces, as well as ERT, while also winning numerous awards in the competitive shooting community, Joe is a subject expert with a wealth of knowledge not only on shooting, but on how to develop the supporting skillsets. Working with top level shooters in the competitive community, training military and law enforcement, Joe has a lot to share because he's seen a lot, tested a lot, and most...

Lasers are cool. They're even cooler when they're pushing the cutting edge on technology and the impact that it can create on the battlefield. Kirk Foreman is the Innovation Brand Manager at B.E. Meyers, quite possibly the top laser developer and manufacturer in the world. As a avid recreational shooter and night vision enjoyer, Kirk gets to do a job that many of us dream about and would love to have. Working on, developing, and testing some of the absolute most high speed equipment that's out on the market today. We dive into the history of B.E...

Happy Labor Day! As we head into September, there's been a couple key developments worth talking about. While there was a major victory in the fight for 2A rights, specifically suppressor ownership, and the battle to make it more accessible. There's also been a landmark ruling that could unfortunately set a dangerous precident in AI, and add tremendous difficulty to the battle against child exploitation and trafficking. The Sunday SITREP is our monthly opportunity to talk about important current events, and their impacts, both potential and actual, on our culture and community. As always, I have a lot of...

Its been a long six months since my last conversation with Jack, but we're finally able to get some time, and catch up! Guerrilla Tactical, if you aren't familiar, is a kydex holster manufacturer based out of the pacific northwest. They've earned a outstanding reputation for not only fantastic products, but great support. In a sector of the industry that seems to be the most crowded, Jack and his team are consistently able to stand out, by offering improved products, and solutions to problems others haven't quite been able to solve. We dive into this talking about some of...

Human Trafficking remains the most lucrative, and most evil business practice the world over. The fight against it is a large one, involving many different efforts, from countless organizations. One of the most overlooked pieces in that fight is the education, preparation, awareness, and prevention efforts from entities like The Protector Group. While many popular shows and movies may paint a picture that indicates that the war against human, specifically child trafficking is being won, the reality is far more disappointing. This week I sit down with Ryan, the creator of The Protector Group, to hear his story, discuss...

Finding balance might be one of the singular greatest pursuits that a family unit can have. Between jobs, expenses, events, and all the other little things that make life as fun, and as frustrating as it can be, you need to be able to balance it all. Take all that whirlwind and chaos, and add in a small business, and it can seem insurmountable. For Joey and Jen, starting Moral Decay Patchwork in 2022 was a step in the direction that would get them away from running a business - they thought. Fast forward to today, and they're successful balancing...

Suppressors. Most of us have them, we all want them. It's technology that at its core, is simple, not exactly complex. However, when we start chasing key performance metrics, and seeking to maximize the benefits, the conversation changes drastically. Sean Bernstein is one of the owners of Irregular Design Group and actually taught himself CAD, so he could innovate, and create a new suppressor. But not just a new suppressor, a can that changes the perception of how we have to approach and tackle the problem. From new materials, to the science behind gas management, and more, there's a...

Over the past week, we've had a couple major events take place. Impactful enough in both instances to warrant a separate edition of the Sunday SITREP to give them the focus and time they deserve. In this iteration, I dive into the potentially dangerous outcome of some of the primary races here in Michigan, as well as other states, and share some good news on the legal front thanks to the amazing folks of the Silencer Shop Foundation who just won big against the ATF. Goods news, with some bad news, but all around worthwhile information, and discussion. As...

It's been several years, but I'm finally doing another grab bag episode! I get several questions a month from the audience, both here on the pod, on our YouTube, and on Instagram. While I do my best to get a complete answer to that individual, I don't always share those conversations. Not because I don't want to, but because I'm just busy. My new committment is to bring those questions forward in more regular "grab bag" episodes where I can take the time to more completely answer questions than in a DM, and can also share those questions for...

The August edition of the SITREP is here! In this episode, I share some of the lessons learned at our most recent night shoot. The importance of setting up your range or stage while you still have amount of daylight, as well as the realities of equipment failure on the range. While you can't always do a lot about it, it's a reality of using electronic optics, infrared aiming lasers, and of course, analog night vision devices. Additionally, I take the time to talk just a bit about the most recent events between congress and Dr. Fauci, as he...

John Scheuermann is one half of Redline Consulting, the Media Manager for Modlite, and a dedicated student of performance shooting. Through hosting low-light workshops with Redline, his own personal training and learning, as well as obviously his role at Modlite, John has a lot of knowledge on not only white lights as tools, but around their applications within practical shooting, as well as self defense. We dive into lumens and candela, the conversation which still dominates many discussions, as well as light placement on the gun, understanding controls, and more. Having the tool alone, is not enough to make...

Jason Cheney is an Air Force Veteran, and former LE officer who now works with the night vision company, GPNVG. Jason and I were able to connect in person at SHOT show this year, and are finally sitting down for a conversation on the application of Night Vision devices in Law Enforcement, and some of the challenges that come with those tools for that job. While in a lot of cases there's ideas and assumptions on how different the use cases might be between civilian training or recreation, and law enforcement use, it's really a lot of the same...

The 2A training community is one of diverse backgrouns, both from the trainers, as well as the students that attend their courses. As we've intermixed social media and influencers to that equation, the whole ecosystem that orbits firearms training, has only gotten more confusing. As we see more and more training companies in the community pop up, with AI created ads, and exciting social media content, I'm finding that there's less and less accountability amongs both students, and the trainers. For years we point the finger at students not spending enough, not taking enough courses, as if that was...

Its been over two years, but I finally have a chance to sit down and talk nylon with Dan again! If you haven't heard of Dynamic Principles, they're an outstanding nylon company that makes belts, mag pouches, placards, plate carriers, and more. Dan and I talk about our shared experience at SHOT show this past year, and get into the impact of the new UCAS designs within the market, as well as the other trends driving the community and our gear over the past couple years. We also dug into the product lifecycle behind many of our favorite products...

Happy 4th of July! With the holiday comes a new month, and another SITREP discussion. This time around, we're jumping into the wildly concerning, and somewhat fascinating conversation around public surveillance, the 4th amendment, and Flock cameras. With a recent 5-4 Supreme Court ruling it Chattree v. United States, there has been a pivotal change in how digital tools can be used against citizens, and we're here to talk about it. While we certainly aren't getting any less digitally enabled as a society, we are thankfully seeing some stronger adjustment to the risks that digital tools present. As always...

As we approach the 4th of July, our Independence Day, I think it's an extremely appropriate time to have the discussion around the prepared citizen, why "staying in your lane" is a terrible idea, and the history of armed civilians and their impact. From the very inception of our great country, the capable citizen has been one of the most vital parts of our country, and our culture. In today's community, we're often looked down upon, and mostly for good reason. While we have a lot to offer, and own a tremendous piece of the battle for our independence...

CQB and the arguments around it may never truly go away. As monotonous as they may seem, many will provide fantastic learning opportunities for those eager to understand. To dive into the concepts behind structure clearance, or as you may know it, combat clearance, i'm joined by Ben Wallick. Ben is a former SEAL and Contractor, and is also the owner of Vanilla Gorilla Security, a training company based in Illinois. We absolutely dive into the subject at hand, talk about the flexibility required between both dynamic and deliberate methodologies, the importance of asking the question "why do we...

As we get older, as we all work harder on improving our health, our strength, our fitness, it seems like we get injured more and more. How to truly meet our fitness goals, and how we recover from those injuries, are where we see actual success and failure. After a couple years now, I finally catch up with Alex, and sit down to talk about his work with coach within the tactical space, recovering and coping with serious injuries, and get a healthy dose of perspective on personal fitness. As a former serviceman for over a decade, and now...

It's been a few years since Austin was last on the pod, and a handful of months since we were able to connect at SHOT show this year. We finally have a break in our schedules to sit down, and dive into everything from Radios and Communications, to Night Vision, group based planning and training, overall preparedness, and more. Austin is certainly a subject expert when it comes to communications and is an instructor with Mojave Repeater, while also running his own business in the 2A community. There's a lot to unpack in this discussion, looking at GMRS radios...

Gun violence prevention. Potentially the most over leverage political ideal in the history of modern politicking. It remains an omnipresent issue within every discussion, debate, and campaign, and certainly can be relied on for every election and midterm that rolls around. Unfortunately, as that time draws near, we here in Michigan are dealing with this once more as Governor Whitmer signed another executive order, to create another task force, to "address" the "ongoing crisis" of gun violence. There's always so much behind the scene that seems to motivate these moves and while it's hard to predict exactly why it's...

Are you really committed to living more prepared? Or is this simply something you take interest in as a hobby? While there are degress to both, I think most of us read those questions, and would like to be included among those counted as "committed" but in the back of our minds fear we are only truly interested. This is a interesting discussion, as I think it forces you to contemplate choices made, past, present, and of course, future. Our ecosystem is filled with influencers, trainers, students, all with varying backgrounds and goals. Regardless of which you are, I...

If you've seen any action movie, ever, you love explosive breaching. There's something incredible about seeing a special forces soldier or SEAL place a charge, and blow a door. While most of us don't have the means or the access to try such things, we can always learn about them and position ourselves for greater success in our futures. To dive into this conversation, I'm catching up with Steve, owner of Chimera Concepts and breaching instructor for Core Vision. We spend some time touching on the logic and rationale behind shotgun breaching, but then dive all the way in...

Are we seeing Gun-tube die before our very eyes? This has become a wildy popular topic over the past week or two, and I thought it deserved its own conversation. For better or for worse, the community has been driven by digital content creators for the past decade, and in some cases longer. Information shared, inspiration sparked, goals set, myths disproven, and all because we had the tools available to connect to each other through the various platforms. However, taking an objective look at things in 2026, we've certainly fallen from grace, and definitely morphed into something uglier, and far...

Gear. For better or worse, it drives a huge part of our community, and in many ways, are the tools that enable us for success, or failure. There's more and more options available to us every day, and while it definitely can be exhausting, it's certainly worth talking about the trends, the pitfalls, the truths, and the lies. In this episode, I catch up with Walsh, of Thin Line Defense, who has a depth of knowledge and lots of experience evaluating, testing, and reviewing gear. We dive into all sorts of stuff from the truth behind BARRY compliance, materials...

Buying NODs is probably one of the most confusing processes in our community. Understanding the new options that are available almost every month, as well as the plethora of secondhand devices, can be an almost impossible maze to navigate. To try and address what I think is the most critical part of a positive night vision purchase, intensifier tube selection, I'm sitting down once again with Shane Sharp and Ty Morgan of Terrace Unity Solutions. We get into the common myths behind the different tubes on the market and dig into why brand name alone will never be enough...

The May SITREP is here, and with it the unfortunate news and impact to consumers, of the failure of Spirit Airlines. Additionally, we have the recent attempt on the President at the White House Correspondents dinner, and a very recent surge in gas prices. As civilians in the continental United States, we have been getting absolutely hammered the last several weeks with price increases at the gas pumps, and the last several years with post-pandemic price increases and supply decreases. Things are very tough for so many of us right now, and there's simply not much that can be...

Priorities of Work. While this term/title gets applied most commonly to close quarters battle and structure clearance, I think it's a very appropriate lable for this weeks conversation. As men, as husbands, as heads of households, it is our responsbility to care for our home, our spouse, our children. The decisions we make, the positions we place our families in, are our primary responsibilities. While this isn't a new concept by any stretch, its one that's commonly forgotten. It's easily leveraged for justification for gear and training, however when it comes down to what we truly do to...

Many of us have grown up hunting. Some of us have learned it in pursuit of greater preparedness. Still, how to butcher and harvest eludes so many that it's its own industry in many parts of our country, during hunting seasons. I sit down with Jason Nauert, or "Jason the Butcher" as many of you may know him, to talk about his work with the military for combat sustainability, teaching butchering skills, and obviously, the importance of this all in the greater conversation of self sustainability. We get into the long-term effects of a M.R.E. heavy diet...

While the AR platform can be assembled easily, I think many of us know that while almost everyone can put it together, there's a different process all together, for truly building one. Matt Patruno is the owner and co-founder of Two Grunts Inc., a Michigan based rifle company. As a former Marine, and a former Police Officer, Matt knows the importance of a reliable work rifle. From material sciences, to metallurgy, to understanding what the label "mil-spec" really means, Matt and I get into a lot. There's truly a science and a detailed knowledge that he puts into every...

Lantern Rescue is a Counter Human Trafficking organization, founded in 2020, that helps fight trafficking across the globe. From providing assistance to local law enforcement, to assisting with legislative and prosecutorial practices, Lantern is able to contribute by creating sustainable change in the constant battle against trafficking. In this discussion, I sit down with Lantern's founder, Korrin, a lawyer and former Marine, to talk about the mission behind all of the work, but also to dispell some myths and misconceptions, while bringing more visibility and reality to the conversation. As the world continues to change in an increasingly electronic age...

Happy Easter everyone! With the turn of the calendar into April, comes another edition of the SITREP. For the first time in a while I have some current developments to share with Prepared Mindset and our YouTube channel, as well as obviously taking the time to get into a few political happenings. Mostly notably, the very recent dismissal of Pam Bondi as the Attorney General of the United States. This comes just a handful of weeks after the dismissal of Kristi Noem, who was another prominent cabinet member in the media, and perceived to be a key part of...