Permission To Speak Freely
Damon and Damo (active duty Command Master Chiefs) share sea stories and have unfiltered conversations about current events, policies, and everyday life as a service member.
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Episodes
Sunday Jun 07, 2026
Sunday Jun 07, 2026
Damon is out this week, but the show rolls on as Damo, Aaron, and CS1 Burns sit down for a wide-ranging conversation covering everything from Navy policy changes and leadership lessons to deployment experiences, career growth, and why Seafood Newburg somehow became part of the discussion. We discuss LTB reviews, Master Chief pay, recruiting concerns surrounding Genesis, the Murph, the new UFC event fitness requirements, PRT alternate cardio, bad day chits, the CNO's recent email on grooming standards, the absence of women selected for Admiral, the relief of an entire triad in Japan, the Warrior Toughness rollout, and changes to evaluations at terminal paygrades. CS1 Burns shares stories about growing up in Wilmington, North Carolina, dealing with the loss of a close friend in high school, his first deployment in Japan, how his views changed as he advanced in rank, and some of the most important leadership lessons he's learned throughout his career. The conversation wraps up with a discussion on radical candor, relationships between Chiefs and First Classes, why leaders should defer to expertise, why different doesn't mean wrong, why failure is sometimes necessary for growth, and this week's Do Better segment featuring a Sailor bypassing the process, a gas station "federal crime" investigation, and a few leadership lessons along the way. These and more topics are covered in this episode.
Resources & Links
No Women Promoted to Admiralhttps://taskandpurpose.com/news/navy-women-promotion-2026/
Entire Triad Relieved in Japanhttps://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2026/06/04/navy-fires-leadership-trio-of-ship-repair-facility-in-japan/
Warrior Toughness Rollout (NAVADMIN 134/26)https://www.mynavyhr.navy.mil/Portals/55/Messages/NAVADMIN/NAV2026/NAV26134.pdf
Periodic Evaluation Changes / Terminal Paygrade (NAVADMIN 132/26)https://www.mynavyhr.navy.mil/Portals/55/Messages/NAVADMIN/NAV2026/NAV26132.pdf
Do you have a “Do Better” that you want us to review on a future episode? Reach out at ptsfpodcast@gmail.com
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Picks of the Week:
The Checklist Manifesto – Atul Gawandehttps://a.co/d/07S3X6hL
Leadership Strategy and Tactics – Jocko Willinkhttps://echelonfront.com/leadership-books/leadership-strategy-and-tactics/
PTSF Theme Music: Produced by Lim0