Governor Mike Huckabee interviewed Praevius partner Nate Self and his wife, Julie, recently on the Fox News program, “Huckabee.” Self discussed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its effects, along with the ongoing threat of suicide in our armed forces. Nate and Julie were joined my MG (Ret) Bob Dees, Executive Director of Military Ministry (www.milmin.org), who explained the broad scope of the suicide threat and how to help. He suggested those seeking  help to go to www.ptsdhealing.org.

Praevius Group’s Nate Self delivered a keynote speech at the GE Veteran’s Network Kickoff Event on March 3rd, 2010.  The event was held at the GE Durham, NC Engine Assembly Plant.  GE initiated this program as a way to foster a business culture that recruits, transitions, develops and retains military veterans as an essential talent and leadership pipeline for all of GE.  Nate delivered a speech that focused on the need for Veteran’s to support each other in their civilian professions, just as they supported each other as part of a team in the Military. 

For more information regarding this event please see the link below:

GE Brings Vets Together -- newsobserver.com

How the Army leveraged real-life experiences of its ranks to strengthen the moral fabric of its force

What would you do? This is the question that the Army is challenging its soldiers to answer by applying the appropriate decision-making skills and courage to do what is right.

In an effort to accelerate ethical, Soldier, and leader development in individuals, units, and Army institutions, the Army Center of Excellence for the Professional Military Ethic (ACPME), turned to the Praevius Group to create and document personal stories and experiences to develop leaders at all levels. In a satisfaction survey, one of the team members from the ACPME said, “Even though ethics is a fuzzy area, Praevius is always quick to understand the variables that the ACPME wants to manipulate and the metrics we want to consider…”

The Praevius Group has been working with experiential learning and the development of the Army’s leaders over the past three years.  As part of this focus, Praevius developed a product and learning software called Leader Challenge.  This product and methodology emerged from a partnership with the Center for Company-level Leaders at West Point and the Army Research Institute.  More specifically, the product promotes training and leadership development in both a classroom and distance learning environment. The content is based on real-life stories collected from hundreds of video interviews with U.S. Army Soldiers - the voices of the Soldiers form the basis of the captivating learning modules. The learning pedagogy in the platform has been developed through support from various academic institutions and scholars.    Chris Miller, one of the Partners at the Praevius Group said, “We created ways to develop soldiers and train them to make the right decisions on the battlefield or the home front.  This training and development doesn’t replace real experience but compliments it and increases the cognitive readiness of Soldiers.”

The power of stories
Most people don’t remember everything that they learned in school or in training, but they are more likely to remember stories and experiences. Whether it is a story of how a leader made a decision on a midnight raid or a personal account of an ethical dilemma with a family at home, stories and experiences set the stage for great learning scenarios. They are “sticky” and promote thinking and development.  Integrating appropriate leadership theories and scenarios has created a powerful learning experience for the force. The Praevius Group recently published paper on the research and theory behind this methodology.

In partnership with Army organizations, Praevius will provide a number of tangible benefits to the force: curriculum and courseware for formal training and development on the professional military ethic; publications and research on topics pertinent to Army values and the warrior ethos; leader developmental products; train-the-trainer courses and leader training; and outreach through a number of conferences, seminars, and forums.

If you have access to Army Knowledge Online, you can review some of the products created for ACPME here:  https://www.us.army.mil/suite/page/611545

About Praevius Group

Praevius Group is a firm that provides military technology integration, defense intelligence services and leadership development programs. We help organizations Think Differently by analyzing where you are, where you want to go and how to get there. Praevius combines unparalleled military leadership experience, comprehensive capabilities to solve tough problems, and extensive research methodologies to shape programs. The Praevius Group partners with clients to help them impact others through the innovative fusion of leadership and technology. When your organization is ready to think differently, the Praevius Group is ready to lead the way.

www.praevius.com

The Ears/SWATS Lightweight, Versatile Sniper Detections System produced by QinetiQ North America and supported by Praevius Group was awarded the “Best of What’s New” Award by Popular Science Magazine. Praevius Group has supported this product for the past twenty four months by providing Technical Support, Tactical Integration Support and New Equipment Training to Warfighters (both deployed in combat outposts and during stateside train ups).

Link to Article

Crisis negotiators are an elite group of individuals with a vast amount of experience, skills, and knowledge. Conflict resolution is critical in the types of events that tend to require the use of tactical negotiation teams. Keeping current with necessary skills for these situations is paramount, so Texas Association of Hostage Negotiators asked the Praevius Group founder, author, and decorated war hero Nate Self to present a leadership seminar to the group in Lewisville, Texas.

“Like many of you in this room,” said Nate said, “my Special Operations team of the U.S. Army was dispatched to crisis intervention”.

Speaking to more than 300 law enforcement, mental health, criminal justice, and corrections professionals, Nate gave an insightful and inspiring account of leadership and team building that stemmed from his own extreme situation—leading a team to rescue a Navy SEAL who had fallen into the hands of al-Qaeda fighters on a high snow-covered mountain top in Afghanistan. 

 His story was featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, on NBC’s Dateline, and in his personal account titled  Two Wars:  One Hero’s Fight on Two Fronts—Abroad and Within. Like Nate, many crisis negotiators will face two wars—the physical battles they face on the job and the mental battles they face in the aftermath—some even develop PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).

Combined with the release of his book Two Wars, Self is using his platform as one of the most decorated war heroes to come out of the Iraq/Afghanistan War to guide others to lead better by sharing their own stories and fight the battle of PTSD that may arise after the intervention.   

November 13, 2009

 Schedule Nate Self to speak at your event or inquire about leadership development

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 About Praevius Group 

Praevius Group is a firm that provides military technology integration, defense intelligence services and leadership development programs. We help organizations Think Differently by analyzing where you are, where you want to go and how to get there. Praevius combines unparalleled military leadership experience, comprehensive capabilities to solve tough problems, and extensive research methodologies to shape programs. The Praevius Group partners with clients to help them impact others through the innovative fusion of leadership and technology. When your organization is ready to think differently, the Praevius Group is ready to lead the way.

www.praevius.com

Event Serves to fight against the darkness of combat trauma and PTSD

As part of the Praevius Group corporate citizenship efforts, founder, author and combat-decorated war hero, Nate Self spoke to over 400 American patriots at the “Heal Our Heroes” event hosted by Military Ministries in Houston, Texas. 

For thousands of veterans and their families, despair has become an unwelcome, but constant companion. “Our military members fight two wars – one on the battlefield…and one in their souls after they return home”, said Praevius founder Nate Self.  

Having survived the worst stages of PTSD, Nate Self has now committed himself to helping a new generation of war vets, both by sharing his own story, and by collecting theirs. Nate gave a moving glimpse into his experience as an Army Ranger who led a group of soldiers to rescue a downed Navy Seal in the battle of Takur Ghar located high on a mountain top in Afghanistan. His story was featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, on NBC’s Dateline, and written in his personal account titled Two Wars:  One Hero’s Fight on Two Fronts—Abroad and Within. 

Nate was followed by Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North–combat-decorated Marine, best-selling author, and TV host of War Stories on the Fox News Channel. Both shared powerful stories from the front, as well as their personal struggles with combat trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Both leaders inspired and challenged the audience to become a part of a national solution to redeem generations of veterans, troops and families from the tragedies caused by combat trauma and PTSD. 

Combined with the release of his book “Two Wars” and partnering with organizations like Military Ministries (www.militaryministry.org), Nate Self is using his platform as one of the most decorated war heroes to come out of the Iraq/Afghanistan War to help fellow vets get teh help they need. 

November 12, 2009

  Schedule Nate Self to speak at your event or inquire about leadership development

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 About Praevius Group               

Praevius Group is a firm that provides military technology integration, defense intelligence services and leadership development programs. We help organizations Think Differently by analyzing where you are, where you want to go and how to get there. Praevius combines unparalleled military leadership experience, comprehensive capabilities to solve tough problems, and extensive research methodologies to shape programs. The Praevius Group partners with clients to help them impact others through the innovative fusion of leadership and technology. When your organization is ready to think differently, the Praevius Group is ready to lead the way.

www.praevius.com

October 22, 2009

Former Army leader, decorated war hero, author, and Praevius Group partner Nate Self presented his story and how his comrades were able to defeat the al-Qaeda fighters by trusting each other.

Trust is a big topic these days–important enough that the U.S. Army has commissioned researchers to uncover what makes teams effective and how to replicate it in formal training programs. Nate Self recently discussed his personal account of his heroic Rangers’ effort in the form of a presentation entitled Trust on the Battlefield at the annual Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) meeting in San Antonio, Texas.

“Trust is vitally important in all teams, but especially in ad-hoc teams,” Nate said. “But there is a point where too much trust can be dangerous–if it’s at the expense of awareness and learning.” The HFES session included members dedicated to adopting a training cycle for trust training in swiftly starting action teams.

Mr. Self presented the challenges of the battle that ensued on the high snow-covered mountain top and factors that made his team successful even in the face of relentless attack and adversity. He examined trust in teams, in technology, and in leadership. The detailed story is written in his personal account titled  Two Wars.

Nate discussed how the same leadership lessons can be used to unite and build winning teams on or off the battlefield. Nate’s presentation set the tone and provided an entree into the remaining symposium presentations regarding trust–given by members of U.S. Army Research Institute (Sena Garven, Greg Ruark, and Stan Halpin), and scholars from the University of Central Florida.

  Schedule Nate Self to speak at your event or inquire about leadership development

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About Praevius Group 

Praevius Group is a firm that provides military technology integration, defense intelligence services and leadership development programs. We help organizations Think Differently by analyzing where you are, where you want to go and how to get there. Praevius combines unparalleled military leadership experience, comprehensive capabilities to solve tough problems, and extensive research methodologies to shape programs. The Praevius Group partners with clients to help them impact others through the innovative fusion of leadership and technology. When your organization is ready to think differently, the Praevius Group is ready to lead the way.

www.praevius.com

Nate Self was the keynote speaker on June 16th at the 12th Annual Conference of the Florida Association of Hostage Negotiators (FAHN), held in Maitland, Florida. FAHN is an association of law enforcement, mental health, criminal justice and corrections professionals, which is over 800 members strong. The men and women who make up the membership are dedicated to crisis intervention in a variety of situations, which require a highly skilled negotiator to bring about a successful resolution. Approximately 160 of our nation’s law enforcement heroes were in attendance at the conference.

Nate spoke on the topics of Leadership, Storytelling, and Post- traumatic Stress Disorder. Former Army Ranger Colonel (Retired) Danny McKnight (3rd Ranger Battalion Commander in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993) made a surprise visit during Nate’s presentation.  Following the session, a former FAHN President–Captain Brent Coughlin of the Leon County Sheriff’s Office–made Nate the first Honorary Member of FAHN.

Link to FAHN Website

Greg Glass and Brandon Cates of Praevius Group participated in the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference (SOFIC), held in Tampa, FL from June 2^nd to June 4^th.  The conference is held annually as a way to bring industry representatives together with Special Operations Forces in order to help ensure the best technology available gets into the hands of the Special Operations Forces.  The theme for SOFIC 09 was: “Science and Technology for Special Operations Forces - Improving Operator Capabilities for Fighting the Global War on Terrorism.” Specific objectives for this year’s conference included the development of a shared understanding of the USSOCOM Command’s needs and priorities, and to establish greater synergy and responsiveness between industry’s technology development activities and the Command’s technology gaps. 

For more information about the conference see the link below to the SOFIC 09 Webpage.

Link to SOFIC 09.

The Praevius Group had the fortunate opportunity to join in and lead an Officer Professional Development Off-Site with the 8^th Military Police Brigade at the Ko’Olina’s Ihilani Resort in Hawaii on the 28^th of May 2009.  Almost 100 officers from various units stationed in Hawaii participated in the day long program.

As part of this event, Mr. Nate Self presented his 2002 story from a fierce battle atop Takur Ghar, in the mountains of Afghanistan.  During this emotionally charged and moving presentation, Mr. Self honored the Soldiers that made the ultimate sacrifice under his command and shared the challenging decisions that his Team faced atop that mountain seven years ago.

In addition, Mr. Chris Miller led multiple discussions around moral development and ethical decision-making in the afternoon session.  During these discussions, the Praevius team challenged the room of leaders with recent moral and ethical vignettes from Soldiers around the Army.  As part of these case studies, the group discussed the application of moral frameworks for making ethical decisions and techniques for better understanding moral intensity.

Throughout the day’s events, Mr. Self and Mr. Miller expressed the importance of each leader telling his or her own stories and effectively communicating the messages and themes that are part of the “war stories” that are so important to each of these men and women.  Each officer in the room had an opportunity to share their own stories with their small groups and to discuss why the story was fundamental to their own development.   The day concluded with the Praevius Team challenging the officers to develop and enact a moral development plan for each of their units.