Claim OwnershipBlue Grit Radio: the Police Performance Podcast: Mindset, Wellness, Leadership
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© 2025 Blue Grit Radio: the Police Performance Podcast: Mindset, Wellness, Leadership
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Welcome to Blue Grit Radio: the podcast for police officers, first responders, and service-minded leaders who want to elevate their performance in career and life. Hosted by Eric Tung, an active police leader, trainer, and mentor, this show explores topics, lessons, and resources, for listeners with to achieve professional excellence and personal resilience.
Each episode features raw conversations, actionable insights, and interviews with leaders in law enforcement, wellness experts, veterans, and high performers who share their lessons on overcoming adversity, leading with purpose, and creating positive change in their first responder and organizational culture.
Whether you’re a rookie, veteran officer, aspiring leader, or just passionate about growth and service, Blue Grit Radio will help you strengthen your mindset, improve your health, and elevate your impact on the job and in life.
Topics include:
- Police leadership and team building
- Officer mental health and wellness
- Navigating toxic police culture
- Resilience, mindset, and Stoicism
- Career development and promotion
- Fitness, family, and fulfillment beyond the badge
Host Eric Tung is an 18-year police officer currently serving as a Patrol Operations Commander and wellness coordinator in Washington State. He is an author, host, speaker, and industry voice focused on building critical mindset, wellness, recruiting, hiring, retention, police leadership, organizational health and community engagement.
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280 Episodes
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In this episode of Blue Grit Radio, we dive into what it really means to step up your mental game — beyond motivation and mindset buzzwords. Drawing on the psychological insights of Carl Jung and James Hollis, we explore how true growth requires looking inward, owning your story, and facing the shadows that hold you back. This episode connects ancient wisdom with modern policing, leadership, and personal development — reminding us that resilience isn’t about suppressing pain or struggle, but ...
One of the most critical responsibilities and efforts of police is trust. Trust is built through connection, understanding - it is built through KNOWING. In this episode, my guest Scott Lowry discuss how knowing how our officers are doing on a call-to-call basis helps us fully. We can identify what's going well, what we can work on, and it allows us to recognize and elevate our officers with the great work they are doing. Scott details real world solutions for engaging our c...
In this episode, I share key takeaways that don’t only apply to money - as the book title infers - but all aspects of health, career and life. These concepts are tenets of human nature, and I run through how we may apply these lessons in a multi-faceted approach. In The Psychology of Money, Morgan Housel makes a compelling case that success with money has far less to do with intelligence or technical knowledge and far more to do with behavior, perspective, and patience. One of th...
(Part 2 of 2!) Blue Grit started largely focused on physical health through fitness and stress management through peer support and other mental health support. Joining me in this episode are two returning guests: Matt Domyancic and Anthony Shefferly, two absolute physical AND mental beasts. What do I mean by mental beasts? Beyond the cognitive intelligence (which they both have and bring to share in droves in this conversation), they bring stalwart mindset. They have develop...
Blue Grit started largely focused on physical health through fitness and stress management through peer support and other mental health support. Joining me in this episode are two returning guests: Matt Domyancic and Anthony Shefferly, two absolute physical AND mental beasts. What do I mean by mental beasts? Beyond the cognitive intelligence (which they both have and bring to share in droves in this conversation), they bring stalwart mindset. They have developed and thus model a p...
This episode is a recording of a webinar where I was invited to participate as part of a panel discussing the critical topics of police recruiting and retention. I was called upon from my experience in hiring and recruiting in 2022 and my continual dives into police culture and wellness to aid retention and resiliency. Joining me in the panel were Chief Travis Koltiska from Sheridan, WY and Greg Zaroslinki from Performance Protocol. The reception was extremely positive, with attendees a...
The world is ever evolving, so Policing needs to do the same in embracing emerging technologies. From AI and data analytics to drones, body-worn cameras, and wellness platforms, technology is rewriting how we serve, protect, and stay resilient. With innovation comes challenges: resistance, cost, training, and trust. Enter my guest: regional police leader Chief Darrell Lowe. He has leaned in and implemented many tech programs and tools and shares his insights and strategies that you can bring ...
Hypervigilance, Burnout, Fatigue... Stress and Shutdown. These are all too common in the police and first responder professions. For years, I struggled with my desire to optimize with fitness and work performance, which led to rest and recovery taking a backseat (not a pretty result). What if there was a tool and technology with proven efficacy with Special Forces, BORTAC, the FBI and pro sports teams? What if it was accessible on your phone, for usage as you move abou...
Leadership. Development. Both of these items deserve much attention in our organizations, and it can be quite clear that these efforts are not adequate in many circumstances. Put them together: Leader Development... you will have many officers recognize their agencies do a solid job, whereas for others it's an after thought, or only occurring when self-initiated. Joining me in this leadership panel, my guests share much of what fuels their leadership philosophies, as well as train...
Many challenges in law enforcement can come down to our physical and experiential characteristics - such as age and gender. Some hurdles may exist externally, whereas others can be internal mechanisms- like “imposter syndrome” when being young or in a lower-represented demographic. In this episode, I am joined by Jen Moss. We first connected through a recruiting webinar on Lexipol she helped set up. I have seen and shared poignant reflections she has shared on Police 1 and am glad...
**(Part 2 of 2, make sure you listen to part 1 a couple eps. back! Recruitment. Staffing. Hiring hurdles.. Still huge issues facing a significant portion of police departments across the nation. Although there are many difficult factors to contend with, in this episode, we cover how many agencies are missing on some basic things, and how to develop some winning strategies. Joining me are two prior law enforcement officers with key insights and tips. We compare no...
Is the Field Training Officer (FTO) the most critical role in policing? When we think hard about it, it is hard to argue otherwise. In this episode, I am joined by Officer Brian Willard, who has held that taxing, crucial, emotionally-charged, rewarding role for 16 years- the majority of it! We go into the ins and outs of lessons learned from being and observing other FTOs, the impact the role has on culture, and key character traits and skills required to be an effective trainer, ...
Recruitment. Staffing. Hiring hurdles.. Still huge issues facing a significant portion of police departments across the nation. Although there are many difficult factors to contend with, in this episode, we cover how many agencies are missing on some basic things, and how to develop some winning strategies. Joining me are two prior law enforcement officers with key insights and tips. We compare notes, and I share about some of my principles and lessons learned on...
In this episode, retired Chief Dewayne McCarver joins me as we dive into the realities of police burnout and morale. We talk about “back in the day,” working nightshift patrol where morale and sense of impact soared - yet how career dynamics and mounting stress eventually catch up to us all if we aren’t mindful. McCarver highlights tools and strategies that leaders and agencies can invest in to promote mental health, genuine connection. This ranges from from training to bett...
On BGR, we focus on leadership and wellness, and with that we have a stellar, impactful guest to hit on both. I am pleased to feature local WA state police leader and mental health counselor Lt. Corey Williams! Corey shares about the origin of both careers, and how he can even manage (it's making me tired thinking about it!) We talk about the impacts of the police career, balancing two careers and family. We explore many meaningful topics such as first responder (over) ident...
*Part 2!! * Growing up as a 90s kid would make you think Ninja would be a legit career path, between Ninja Turtles, Surf Ninjas, 3 Ninjas, and on... As it turns out, you can get pretty dang close, if you are a dedicated, hyper-focused, diligent patrol officer - and then turn into a plain-clothes surveillance detective. My guest in this 2-part episode is a long term teammate and true friend. We started our careers in the region at virtually the same time but took diverging career p...
Police eyes in the sky are absolute game-changers for tracking down violent offenders on the run - or people trying to reenact GTA on high-speed hijinks. Beyond that, our pilots in policing can help public safety in many other aspects. Trooper and pilot Anson Statema with the Washington State Patrol joins me to share about career opportunities in flight as well as teaching on how cops on the ground can help our aerial counterparts - and vice versa. We talk pros, cons of aircraft a...
Growing up as a 90s kid would make you think Ninja would be a legit career path, between Ninja Turtles, Surf Ninjas, 3 Ninjas, and on... As it turns out, you can get pretty dang close, if you are a dedicated, hyper-focused, diligent patrol officer - and then turn into a plain-clothes surveillance detective. My guest in this 2-part episode is a long term teammate and true friend. We started our careers in the region at virtually the same time but took diverging career paths, honing...
Some listeners come for mental health topics. Others for the importance of fitness and functional training. Then there's the deeper dives in philosophy, service, and the human condition as they affect the psyche of police and first responders. Well, this episode hits all those realms and more. For probably just as long as I've been running this project, experts and colleagues in the wellness spaces have been talking about my guest, Matt Domyancic. The accolades come f...
We know a full police career (or even fraction of one!) can take a toll on us. Physically. Mentally. Our batteries don't only get sapped, but sometimes they get fried (you know, that annoying thing where it just doesn't charge fully, and seems to drain rapidly??) In this episode, a true example of a FULL career of legit cop work joins me to talk about all of these dynamics. Andrew McCormick retired as a sergeant from Tempe PD. He spent 27 years total, with 24 of ...
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