005 Clark Impastato

About this video

Mike Ritland hosts former Navy SEAL Clark Pasado (BUD/S Class 215), who served at SEAL Team Five and later contracted with DynCorp during the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars before joining Phoenix Police Department for eight years. The conversation covers the common path many SEALs take after service—continuing high-stakes work through contracting and law enforcement—while mixing candid catching-up between teammates who haven’t spoken in years. Pasado recounts his background in hockey, early inspirations from Gulf War coverage and Vietnam-era SEAL books, and his evolution from college student to special operator.

Key takeaways

• Many former SEALs transition to contracting work and law enforcement after military service, applying specialized skills in environments that still require controlled violence and tactical expertise
• Pasado credits his single mother’s toughness, childhood isolation in the Colorado hills, and contact sports (especially hockey) with shaping his comfort with physicality and self-reliance before military service
• Reading Vietnam-era SEAL books like Dick Marcinko’s ‘Red Cell’ humanized special operations for Pasado, helping him visualize himself in that community and building the mindset foundation for BUD/S

Episode details: published April 27, 2018 · 449K views · 3:36:25 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Stories told by Mike Ritland’s podcast guests are the guests’ own accounts, attributed to them — not independently verified. Commentary is Ritland’s, presented as his analysis.

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