From Blizzards to the Boardroom, Ryan McMullan Empowers Leaders to Execute the Impossible

So when's the last time you had to worry about getting eaten by a polar bear? Now, in a moment, you're gonna find out how and why that would happen in the first place. Do you remember when the space shuttle Challenger blew up in 1986? And do you know why that happened? Despite some of the smartest people on the planet working day and night to execute a perfect plan.

Plan.

It came down to an O ring that failed because it wasn't designed to handle the cold. Hidden in plain sight is a 16 billion dollar industry. It's beneath your feet. In every building you walk into, in every road you drive over, in the helicopters and planes that fly over your head, and in every gas, power and water line on the planet. Brands like Disney, GE, Boeing, Nikon, Six Flags, Ford, Tesla, SpaceX. What do they all have in common? Something called non destructive testing. It's a mission critical element for almost every industry. Space, power, buildings, bridges, roads, cars. And without it, we'd live in an incredibly unsafe environment. The integrity of your infrastructure matters. And if you are in a C level position in an organization and frustrated by the lack of being able to create enough leaders and teams that can innovate, create spot opportunities and capture them in good times and bad. Going to love my next guest. His company, Execute the Impossible, has developed a unique system for identifying hidden opportunities that produce cash flow and developing teams to innovate solutions to capture those opportunities. And today he's going to share his process with you that's adaptable to any industry. He calls it the Beast system. And in a moment, you'll know why. And not only that, he's got a wife, a son and three daughters. And he's here from Wasilla, Alaska. So from blizzard to boardroom, fire and ice, Ryan McMullen will empower any leader to execute the impossible. Ryan, how you doing, man?

Doing great. Great to be here.

All right, so you came here all the way from Alaska. Why? And what are you up to?

72 hours ago, I was on the Arctic Ocean, hopped on a plane, kissed the kids on the way through Anchorage, and came all the way down here to San Diego to speak with you, be on this platform and spread the word about Execute the Impossible. The system.

All right, so what is Execute the Impossible?

What do you do essentially? Well, what I've been doing in the oil and gas industry for a long, for 14 years is what we crudely say, pun intended, is we keep the black stuff in the round thing, we keep the dragon in the pipe or the unsung heroes that make sure. The catastrophic events don't happen and execute the impossible is essentially we work with C level executives to build the teams that, that can execute and get the money for those opportunities that are hiding in plain sight for these companies and industries.

All right, so let's come back to the polar bear from the very beginning. You got a good polar bear story. That's why I threw that in there. So why don't you tell us what the polar bear is all about. I think there's a relationship to the beast system too.

Yeah, absolutely. So everybody knows that story of Binky that almost ate the Australian lady in Anchorage in the Alaska Zoo. The one advantage that she had going for, aside from not knowing, to stay behind two fences, is the fact that there was a fence in between. What my guys have done for years is operating environments that are some of the harshest in the world, but also an occupational hazard that not many people have, having to worry about almost invisible man eaters. If it's wintertime, so the, the polar bears, that adds a little extra stress when they're out there. And if it's summertime. We've actually been in a situation before where you could even see the muscle definition of this bear trying to blend in with its wingspan and cover himself in mud. And then he flipped over with a level of intelligence looking us eye to eye, saying he could, they could see us. And we got out of there pretty quick.

Yeah, yeah, they're ferocious piece, that's for sure.

They're intelligent.

Yeah. So you've also got a little story just speaking of the dangers of the business, BP and I think for folks who aren't familiar with your industry and what it's all about, once you give us a little bit of framing there before, before we get into the team building and the money making side of it.

Yeah, you bet. So specifically in the petrochemical industry, Prudhoe Bay, Alaska is one of the biggest oil fields in the world and certainly the largest in the country. And we operated a few hundred man team that was responsible for making sure the infrastructure that's up there, the oil lines, the gas lines, the tanks, the vessels all stayed in compliance and make sure that the explosions don't happen essentially by, by monitoring those through ultrasonics, X ray and a variety of other methods. So what we do is we make sure those catastrophic events don't happen and our teams, like I said, make sure the Blackstone stays in the round thing.

Okay. And you brought along a couple images today, some pictures, we'll go through a few slides Just so people see the extremes that you and your teams are operating in that ultimately are ensuring energy, power, gas, electricity, heating oil here in the states and elsewhere as well. But when we talked about from blizzard to boardroom, fire and ice, we weren't kidding. So why don't you show some of the extremes right now.

Happy to show you a day in the life of the oil field. So up in the Arctic, to get out to the remote locations, we use these track vehicles. That's me in the back and two of my former teammates. Here's a coil tubing unit that here's just a hazard that happens in the middle of December.

Typical day in the office, honey.

Right. The, the bus is getting stuck and somebody snapped a picture. Be digging it out. Summertime in the, in south central Alaska, where I live is on the bottom right and beautiful area about the side of size of Rhode island in that picture. And it's a dot in the map how big Alaska is. You could fit Texas in it a few times. And on top there is one of those high pressure gas line. One actually might be an oil line, but those lines can be anywhere. If it's an oil line, few hundred pounds of pressure gas lines operate also up to £4,000 psi, which means can let loose. I've got a story about how dangerous that can be.

Yeah, unbelievable. So let's also. I know you got a couple more too. What else you got?

This is some of the methods that we use. This is. We have X ray vision. Fortunately for us, we can look inside that insulation jacketing to look to see where that corrosion is. You don't know about corrosion. It eats away metal. And when you eat away metal, that's about £4,000 psi. That's that. That can be very dangerous. Artificial lift gas lines, we wove between oil lines there and those are the ones that push the gas down to make the oil come up. That's Engine 5, one of the largest engines that I'm told in, in the fire industry for industrial firefighting, which is what I did up there. On an on call basis at all times, we always prepare for the super bowl, the very large event that one of these production facilities goes up and if does, that's a really, really bad day. This is the team, some of the hardest working folks that I've ever been privileged to work with and lead and again, some of the harshest environments in the world. These folks are cut from a very unique cloth. And if you can do what we put together in the Arctic, any company can do it anywhere.

Right.

This is my family. This is my wife, Anna, my son Kaden, Isabella, Gabrielle, and our baby Violets. Not pictured in there, but hi, everybody. Love you guys.

All right, all right. No, thanks for that. That was awesome. And again, I think just from an extreme perspective and for folks to keep it in perspective, you guys are keeping the safe and the ecological damage, the economic damage if something goes wrong, plus insurance, human life at stake. There's a lot going on. So what I wanted to do is talk a little bit about why you recently left the ground and got out of part of the industry to create your new business. And once just talk about what that's all about, why you did what you did and the opportunity that you spotted in the marketplace.

You bet. The opportunities in the industry for companies and what those C level executives really want are. They're really endless right now. And it's a matter of having a prescriptive approach of how you go about going after those opportunities and then assembling the teams to be able to do that. That doesn't happen overnight and it doesn't happen without a system. That's where I recognize the opportunity was. And all of the things that I've done over the last over a decade and a half all contribute to what we put together in our systems. Essentially, we go out, we assemble the teams, and we help the companies get the money.

Okay, very good. And now to get prepared for this interview today, one of the things that I asked you to do is reach out to some people that you've worked with, because I wanted to show folks the transition and what you do from a team and a leadership perspective to help get that money in the first place.

Absolutely.

And we went out and you sent out a quick question. Here's what the questions that were asked were is what do you think of Ryan McMullen as a leader? What's a superpower? And why should senior executives work with them to build their leadership teams with the intention of really showing people what your beast system is all about, your training system that creates these leaders in the first place?

Absolutely.

So I'm going to play for you a video right now of one of the folks that you worked with, and I'd like you to tell us a little bit about him and give a little backstory on that in addition to the lesson that we're going to learn. Okay?

You bet.

You ready to rock and roll?

I am.

Okay, here it goes.

Hey, Ryan, thanks for reaching out to me and likewise, it was great to see you the other night. It's Been a long time. It was good to catch up. And most importantly, I want to wish you good luck in your future endeavors. So the questions you asked were.

Were.

You know, it's kind of funny, I had to think about them a little bit. Not that I couldn't come up with anything, but it was just putting stuff into words a little harder than I thought it'd be. Nonetheless, you know, as a leader, I've noticed that you are always willing to put your guys before yourself, and that's really important.

You're not willing to ask somebody to do something that you wouldn't do yourself or haven't done yourself. And you have a common sense approach to business and just getting things done in a methodical manner. So I would say that that's great attributes for a leader. As far as superpower, I would say it's your ability to come up with realistic solutions to complex problems. It sounds easier to do, say, say than it is to do, but nonetheless, there, there's a lot of complex things that come up in a given day and you're work off the model that kind of. You've been there, done that, and can help explain that to people that might not have been. As far as why, why would leaders use you to develop their leaders.

You know, you're very passionate about what you do. You're very focused. You have an energy about you that I think brings a lot to the table.

And, you know, I think, I think it's just a matter of getting in front of the people to show them what you're capable of.

You're methodical about getting things done and doing it efficiently. Continuous improvement ideas, realistic goals and achieving those goals. So hope your interview tomorrow goes great and looking forward to hearing from you, buddy. Take care. Bye.

Well, first of all, what do you think of that? Who is that guy? What's the story behind him?

Very humbling. That's one of my very first managers that gave me an opportunity. Currently, that's Paul Tassey, who works for the Acuran family of companies, the Rockwood family, but specifically one of the oldest contracts in Prudhoe Bay, the Century Inspection Group.

Okay, and what's the big lesson here that you feel is so important for team building? That really prompted again me putting that there. But I want to know, from your perspective, what do you focus on, primary objective or goal or value that you think is really important?

Yeah, Paul touched on it there. It's never ask anyone to do something that you're not willing to do yourself. Core leadership principle number one. You've got to do it with faith, courage and enthusiasm. And your team has to know that the direction that you're driving them is exactly the direction that they are destined to go. But they have to buy in to you. And you do that by earning their respect by not asking anybody to do something you're not willing to do yourself.

Yeah, it's very solid and it's clear, you know, just from him and all the others. Like, we've got dozens of people that have sent videos and they're really, really impressive. I can't wait to show you the next one here. So what's the next principle that you can share with us that is important through your lens?

So leadership principle number two is one that I think, using your terminology could be a little woo woo, but inspiring others to be their best and seeing that greatness in them that maybe they don't even see in themselves. And that's something that came from, I think it was instilled in from playing hockey when I had coaches that saw something in me and helped me get out of it. And then with my teams, seeing them and seeing the opportunity that they have for the rest of their career and to become leaders that will lead teams as well. A lot of times folks don't have that opportunity and I'm able to get that out of them.

Right. So I've got a real special guest here. Again, I want you to identify who this is, but I'm going to play a video that he shared with us. Okay, here goes.

What's up, sexy? So what makes Ryan a good leader? What do I think of his leadership skills here? I've worked with Ryan for over a decade. We started together in the field and it was pretty evident early on that he was going to rise to high places. I've had a lot of managers in my time and he was the first true leader that we've had. You know, we can bring anything to him, small or big, and he'll work it out with you. He doesn't have an answer for you right on the spot. He finds it for you and gets back with you as soon as possible and you will get answers. That's just how he is. And he puts in his best, no matter the issue, big or small.

For a superpower, absolutely inspiring others to be their absolute best, even if they think they've tapped out. You know, Ryan brings in and brings that inspiration and makes you rise over any challenge that you think you can have. And yeah, definitely is the man that you want on your team. And why should senior executives work with him? Well, that's easy. The man has the recipe for success. I couldn't tell you what it is, but if you work with him, I'm sure he could pass it on to you. And any place that he goes will succeed.

Now, the first thing I noticed is he's getting super emotional. You don't expect that out of a tough guy is up in Alaska. So, first of all, how's that make you feel and what's going on there?

I can appreciate the emotion. One of the things is that that individual and many others, they. Who is he? That's Martin Warden. He's. He's a character. And I hope that's the only video you got of him, because he can. He can mix it up. So one of the things I appreciated about him was what he was saying there. And maybe that's the old athlete me, maybe it's the old team captain, maybe it's the old hockey coach. But getting others to synergistically function in. In a unified manner towards a common goal is something that's ingrained in being an athlete. And sometimes you have to really pull that out of folks. And over the years, we've had to light some fires under some people's backside. Other times we've. We've had to lead from the front. And I can tell that all those years of us working together and rolling up our sleeves is something that stuck and it's coming out, and I appreciate it.

All right, well, it's. It's really, really clear the level of respect and admiration he has and how you've been able to get those teams together, assemble them, and why someone's going to want to work with you. But I've got another one, so I'm going to cue this next one up. This is Jake Hobbs. So let's hear what he has to say, and I'm hoping you'll have a great lesson to share as a result of that. Let's listen to him.

Ryan, what do I think of you as a leader? I think you've been given a gift, brother. I think that.

Everybody is born with a certain gift, and yours was to. To lead.

The reason I say that is just by being around you. Your example, when it comes to being around others or when you present yourself in meetings.

Just the way you just present yourself.

How you can truly drive a group or a large setting of people and encourage them to do better. That's why you have a gift, a gift to lead. Your superpowers, energy.

Every time around you, every time I pass in the hallway every time you present yourself in a meeting, you just have so much energy. It's positive energy that can truly lift up a group of people.

Why people should choose you, why senior executives should choose you, is because you're driven. You. You have this passion to make the group better. You have this passion to be there for the people that work under you, to make the company that you work for to excel because you care. And that's what I've always noticed about you, is that you just lead by example. You're there for people, and when they need something, they know they can come to you because they can trust you.

Another while super emotional. Who is he? What's his story there? I already mentioned it's Jake, but what's his backstory?

Jake. Jake Hobbs is one of our. He's the Special Forces guy in our. In our group. Incredibly humble, great father and husband, and just the guy that anytime you need something done, he's the man that can do it. And I appreciate what he said about being the best manager, inspiring, inspiring others in the energy. But honestly, I'm the best manager because I've got the best people. And that is something that can be taught in any organization. You have to rally the team when you're up in those environments, and you have to connect with them on an emotional level. And then you've got to show an absolute fearless approach to the work. That means you have to outwork everyone. That means you have to lead by example. I call it leading from the front. I'm a volunteer firefighter when I'm up there as well. And that's a respect and an authenticity that can't be faked. And the teams know it, and they rally behind it.

Well, to have a special forces guy get emotional like that, it's clear that he was led there somehow, too. It's. It's very obvious what the level of connection he feels to you for. For that to happen again, given the fact that these guys are putting their lives at stake all the time on behalf of their team members and the business as well.

You bet. And although that was a metaphor for Special Forces, he is. We do have some performer Special Forces guys that work for us, and I'm here to tell you that those guys are. It's hardwired into their system. I've learned so much from those guys when it comes to leading by example, and I really appreciate the example that they've set. Sometimes those guys aren't charged from the front. Sometimes those are just guys that say what do you need cap? Here we go. And let's roll. And it takes an entire team of people from diverse backgrounds. And whether you came from an industry like the military before or. Or it really doesn't matter where you came from. Everybody has a piece of that puzzle.

Right?

Very, very good. So the next one that I have, I'm going to play it and love to know what your lesson here is as well. But more importantly, what I really want to reinforce is how many people have come back and said things similar to this. But this one, I think, is beautiful and very, very unique. So let's watch it. And I'd love to hear what your perspective is.

I believe what makes you a good leader is that you connect with people on a personal level, you take quick action, and you're always there for the people. Your superpower is inspiring people to be their best. And I think senior VP executives should go with you because it will guarantee their company success.

That is we. That is Joshua Brandon, but nobody knows his actual real name because we call him Bubbles. He's a very special man to me. Bubbles has. Has a unique ability to light a fire. And under any team that he is on, and I'm proud to say that we work together in the field for a very long time. The. The primary principle out of this is inspiration and urgency. And whether that comes from a sense of humility and owning your mistakes in front of the team and adapt and overcome and move forward, or just really rallying behind them and always having their back when something. When any situation comes up, that is the inspiration, then a sense of urgency, a bounce in your step. And that comes from a lot of the people that set an example for me. My grandfather, my father were both in the military. And when it's time to go to work, we roll up our sleeves and we throw the hammer on our back and we get to get it done.

All right. I know one of the things that you've mentioned before is just how much time these guys are willing to go the distance as well, especially in these harsh environments. Why don't you talk a little bit about that? You bet.

So Josh is a perfect example of that, Bubs. And he worked 12 weeks. And he's not alone. There are some other individuals that work similar stretches. 12 weeks, seven days a week, for 12 hours a day, 12 weeks in a row in mid winter in the Arctic, Alaska, where it doesn't get light. These guys don't see light for that. That amount of time for six months out of the year. If anything, you see Some twilight that takes a RA individual and I think it takes a rare team blend of culture to make sure that. I mean, just imagine being in the dark for 12 weeks and not only having to execute with precision because the work that we do doesn't have a whole lot of margin for error when we make mistakes and we don't, but when we make mistakes, bridges fall, people die, buildings collapse and production facilities explode. As a firefighter on the back end of that, we come in when the worst happens, on the front end, the unsung heroes make sure that it doesn't happen.

Okay, so what I know about you is you're all about building the team, getting the money, and that includes the system that you've developed, your beast system. So why don't you just talk a little bit about that, but also the industries you're working in, because the non destructive testing industry, as you said in the very beginning, it encompasses a lot of different industries too. So let's start with industries and then.

Talk about the system it does. Power industry, whether that's oil and gas or hydro electric power or wind generation, alternative energy and fuel fuels. Aerospace is a huge industry and one that's booming right now. Everybody knows what NASA is doing with SpaceX and Elon Musk right now. All of those industries, you brought up the Challenger in the beginning, all of those industries are high consequence if something goes wrong. We're here to make sure that doesn't happen. Now with the teams that we assemble and the. And the system that we've developed is built from the ground up because we've done all of that work and we know what it takes to build those teams. We assemble the teams, we work on a either ad hoc or customized manner with teams. We find out their primary objectives, we identify areas of opportunity that are in plain sight, and we assemble the team, we execute, and we get the money.

All right, so let's talk a little bit about the online component as well. Because training, especially during a pandemic, is a new rule of engagement.

Absolutely.

And also there's a constant opportunity to be testing and retraining and finding new opportunities. You got to be able to do that. How does your online training system work in addition to how you actually get the boots on the ground and get behind them as well?

You bet. I'm glad there's a tie in here with the respect that I've earned and the mutual respect they've earned for me, for the people in the field. Anybody can put boilerplate training out on a system and execute, throw it out there to the masses. Art systems are designed and fit for purpose. They put together. They're put together for the people in the field to be able to execute the vision of the teams and the companies that. That they serve. So by putting that out there and distilling the main vision of the companies and making sure that goes down all the way to the level of the people that are executing it, that's the B system. It's be excellent and start today. And there's an absolute specific process that will gain companies the type of loyalty and faith that I've been fortunate enough to gain from the people in the Arctic.

Okay, so the bottom line is you've got an international solution here that'll work virtually as well as boots on the ground to again, find the opportun opportunity, build the team, get the money. So one of the things that I've heard consistently is all these people that you've worked with all say something really special. But one thing I learned about these guys you work with is they're pretty funny guys. And I'm gonna play a couple extra bonuses that they sent along with the videos. I hope you're ready for that.

I hope I'm ready for it too.

Okay, so here, I'm gonna. I'm gonna let them roll right, right now, and then we'll come back and talk about what it takes to get together and start working with you. Okay, Here goes.

What's up, baby? What makes you a good leader is you stacked in the front and in the back, and your superpower is karate sizing.

And senior VP better go with you.

Or I'll whoop the ass.

You don't pick my rhyming mole.

And then you.

If you don't pick Ryan, we'll you up.

All right, well, first of all, do you want to say thank you to any of the. The boys?

Thank you, Martin, and thank you, Bubbles. I'll be speaking to your HR department shortly. Those are. Those are some good men. And. And I can appreciate their candor, although I don't think we should make any death threats, bless their hearts. But, uh, long story short, these guys look the level of precision that we operate in and, and you've heard people like Jocko Willink and the other Navy seals talk about it when it time to. To dig in and do some serious work. That's the way they're wired. And when it's time to cut loose, you know, they work hard and they play hard. These guys are isolated from their families, and we become family after a long Period of time. And I can appreciate that they're willing to put that on camera and bless their hearts for it. I'm. I'm grateful. Those are my boys. Yeah.

You know, they seem like great guys. And again, just the level of emotion, the dynamic that you see in them, I, you know, they feel like soldiers who've served and know how to show up and know how to get the job done. It's a really beautiful thing.

Absolutely. And the key part of that is that there's really, there's. It's a system, but it can be duplicated anywhere. And it doesn't matter. The industry. We happen to work in a very dangerous industry, but the industry doesn't matter. The common core principles are exactly the same. You're dealing with human beings that need to know you care about them, that you're there to guide them and that there's a system in place for their success. And then the company's successful. They win, you win, everybody wins, and the system serves itself.

All right, so let's talk a little bit about how to work with you. Where should people go and how's the process begin and end if they want to engage with you or at least have a conversation? And who are they going to be talking to?

Absolutely. So you can go to execute. Theimpossible.com Fill out the Form 2 to work with us directly. I have a awesome announcement to make that a 40 year veteran of sales is now working directly with me. That's my father. So anybody that's going to be interacting in the beginning is going to be going through Bob first. And then once we get there, if we find out that we're a good fit, we can design systems that help their teams, assemble the right strike teams and go out and execute and get the money. It is absolutely the right time. And things aren't. Times aren't getting any easier. This is the time to execute a system that helps you go out and build a culture that is a foundation that. That can't be removed.

All right, well, I want to thank you very much. This has been awesome. Execute the Impossible dot com. Learn more about Ryan McMullen, his dad and his team. I can't wait to keep an eye on just on what you do and how you build and grow this business as well. Thanks a lot for being here.

We're here to help.

All right. Rock and roll, man. Thank you.

Great. Appreciate it.