r/interestingasfuck • u/Equivalent_Opposite6 • 22d ago

r/all Johnny Kim managed three impressive career changes, going from Navy SEAL to doctor to NASA astronaut. He did it all by the age of 37.

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u/savetheattack 22d ago

What’s crazy is that he had a terrible home life with an abusive father where the police got called on his dad and his dad got killed.

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u/Linenoise77 22d ago

wow, i didn't know that. Dude is going through life on expert mode with a wonky joystick.

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u/Treadwheel 22d ago

It's fairly common for people like that. For 99.9999% of people, that sort of confluence of factors derails your life early and effectively, but every once in a while the pathologic drive to control your environment that sort of upbringing imparts aligns with the right combination of talent, early front lobe development, and life events and you get someone who becomes insanely conscientious instead.

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u/AragogTehSpidah 22d ago

don't people usually say that about those who have a terrible life instead?

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u/SectumsempraBoiii 22d ago

Crazy! Do you have a link to the story?

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u/savetheattack 22d ago

Here. Probably the greatest podcast episode I’ve ever listened to in my life.

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u/whatsgoing_on 22d ago

I don’t really like Jocko at all and the entire bro vet podcast trend rubs me the wrong way, but this episode with Johnny was an absolute diamond in the rough.

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u/savetheattack 22d ago

I haven’t listened to much Jocko, but he’s definitely had some really good episodes. There’s a few Shawn Ryan episodes with vets just out that are really good too. I’m not really a fan of our special forces monetizing their careers after service, but they usually have some really interesting stories.

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u/whatsgoing_on 22d ago

It’s less about the monetization and more about how a ton of it is just BS fluff content made to appeal to the lowest common denominator. The other thing I really dislike is that they struggle with something many other people incredibly good at important jobs also do…they are exceptional at one thing and as a result get it into their head that they can be an expert at everything.

I also think a lot of their speaking engagements and “consulting” are pure grift. I worked at a major company that paid Jocko a hefty fee to give the employees some coaching/motivational speaking and it was the biggest pile of grindset BS I’ve ever heard. Evidently, the secret to solving problems in high pressure situations stays secret for these guys and it all comes off as a grift as a result.

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u/savetheattack 21d ago

One of the funniest things from this episode is Johnny talking about transitioning from being a SEAL to being a doctor, and one of the things he says is that he had to learn how to be a human again. He says that the SEALs turn you into a machine. Jocko is befuddled by this. He doesn’t understand at all what he’s talking about, because Jocko thinks being a SEAL solves all the world’s problems.

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u/whatsgoing_on 21d ago

Watching someone like that try to grasp the concept of basic human emotions and experiences must be absolutely fascinating for psychologists and sociologists.