"To Grow in Life, Be Willing to Suffer" - David Goggins

David Goggins, born on February 17, 1975, in Williamsville, New York, endured a challenging childhood marked by working at his father's skate rink and suffering severe abuse from his alcoholic father. Escaping with his mother to Brazil, Indiana, he later worked as a pest control fumigator before joining the United States Air Force Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) and serving from 1994 to 1999. Goggins then pursued his dream of becoming a Navy SEAL and graduated from BUD/S training in 2001, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan as a member of SEAL Team 5. Alongside his military career, Goggins embarked on a remarkable journey as an endurance athlete, completing ultramarathons and triathlons such as the Badwater-135, where he finished 5th overall in 2006. He set records and achieved notable finishes in multiple ultra-endurance races, earning recognition from Runner's World as a "Hero of Running" in 2008. Goggins's story captured public attention when entrepreneur Jesse Itzler hired him to live with him for a month, documented in the book "Living With A SEAL." Goggins himself authored the self-help memoirs "Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds" in 2018 and "Never Finished: Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within" in 2022, sharing his philosophy on maximizing one's potential and the pursuit of excellence.