Send us Fan Mail

In this candid interview, a former contractor shares insights on Middle East security, drone attacks, U.S. foreign policy, and the importance of perspective and critical thinking in understanding global conflicts.

Topics discussed:

• U.S. embassy in Iraq and security measures
• Drone attack incident and implications
• Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East
• The role of intelligence and misinformation
• The importance of perspective and critical thinking in understanding conflicts
  
  

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Cowboys, Not Eggheads
00:51 Ben Collins' Return from Iraq
02:41 Life Inside the U.S. Embassy in Iraq
05:27 Drone Attack Experience
10:43 The Aftermath of the Drone Attack
14:28 Security and Safety in Iraq
19:11 Traveling from Iraq to Jordan
22:36 Jordan: A Complex Ally
27:32 The U.S. and Israel: Strategic Alliances
32:13 Military Engagement: A Necessary Evil?
47:30 Resilience and Preparedness: America's Strengths
53:38 Cultural Perspectives: Understanding Global Dynamics

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send us Fan Mail

The Truman Show (Re-Release) — Fear, Truth, and the World We Think We’re Living In

What if the world you’re living in… isn’t as real as you think?

In this re-release of one of the most thought-provoking conversations we’ve had on Cowboys Not Eggheads, we use The Truman Show as a jumping-off point to wrestle with something much bigger: fear, truth, media, and the uncomfortable question of whether we’re actually seeking reality—or just comfort.

This wasn’t a scripted episode. No outline. No guardrails. Just three guys—Sam, Jeremy Aspen, and Tom Becka—pushing on ideas, challenging each other, and following the conversation wherever it led. And that’s exactly what makes it worth revisiting.

We get into:

• Why fear can both protect you and control you
• Whether “your truth” is real—or just your perspective
• How media and culture shape what we believe is reality
• The difference between cowboys and eggheads—and why you might need both
• And ultimately… who you trust when it actually matters

This episode didn’t blow up the first time around—but not every conversation is built for the masses. Some are built for people willing to think a little deeper.

So here it is again.

At some point, like Truman, you have to decide:
Are you staying where it’s comfortable… or stepping into the unknown?

Hope isn't a strategy!

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, Brandon Day shares his transformative journey from a championship athlete to a high-performance coach specializing in applied neuroscience and flow state training. Discover how understanding pain, the nervous system, and flow can unlock new levels of physical and mental performance.

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send us Fan Mail

This special repeat episode from 2023 is about resilience, faith, and an unbelievable medical battle that turned a mother's life upside down. One of our longest and most popular episodes, you won't want to miss it!

Sam sits down with Tiffani Zeleni, a fellow gym member whose story sounds almost impossible—except she lived every minute of it. What started as what seemed like a simple case of pink eye quickly turned into a rare and devastating diagnosis: Acanthamoeba keratitis, a parasitic infection that attacked her cornea and threatened to take her eye—and possibly her life.

Over the course of months, Tiffani endured relentless pain, hourly medicated eye drops around the clock, multiple infections, repeated trips to specialists, and the real possibility that her eye would have to be removed. At one point she lost vision, lived in darkness for weeks, and traveled back and forth to Iowa City for aggressive treatment while battling exhaustion and fear.

Against overwhelming odds, Tiffani eventually underwent a full cornea transplant made possible by an organ donor. The surgery saved her eye and changed her life. Through it all, she leaned on faith, family, community, and an unbreakable mindset—continuing to show up at the gym even when she could barely see.

In one of the most remarkable twists of the story, just months after this ordeal, Tiffany returned to competition and finished in the top 10% worldwide in the CrossFit Open for her age group—a testament to perseverance, mindset, and the power of community.

This episode is about courage, gratitude, organ donation, and what happens when an ordinary person faces an extraordinary challenge—and refuses to quit.

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, we explore imposter syndrome, its impact on capable individuals, and strategies to overcome self-doubt. Guests share personal stories, insights on humility, and practical advice for embracing authenticity and growth.

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send us Fan Mail

In 2012, before he did CrossFit and long before this podcast existed, Sam Fischer walked into a gym weighing 282 pounds looking for direction. The trainer who approached him that day, Scott Anderson, helped lay the foundation for a journey that would change Sam’s life.

In this episode of Cowboys Not Eggheads, Sam sits down with Scott to revisit those early days at the gym, the role discipline and belief play in personal transformation, and how the lessons learned in fitness carry over into other areas of life.

Scott shares how he transitioned from personal training into sales and eventually into a successful career in real estate, and why consistency, relationships, and showing up every day still matter more than shortcuts.

This conversation is about more than fitness or business. It’s about beginnings, transitions, mentorship, and the people who show up in our lives at exactly the right time.

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send a text

In this compelling interview, Jeremy Stalnecker, a former Marine and Iraq combat veteran, shares profound insights on leadership, resilience, faith, and the true meaning of courage. Discover how military principles translate into everyday life and how to keep moving forward despite life's challenges.

Topics: Leadership, Resilience, Faith, Military, Veterans, Courage, Personal Development, Spiritual Warfare, March or Die, Mental Toughness

CHAPTERS:

Courage that costs

Authority vs leadership

Resilience isn’t toughness

Faith without band-aids

Trauma vs excuse

“I’m fine” and the tells

March or Die origin story

Can grit become avoidance?

Marching without motivation

Advice to 22-year-old Jeremy

How to get help (Mighty Oaks)

******************************************************

Find more information about our guest here:

https://www.mightyoaksprograms.org/

https://www.marchordie.com/

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)

Send a text

In this engaging interview, former Nebraska state senator and author Colby Coash shares his journey from small-town roots in Bassett, Nebraska, to political leadership and authorship. Discover insights on family legacy, rural life, leadership, and the transformative power of storytelling and travel.

Support the show

Thanks for listening! SUBSCRIBE, Review, Rate, and Share. Contact us: cowboysnoteggheads@gmail.com Let us know if you want a hat ($20), tee shirt ($30), coffee cup ($25), or window decal for your truck. ($30)