Ep. 131 - Marine Cmdr. Jake Harriman Shares Unifying Wisdom

From Combat Zones to Community Hubs: Jake Harriman's Journey of Servant Leadership

I first heard about Jake Harriman by way of his guest appearance on The Jocko Willink Podcast. Immediately I was drawn to his mission, heart and bias for action. Jake Harriman is a former US Marine Commander who spent more than a decade abroad defending our nation from enemies, terrorism and other global threats. But when Jake retired from active military duty and returned to America, in his words, he no longer recognized the nation he had spent so many years defending. Jake quickly saw that Americans were at war with one another. Rather than just lamenting this sad situation, Jake decided to do something about it, and you'll learn all about that in today's episode.

More About Our Wise Guest - Jake Harriman

Jake Harriman graduated with distinction from the United States Naval Academy and served seven and a half years in the US Marine Corps as a platoon commander in both the infantry and force recon. Following his service in the military, Jake enrolled at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Following his service in the military, Jake enrolled at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. While at Stanford, he founded Nuru International to eradicate extreme poverty in the world's most unstable, vulnerable regions, to help end violent extremism. Jake also played a vital role in drafting, introducing and passing groundbreaking new legislation called the Global Fragility Act of 2019 that equips America with new authorities and resources to prevent conflict and stabilize some of the most fragile regions around the world.

Today, Jake is the founder and president of More Perfect Union, a veteran-led civic organization that works to unite the country and strengthen our communities through social connection, service and civic engagement.

Resources

More Perfect Union website

Nuru International website

Jake Harriman on LinkedIn

Credits

Editor + Technical Advisor Bob Hotchkiss

Brand + Strategy Advisor Andy Malinoski

PR + Partnerships Advisor Rachel Bell

Marketing, Social Media and Graphic Design Chloe Lineberg

Stay Connected with Us on Social

YouTube @themainthingpod

Twitter @themainthingpod

Instagram @themainthingpod

Facebook  @TheMainThingPod

LinkedIn

Help Support and Sustain This Podcast

1. Become a subscriber.
2. Share the podcast with one or two friends.
3. Follow us on social media @TheMainThingPod
4. Buy some Main Thing Merch from our Merchandise Store.
5. Buy a book from our curated wisdom collection on bookshop.org.
6. Become a patron and support us on Patreon with funding.

Episode Chapters

[0:03:55] - Wisdom gleaned in West Virginia

[0:05:25] - Transformed by combat

[0:06:30] - Jake has an epiphany in Southern Iraq

[0:11:23] - Lasting meaningful choices; a life focused on mitigating poverty

[0:13:40] - Jake’s move to Kenya; challenges, establishing roots, making impact

[0:15:55] - A pivotal conversation with Philip

[0:17:38] - Jake returns to America; a heartbreaking realization

[0:25:38] - Jake shares his Main Thing

[0:30:19] - An all-hand-on-deck time for America and its citizens

Episode Keywords

Wisdom, Servant, Leadership, Marines, Naval Academy, Commander, Poverty, Conflict, Military, More Perfect Union, Community Engagement, West Virginia, Resilience, Integrity, Combat, Iraq, Force Recon, Kenya, Service, Civics, Dehumanization