On this episode of ‘Extraordinary Life stories’ John Reynolds talks to Anthony Stazicker.
Anthony, better known as ‘Staz’, served 13 years in a distinguished and highly decorated military career in the UK special forces with the last 3 as a highly experienced, multi-skilled, chief sniper instructor & demolitions expert.
Staz has been Awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for combat actions conducted in Afghanistan in 2013.
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In this episode of life stories of extraordinary people I’m talking to Anthony stazer Anthony better known as staz served 13 years in a distinguished and highly decorated military career in the UK Special Forces with the last three as a highly experienced multi-kill Chief sniper instructor and demolitions expert star has been awarded the
Conspicuous gallantry cross for combat actions conducted in Afghanistan in 2013 clearly Stars will have an incredible experience and understanding of self-discipline and mindset so it would be fascinating to explore and learn what he does to maintain his own mental and physical health I’m Keen to see how relevant his military training
Positive mindset and his ability to lead has influenced his business experience he’s the founder of a true Mission Le business called through dark which is growing fast and I want to learn more about it and the inspiration behind it I’m really looking forward to talking to stars star welcome thanks thanks for
Having me in tell me who is Anthony sta who am I I’m still discovering that I’m still trying to find that out but the short and condensed version uh I’m 39 years old I was born in Wigan um moved to Nottingham I was a a kid and joined
The military so I’m a former Special Forces operator that’s probably what I’m known for I guess and I’ve since leaving the military in 2018 I’ve started a high performance outdoor clothing brand and co-founded that with my partner Louie yeah awesome take me back to when you were growing up
What did the Young Stars want to do when you were going through your teams and looking at a career oh God what did Young Stars want to do young Stars probably want to do everything as fast as possible um I guess I got introduced to sport in particular rugby to begin
With because uh I was obviously born in Wigan um rugby league rugby league the proper game and then um I moved my parents divorced around about the age seven I relocated to Nottingham or Mansfield with my older brother and all the goal poost had changed you know it
Was now football so very quickly had to turn my hand to not only a new school new environment new people but to a new sport as well and that was football for me so I very quickly um became attached to the game and passionate okay cool and
How far did you go with that pursuit of football not as far as I wanted to um so my mom s suddenly passed away uh when I was aged 11 and I guess you know it was a brain hemorrhage it was overnight thankfully I was away with my brother visiting my dad
At the time up in Wigan uh but you know one moment she’s there the next moment she wasn’t so when I was 11 that was obviously quite a big turning point in my life so I guess to answer your question why football and why that passion and why that purpose for me it
Really lit a a a fire within my belly uh and for me it was a way of not just a distraction but for me a way to align myself and my purpose and my vision and my goal towards something that I could strive towards you know valiantly and
Almost ignore what was happening at that time or that in my life as a young kid yeah sounds like you’ve always been really motivated and driven and potentially goal setting as well am I right in saying that or did that come as you started to almost a
Achieve and make things happen and then build that that kind of comp I think yes uh but I also think because what had happened at such a young age you know with losing my mom I think I felt a lot of anger you know towards the world why
Me you know this isn’t fair um you know no kid should should lose their their parents at that sort of age but I didn’t have anywhere to turn that anger and angst towards and I guess that was manifesting in different ways in so much school and work and attitude but I I
Found my release and my passion through Sport and through football and very quickly I became quite good at football so at a young age I was representing the school I was Captain I was then playing for the Nottingham for County team as well that level then I was picked up by
A professional team you know Mansfield I start yeah so I started playing through that sort of system uh and then I went to uh more professional football teams I was playing for Fulham you know quite highend um sort of teams at the the time started representing England school boys
Um and then unfortunately I was involved in an accident on a motocross bike uh which dislocated my knee I was uh rehabilitated very quickly the sort of the first game back uh my knee went again and I kind of I knew that that moment in time that I’d you know the
Dream was kind of the sand going through the fingers I knew and it was frustrating at kind of that age 16 17 right on sort of picking up what was then a yts uh scholarship apprenti ship at the time was kind of fizzling out or
Or or or moving away from me so from there had to readjust went to uh college and wanted to do btech National diploma in sports science but also carried on with the rehab football I then joined the uh the college football team I then started playing I got back into the
Swing of things and then I was representing the British colleges so the whole of the colleges in Britain uh playing for them and then I got offered a scholarship to go over to the United States of America which didn’t work out frustrating there’s a lot of frustration
There very frustra yeah been building up to that so where did you go from there what’s out there now in the big wide world which I’ve never really considered before you know I started then looking into different options in terms of work I went to work for in a local gym so I
Became a personal trainer uh and a local Council estate you know ran gym uh for a couple of years uh at that point it was kind of I still had that fire in my belly you know I was I still very interested in playing football I was
Playing for a local team being paid but not as a Prof semi-professional uh very interested in in uh still keeping myself physically active and fit obviously part part of the uh part of the job being an instructor and then I started looking at
You know what do I want to do who who do I want to be and what do I need to do to achieve the things that I’m thinking about and that’s when I really started thinking about the military um which at the time was not forced upon from from
Anybody in my family nobody in my family had been in the military before so it was something that I started looking into through actually through books I started reading you know you spend all that time at school not interested not interested books not not bothered and
Then you sort of reach an age I think where you find out what interests you what books interest and then you go to learn it’s like purposeful practice you know you’ll do the things that you want to do you’ll read the books that you want to read when you’re when you do
Come of agent and you’re and you’re happy to do so so I started reading Andy McNab so first man in was probably one of the first proper books that I read and a lot of autobiographies and you know and some of his fictional stuff as well it got me really that’s correct yeah
Yeah so really started spiking my interest in the military and the sort of Special Forces and that mystery and who these people were and uh you know and I think it kind of fitted quite well in terms of me and my personality and who I
Thought I could be yeah um so I started looking into joining the military and that was the raw Marines yeah and that’s not easy I mean you know you must have known you’re looking into that this is a massive challenge you you obviously weren’t intimidated you just took it for
Long it it isn’t an easy it’s not an easy challenge but I tell you what hooked me was the um the raw Marines um advert at the time and I don’t know if you can remember it it was these guys cool guys all cam creamed up weapons they’re moving through you know the
Silent and again then they get beasted and then they show people going under the under the sheep dip and it was like oh my God it was like what is that that looks horrific where do I sign up yeah but but the tagline was 99 99.9% need
Not apply apparently it was their worst ever commercial because it just made people go I’m not strong enough to to do that like I don’t want that but what it did do is it did appeal to the probably the crazy Absolut of people me going I
Love some of that when time that sounds incredible so off I went down to the local Armed Forces career office in Nottingham and for me I’d always wanted to if I was going to do something I want to be the best at what I do you sure
Whatever I was doing and that’s become quite evident as I’ve kind of moved through through life and yeah walked in there there’s this big Burly kind of raw Marine Commando in there you know he’s got his green Ray on his belt you know his flashes Romine
Commando and you know he he’s looking he has that kind of sense about him that that kind of feeling of Pride about him very confident individual I go in i s said look I’m interested in joining the military you know U probably naively at
The time so I want to do Andy McNab SAS slow down kid slow down sit down so we we spoke about what those options would be clearly he was biased towards the Marines uh but for me I’d read enough to know who the Marines were what that
Entailed and how difficult or of an undertaking that was and probably alongside that it’s probably worth giving the parachute regiment a little nod as well and a little shout out as well because for me they’re probably the two best infantry um um units in in the
UK so yeah it’s 32 weeks basic inverted commers uh training and at the end of that 32 weeks you are then awarded uh the covered green Bri right and obviously you went on to have a career there where you ended up getting the gallantry cross yeah um so I
Had a you know an eventful career and a decorated career to to your point so I spent um three years in fact just before that I’d kind of gone through the military or the Marines training and um I joined the 32 weeks clearly it’s a very physically uh and mentally intense
Course a lot of people get injured they succumb to injury which is obviously no no fault of their own but the attrition rate is pretty high um I started on week one I finished at week 32 so they call that an original if you say there’s 50
People in your troop you start I kind of uh I sound like I’m boting now I’m not I’m I’m not trying to sort of say look how good I am I’m trying to give context to kind of how hard and what the attrition rate was in terms of other
People I think there was only six originals from our uh 50 60 people that joined that went through day one 32 um I was um I think also to give more context I think I found my calling I was kind of I was used to being around sport
Being around teams and having that sense of belonging to something bigger and better than myself you know but and adding and playing an important role for the greater good so I liked that um also still that fire in my belly that that willingness to push myself I just I
Loved it I absolutely loved it so I finished at the end of the 32 weeks I was actually awarded the Kings badman so the the the sort of top recruit and the physical training medal as well for being this kind of fittest guy in the
Thing in the troop but again I think I I owed a lot of that to my uh pre my pre um sporting background from football that kind of transferred very well in into the military world I then spent three years in the Raw Marines so my
Three years I go on an operational tour out to cabul Afghanistan that was my first kind of eye openening tour sure H you know you’re you’re a boy in a man’s world I was 21 22 at the time you know qu steep learning curve and then I move
To a different unit I then say right okay what’s next what’s next what’s next and I look into the hardest uh infantry course within the raw Marines or within the within the British Military and that’s the sniper course so um that’s a highly regarded um um well regarded sort
Of uh course that you can do within the Marines um it’s tests you you know physically mentally you know shooting all the kind of basic soldiering infantry skills to a very high standard they’re um kind of another level within the military that guys look towards oh
He’s this one of the snipers or the wcky guys that kind of stuff it’s kind of like another level up um so I went on the sniper course completed that and then I remember sitting there in the office at the end of the sniper course I didn’t get on particularly well with the
Chief instructor it wasn’t just myself it was a you know he’s just a difficult man to get on with and I remember sitting down with him and saying to me stats where do you want to go now what what kind of what uh unit do you want to
Go to what sniper bill it and I was like my response to him you know was I want to go on special Special Forces selection and he nearly spent his tea out and was kind of like good luck with that and I thought wow that just again
Just makes you want it more yeah that guy just was like pouring gasoline onto the petrol that was already burning within within me so I okay I stand up leave thank you very much off I go and then I enroll myself onto onto the UK Special Forces selection course which
Is joint Special Forces selection course so for most people that don’t know about Special Forces it’s uh it’s kind of under one umbrella now it’s you know SAS SPS So Special Air Service special Boat Service reconnaissance regiment all kind of encompassing but the SAS and the SPs
Go and do that combined kind of selection process and that’s a that’s a hard undertaking uh as well so you kind of six months into a selection process uh before joining your respective units and I’m assuming you flew through that I did actually I did I
Did and the same thing happens again so now um there’s probably two on my course 250 260 people that turn up on day one you know in in the Welsh mountains to start the 4-we uh Hills phase yeah uh and these are like current competent hardened indivual a massively powerful
Group right it’s a powerful group but it’s a volunteered group as well I.E be previously to to that selection you had to be put forward or have to express interest and then have to be almost signed off you’re vetted you know by your unit but but now you
Can as long as pass the pre-course kind of pre- selection course to go in to show that you’re fit enough physically and robust enough you can do the basics while navigate and etc etc then you’re loaded on there’s 250 260 guys here and the it might be different now but you
Know the raw Marines at the time made up 60% of UK special forces that sort of show shows the caliber of the raw Marines you know the rest were made up of parachute regiment guys and a very small percentage of the other kind of units Engineers etc etc so you know
You’ve got some some vast levels of experience there fit physically fit and mentally robust individuals some that had done operational tours as well you know Afghanistan was kind of very um um prevalent at the time you know that everybody had kind of been out there or most people have been out Le
One or two tour seen sort of Combat Action um so yeah we start the course and off we go but back to your point I did actually finish I’m going to condense you know 6 months worth of extremely physically mentally exhausting exhilarating moments of of of
That selection of my life at that time in into probably a 30 second dialogue it was horrific um but I loved it I absolutely loved it um there were moments where I was on my my my lowest the the the kind of Ed if it was a piece
Of string it would be one thread just about you know some weight hanging and you think it’s going to go it’s going to go but you don’t and it didn’t you know and there’s an element of lady look involved but I don’t believe in look so
Much but there is you need the rub you need the rub of the green yeah there are physically fit and very competent people on that course that don’t make it for different reasons and that just simply rolling an ankle snapping a you know something like that out of their control
Yeah yeah it’s that’s difficult you know and but there’s not one person that goes through selection that does not have an injury of some you know one form or another so we do the hills you go to the Jungle that’s stinking uh and then you go resistance to interrogation face
You’ve probably seen that sort of stuff Hood over yeah screamy baby noises resistance to interrogation and bits and pieces and then you do the weapons and tactics phase at the end if if they successful at the end of that then you get moved to your respective unit you
Get the belt the Beret welcome Snakes and Ladders Life’s a game of snakes and ladders yeah Pig time you’re up you’re up you’re up you got keep climbing there right you got to keeping because that’s what comes across way you’re articulating this and and thank you it’s just it’s fascinating for me especially
The kid that would running around with cap guns and watching Sean Conor a little bit probably different to the real thing clearly but um yeah just it’s cool and I remember that ADT I didn’t tell it at the time but I do remember the ADT and it it made you
Think that looks so cool but also I remember thinking those guys are just Haren which probably said something about me thinking I didn’t I didn’t sign up but um in terms of your mindset in terms of your positive attitude it feels like that’s unwavering have you always
Been like that has there been a time when you’ve just thought I just you know whatever it might be in training or indeed in combat has been a moment where you just thought I can’t handle this and you just always got an inner voice that says keep going stats I’ve never had a
Moment where I’ve where something has become so hard that I I want to quit that I thought I’m going to quit don’t get me wrong there’s been times when I’ve passed out from being physically exhausted your body’s given up on you before your mind yeah
And and for me that’s key you know you can break me physically but you you cannot break me mentally and I’ve been to the furthest far reaches that most people people will ever you know push themselves to physically and mentally you know bar high performance high high level athletes uh and endurance athletes
Etc etc you know and that’s every kind of um environment as well cold wet hungry and I think that’s it’s designed specifically in that for that purpose you know not just the Marines but Special Forces selection they’re constantly layering you know the sandwich it’s lack of sleep you know uh
Terrible food you know and then pressure environment pressure and you know climate everything is just layered layered layered layered and then whack you got to perform you know and that’s what they’re looking for and that’s I think for me um the selection process hasn’t changed that much in years
Because it’s it’s beautiful it’s works it’s works it’s a proven concept that works for those reasons because me right now sitting here a comfortable or beit warm room we’re comfortable we’re having a sat down relaxed conversation for the most part that’s how most people na navigate life we’re now living in a
World that’s so so comfortable for the most part you know our phones technology everything’s designed to be easy easy for food easy to travel you know easy to communicate you know I can find out information but it’s very difficult I think um to be put into a a real life stressful situation that’s
When you see who people really are and selection is designed so much in that in that um sense that there trying to see who the real staz is who is he I don’t I don’t care who he is right now let’s get him cold wet tied hungry and and fill
Him with a complex task with others and see how he reacts yeah and I think that’s interesting because what the military did give me is a very unique perspective on life I’ve seen the best of humanity the worst of humanity you know I’ve been involved with that stuff
And and surrounded and immersed in that world for so long and but I’m so thankful for that perspective yeah you know and as you do get a little bit older and a little bit I’m not wise or you I’m still wet behind the hit still wet behind the years I’m 39 years old
But that life experience and that time what it’s afforded me with that 10 years of of Special Forces traveling the world being involved with so much you know great time it’s not all bad some really good times as well but and and learning from some fantastic individuals as well
People that I was surrounded with the team you know I’ve I’ve been so fortunate to be surrounded by a wealth of experience um you know not just professionally but personally as well learning from some of the best leaders you know on in my experience in in the world you know these people are
Fantastic individuals you a traveling experience you you’ve learned how to be part of a team you probably learn how to how you more about yourself than you ever could doing anything else and youve come out the other side and I think I say it like that because you must have
Been around colleagues and people that have come out with post-traumatic stress you know um not sure what they’re going to do next next cuz that was their identity whereas I’ve had the the privilege to come and see you and your offices down there where we both live
And through dark you know it’s such a mission Le business and and it’s come from your own experiences which i’ Lov you to elaborate on um and the fact that a lot of what you learned through the military and just all the journey before this discipline and getting on with
People and so on is so relevant to business as well right so have you taken all of that through and found that that’s been incredibly useful to be able to become ultimate entrepreneur right wow where do we start I think yes but it’s business is is a different entity a completely different Mission
Mindset and approach to the things that I’ve done previously now there are clearly some transferable skills from not just military but Special Forces and experience gain that you can apply through business and life and you can layer those in different areas um there’s a lot of things that I’ve you
Know that I would do differently or I would like to have done differently but I think for the most part I mean I’m I’m being kind of really minor there nitpicking for the most part to your original point to the question about identity when when you leave something like the Special Forces
You attach so much of your identity to to who you are at that time and it’s an echo chamber everything is you’re in this bubble your special force is you’re you know I’m staz I’m a I’m a sergeant I’m a sniper I’m the chief sniper instructor and I’ve done so many
Operational tours and i’ I’ve got a conspicuous gallantry cross and I’m great look at me and you know and but yeah yes yes you are and it’s you know it’s like professional sport you know you’re on the team and look how good we are we’ve just won the title
Look brilliant brilliant brilliant brilliant brilliant right out you go don’t need you anymore and it’s whoa whoa you know there’s a lot to take in there you know you do attack so much of your identity to who you are and what you did before and you you have to go
Through that process and some people deal with that differently and I’ve seen it manifest in in terrible ways through PTSD um through drink through drugs through gambling um through through various means and methods of Madness you know and the scale the sliding scale it’s different you know it’s and I’m not
A clinical psychologist and but is mental health an issue yeah absolutely we know it is we know it is we can see the statistics the biggest killer under what men under 40 in the UK it’s frightening it’sing frightening and by default your whole career and you can
Tell just by looking at you you keep physically fit I want to know what you do now out out of the military daytoday and also mentally did you still keep reading you still keep searching for knowledge and how do you find it so I’ll touch on the physical aspect clearly you
You have to keep physically fit within Special Forces that’s a non-negotiable if you are not physically fit and you cannot do the job you’ll be returned to your unit you know you’re no Ed to anybody it’s same as being a professional athlete so you have a lot of self-induced pressure but actual real
Life pressure because people are depending on it people’s lives depend on it if I’m not fit or I fail to to do something because I’ve not looked after my physical fitness and I’m letting somebody else down that’s on me you know and that’s unfair so I always kept that
In check since leaving I guess it’s a way of life then you the more that you train the more that it becomes a habit a consistent habit built over time what works for you you go for runs I mean so an average week for me is is now
Brazilian jiu-jitsu which leans into the mental aspect as well so um Brazilian jiu-jitsu and then um sort of weight strength and conditioning resistance training and a run at least once a week as well with a bit of a cold water therapy dip and and bits and pieces in
Between so you know sometimes life gets in the way but yeah that’s what I aim for I want to touch quickly on the mental aspect as well in terms of physical we’ve got the physical the mental you know I don’t meditate or anything but jiujitsu gave gave me that
Sense of flow That I Used to Love and Enjoy and the visualization that I used a lot of times within the military and pre-military which I didn’t realize until now you know how I how I also internalize things how I speak to myself and I think it’s important to know you
Know the conversations that you’re having with yourself dayt day minute to minute yeah are so important you know and they can’t be overlooked we know that we know the brain wants to sort of you know be the bad person and you know it’s it’s weird how it works but I think recognizing
That and being aware for me that’s awareness that’s a sense of meditation or whatever that is about being too deep about that yeah and I think if you can look after yourself first and foremost it’s the analogy isn’t it you’re on the plane the G The Mask come down and you
Know we we’re fathers you’re going to look after your kids it’s like no no no no no sort yourself out first because if you can’t sort yourself out you cannot look into helping the younger people that are going to depend on you in about two to three seconds time and that’s
True in life for me that is look after yourself physically look after yourself mentally once you are as complete as you can be and you’re at peace with yourself mentally and physically you can then add value to your family and to your children yeah and you know I’ve tried to
Learn that don’t get me wrong we slip up I’m I’m I’m not the perfect person and nor should we expect to be perfect you know we’re not I think that’s the beauty of life and it’s distancing from that seeming selfish and self-indulgent because actually if you can be the best
Person of yourself you are much more helpful to those around you and other people what’s important to me right now is being the best husband I can be to my wife the best father that I can be to my kids you know it and the best person I can be
To myself as well and then how do those things now help and transfer into business into enjoying life I’ve learned loads from you there’s lots more we could go off and find out about but thank you so much for being so open and sharing about everything we’ve talked
About thank you thanks for having Me