Shawn Ryan: There's A Battle For Your Soul, It's Happening Right Now

Steven Bartlett (0:00)

You said you think you visited hell.

Shawn Ryan (0:02)

I know I did, and it was more real than anything I've experienced. It was the most amount of fear I'd ever felt in my life. My body was contorted. It was doing things that the human body shouldn't do.

Steven Bartlett (0:14)

Do you think you were possessed? Because subsequently, you've had several exorcisms.

Shawn Ryan (0:17)

Yes, the things that are happening are just undeniable.

Steven Bartlett (0:20)

What happened?

Shawn Ryan (0:21)

I'll tell you what I experienced.

Steven Bartlett (0:22)

Just before we get into all of that, you have lived a remarkable life.

Shawn Ryan (0:25)

I was in the US. Navy, went to Iraq, Haiti, Afghanistan, and done some insane missions. You learn a lot of critical life lessons, but there's another side too. You get addicted to those type of environments, adrenaline.

Steven Bartlett (0:39)

After your CIA contracting role, you moved to Medellin, Colombia?

Shawn Ryan (0:43)

Yeah. It was probably the most dangerous thing I had ever done.

Steven Bartlett (0:46)

Did you get involved in the drug-dealing networks?

Shawn Ryan (0:48)

Yes. I never really dealt. It was more setting up the network, figuring out who the players are that gave me the rush. There's not very many people that can pull some like that off, but then this guy, Freddie, he said, the police were after me. They had planted a bug in the light fixture outside of my door, and then they...

Steven Bartlett (1:08)

You now have built one of the biggest podcasts on planet Earth?

Shawn Ryan (1:11)

Yes. But my show will not appear in popular podcasts because it's something that I was saying a long time ago. It had to do with the ****.

Steven Bartlett (1:18)

That is very weird. Do you think podcasters are being compromised by guests being planted on their shows or in other ways?

Shawn Ryan (1:24)

Yes. Here's one example. The Trump administration crushed it in the election cycle, right? Really utilized the podcast. They saw the power of it. It was a great tactic. And so I think that they have people inside of all the platforms that we use. And this has happened to me because one time I had a guy come on and we could talk about that.

Steven Bartlett (1:40)

And you endorsed Trump before the election?

Shawn Ryan (1:42)

I wanted him to win.

Steven Bartlett (1:43)

Have you changed your opinion on Trump now?

Shawn Ryan (1:45)

Oh, yeah. For a multitude of reasons. I probably shouldn't even be saying this, bud.

Steven Bartlett (1:52)

Guys, I've got a favor to ask before this episode begins. The algorithm, if you follow a show, will deliver you the best episodes from that show very prominently in your feed. So when we have our best episodes on this show, the most shared episodes, the most rated episodes, I would love you to know. And the simple way for you to know that is to hit that follow button. But also, it's the simple, easy, free thing that you can do to help us make this show better. And I would be hugely grateful if you could take a minute on the app you're listening to this on right now and hit that follow button. Thank you so, so, so much.

Sean Ryan, you have lived a remarkable life for so many different reasons. I feel like you've lived several different lives as well, dare I say. But for anybody that might not be familiar with your smash hit show and your incredible journey through the military, can you give me a top line on the career that you've had before you got into podcasting, for those that might not know?

Shawn Ryan (2:49)

Yeah, joined the US. Navy at, I think I enlisted at age 17, went straight to into the Navy SEAL program, went to BUDS, went to SEAL Team 8, spent five and a half years in the Navy and then left that, became a real estate agent. I had read a book by Donald Trump way back then on, this is it, how to get rich. It inspired me to become an entrepreneur and failed miserably.

So, then I looked at government contracting, started contracting for Central Intelligence Agencies, started a small State Department gig, got picked up for the CIA contract, did that through Blackwater, then jumped over to a company called Sacht, and then wound up getting picked up direct contractor for the agency of No Middleman.

Steven Bartlett (3:38)

And you said in that you wanted to be a Navy SEAL. Now, for international audiences that might not know what a Navy SEAL is relative to just like being in the Army, what is the distinction?