S5:E174 (VIDEO)🎙️ LIVE with CDR (SEL) Anthony R. Murphy, U.S. Navy

S5:E174🎙️ LIVE with CDR (SEL) Anthony R. Murphy, U.S. Navy

From Seaman Recruit to Commander: Leadership, Service & Unwrapping the Present ⚓️🇺🇸🫡

 

Leadership & Success Podcast with Coach BZ, Season 5, Episode 174

 

 

Mark your calendars!

 

📅 Friday, August 21, 2026

⏰ 12:00 PM PT — San Francisco, CA

⏰ 3:00 PM ET — Washington, D.C.

📍 LIVE on LinkedIn → [RSVP & Join the Discussion]

 

🌟 Meet My Guest

 

Some leadership stories are told loudly.

 

Others are lived quietly.

 

CDR (SEL) Anthony R. Murphy, U.S. Navy, is my friend, my mentee, and one of those quiet leaders whose journey deserves to be told.

 

And today, I am one PROUD mentor! ❤️⚓️

 

Anthony's Navy journey began in 1999 as a Seaman Recruit (E-1). He started in Deck Department, struck Information Systems Technician (IT), served approximately nine years enlisted, and later earned his commission through the Direct Commission Officer program.

 

Today—27 years after entering the Navy—he has been selected for Commander (O-5).

 

E-1 ➡️ O-5 (SEL). 🔥

 

Like me, Anthony is a prior-enlisted Sailor who became a Navy Information Professional Officer and qualified Information Warfare Officer. His journey has included operational and joint assignments, deployments supporting missions including Afghanistan and Djibouti, major exercises, NATO and joint experiences, and service across the Navy's information warfare enterprise.

 

His civilian career has included work supporting the U.S. Army, Microsoft, and the U.S. Navy civilian workforce, while his commitment to service extends far beyond the uniform. Anthony serves through ministry, coaches football, and is working to launch a home-care business designed to serve senior veterans and citizens with special needs.

 

But titles and accomplishments tell only part of Anthony's story.

 

He is also a husband, father, mentor, coach, man of faith, and servant leader who believes in a simple but powerful philosophy:

 

🎁 “Unwrap the present.”

 

Live your life and your vision with enthusiasm—fueled by hope and purpose.

 

That philosophy will be at the heart of our conversation.

 

🎯 What You Will Learn…

 

✨ What a 27-year journey from Seaman Recruit to Commander teaches us about perseverance and leadership

 

✨ Why Anthony's prior-enlisted experience continues to shape the officer and leader he is today

 

✨ How leaders can stay connected to the deckplates as their rank and responsibilities increase

 

✨ What failure, adversity, discouragement, and self-doubt can teach us about resilience

 

✨ How faith, family, mentorship, education, and service helped sustain Anthony through his journey

 

✨ And perhaps most importantly: what today's young Sailor can learn from someone who once wore E-1 and is now preparing to wear the rank of Commander

 

💬 Join the Conversation!

 

🗺️ Where are you tuning in from? Drop your city, region, or country in the comments!

 

🙏🏽 What is one thing you are grateful for today?

 

💬 Got a question about leadership, mentorship, military service, Information Warfare, resilience, or the journey from enlisted Sailor to commissioned officer? Post it below—we will answer as many as we can LIVE!

 

⸻

 

👇 Your Turn:

 

➡️ What are your three takeaways from this episode?

 

➡️ What's one leadership insight you're applying this week?

 

➡️ Tag a Sailor, junior officer, veteran, colleague, mentee, or teammate who could benefit from Anthony's story. ❤️🙏🏾

 

Somewhere in our Navy today is another young Seaman Recruit who cannot yet imagine where the journey might lead.

 

Anthony's story is a reminder:

 

Your starting point does not determine your destination.

 

Keep learning.

 

Keep serving.

 

Keep growing.

 

Keep believing.

 

And never become so senior that you forget the deckplates you came from.

 

Congratulations again, CDR (SEL) Anthony R. Murphy!

 

From E-1 to O-5—and the mission continues.

 

BRAVO ZULU, Shipmate! ⚓️🇺🇸🫡

 

#LeadershipAndSuccess #CoachBZ