Jocko Podcast - Jocko Underground: Would You Take a Loss of Rank For More Convenience?

Episode Date: January 19, 2026

>Join Jocko Underground< Would you take a demotion in rank for convenience? Handle vindictive gatekeepers. Feeling ashamed of your service like you didn't do enough? How to deal with people who need to be put in their place. Give big time advice to small-time people.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/jocko-podcast/exclusive-content

This is the Jocko Underground Podcast number 197, sitting here with Echo Charles. We have received some questions from you all, and we will provide some guidance, some recommendations, maybe in some cases some answers, and at a minimum, some courses of action you can take to overcome the challenges we face in life. You good with that? I'm good with that. And that's very well said. Thank you for that.

Okay. First question from the inner webs. I'm currently a sergeant at a sheriff's office in the Northeast. I've been at my current department for around 10 years, but I'm thinking of transferring to another department that is closer to my home. My current department is around a 45-minute drive from my house. The department I'm looking to transfer to is only five minutes away, and it has a better schedule, four-on, four-off, four-on-three-off,

compared to the current department that I'm at five-on-two off. If I transfer, I will be making the same amount of money I'm currently making. I would have to start over on the road as a regular deputy, although the department I'm at currently is smaller, and I still have to answer calls as a sergeant because of the limited staffing. I feel like making the switch would be better just for the schedule alone, as I have a family, and I would have more time with my kids.

Of course, I will lose my sergeant title, and I'm struggling to decide what choice I should make. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for all you do. I'm a diehard listener from day one. And I hope to make it to a muster someday. Cool. Yeah.

Let me just tell you my biases in this situation. Because I think they make it a really obvious answer for me. Number one, I don't like commuting. Like you start talking about a 45 minute drive. That's an hour and a half a day. That's gone. So I don't like commuting at all I don't mind spending time in the field

So having to go out and do the work As it going back to being a deputy cool Like regular deputy get some Titles don't mean very much to me If anything so like hey I get no joy out of being a sergeant or deputy Or a captain or a lieutenant It just doesn't matter to me

And your kids are going to grow up quick And you take an hour and a half a day. Mm-hmm. Right? And that's what how many, you know, that's hours and hours a week that you're not seeing them. So with those biases, I hate to say it because normally, you know, I, you know, I'm, I'm a little bit cautious.

But my biases is pretty easy answer for me. I would change departments. I would work close to home. I'd spend more time with my family and enjoy a better schedule. I would bust my ass. I would get promoted, you know, very quickly because I would be so focused when I'm on the job. The schedule's better. Four on, four off and then four on three off. Like, that's a four day weekends, you know. And I get it, man, you're working hard when you're

out there. But still, you got three day weekends and four day weekends. As opposed to two day, like this is a total no-brainer to me, especially you're making the same amount of money. Like, this is a total no-brainer to me. That's it. That's what I got. I mean, it's straightforward to me. I don't even see. I can't even come up with negatives. Me neither. I mean, I guess under those circumstances of someone really wanting that title, which, you know, in internally, like, certain cultures, like, I see how that could maybe, I could get there is what I'm saying, but, you know. And I recently heard that people with long commutes have like a lower, like, what do you

call like, what do you, you know, when you evaluate your own life, the quality of life or whatever is like lower, I guess. Yeah. Reported lower. I'm not surprised. I do know people that kind of take advantage of their commutes and they make calls and they listen to podcast and all that stuff, which is cool. But, uh, bro, I'd rather be.

making calls while I was on a freaking treadmill in my house or something. You know what I mean? Oh my gosh, big tennis. So like every two weeks or so, you're losing a whole day. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Straight up whole day. Just try, you know, come here to five minutes, bro. It doesn't matter the job.

Like if you had a job and someone said, hey, you might even lose some pay, like a little bit of pay, but instead of driving. Kind of a lot of pay. Driving all the way to the next two towns over, or what, depends on where you live, you know, we'll say the next town over, 45. minutes there one way and then 45 minutes instead of that you just drive one block or two three blocks down the road you'd be like yeah well you don't get paid for driving so now you get you're an hour and a half a day just take that hour and a half and like what what is that payment yeah because

you're paying them back you're working you're working an hour and a half a day for free that's a good point so yeah that's a no-brainer to me go get some oh yeah that's a huge point actually yeah so yeah you're like what about these people with the hours two hour commute you're right you are kind of working for free there are times where like sometimes guys in the in the military in the seal teams they'll live an hour and 20 minutes away they got like a two hour commute a day two hour two and a half hour commute a day but they bought a house somewhere in some place that they really want to live this school district whatever and in the seal team's like

you go to work sometimes you go only go to work once so that is a little excerpt of what we are doing on the Jocko Underground podcast. So if you want to continue to listen, go to jocco underground.com and subscribe. And we're doing this. We're doing this to mitigate our reliance on external platforms. So we are not subject to their control. And we are doing this so that we can support the Jocko podcast, which will remain as is free for all, as long as we can keep it that way.

but we but we are doing this so we don't have to be under the control of sponsors and we're doing it so we can give you more control more interaction more direct connections better communications with us and to do that we are we're building a website right now where we'll be able to utilize to strengthen this legion of troopers that are in the game with us so thank you it's jocco underground dot com it costs eight dollars and eighteen cents a month and if you can't afford to support us We can still support you just email assistance at jocco underground.com and we'll get you taken care of until then We will see you mobilized underground