About SABM

The Service Academy Business Mastermind (SABM) is filled with Service Academy graduates on an entrepreneurial-, career- and business-building adventure.

We are a community of Academy grads who create exponential value for each other through new learning, collaboration and connections.

Our core purpose is to help Service Academy graduates achieve freedom of time, money, happiness and purpose through entrepreneurship and business ownership.

There are lots of programs out there to help Service Academy graduates transition from a military to a civilian career. But how about a program to help Academy grads transition into entrepreneurship? Or to take their business to a 10X level?

with People like You

We Believe

Academy Grads are the top 3% of the top 3%. Stanford, Harvard, MIT, Dartmouth, Yale and others might think they have the best entrepreneur and business owner graduates. They’re wrong.

Entrepreneurs and business owners are the people who create new jobs and move the economy forward.

Entrepreneurship is a spiritual journey that uses our talents and experiences to create new value in the world.

When you build from authenticity and lived experience, you stop competing for scraps and start creating value that attracts unlimited opportunities.

Inside SABM, we don’t compete with each other. We share our insight, expertise, experiences, wisdom, and connections to help each other reach new heights.

Making money isn’t bad or evil. It’s a powerful journey that tests your limits as you are rewarded for creating value.

If you make money doing what you love and you are great at it… you will never have to “retire.”

our founder

Scott Mackes

Scott's LinkedIn

USNA '01

Hi, I’m Scott.

Like a lot of veterans, I felt pretty lost after transitioning out of the military. I went to business school at night while on shore duty and loved it, but I had no idea what kind of business I wanted to build or even what my path was supposed to look like. So I did what most people do: I polished up my résumé and joined the corporate world.

And honestly? It never quite fit.

At the time, there was no entrepreneurial community for service academy grads or military veterans. No place to compare notes, share ideas, or learn how others were creating financial freedom outside of a traditional career. I spent years searching, experimenting, and struggling to figure it out on my own.

That struggle is the reason SABM exists.

Everything I’ve built since then is designed to make the journey easier for you, especially if “working for the man” your entire life doesn’t feel like the right answer. There’s nothing wrong with feeling uncertain early on. Most of us do. You’re not behind, you’re just in the process.

In 2017, I decided to build the community I always wished I had: a group of people who share a common background in military service and an ambition to build something bigger.

A tribe that honors where we came from, but is focused on where we’re going. Those are my people.
And if you’re reading this, they’re probably your people too.

Feel free to plug into whatever part of the ecosystem speaks to you. Whether you’re just realizing the traditional career path isn’t for you, you’re building a business and looking for the right people to grow with, or you’ve achieved success and now want to give back by investing in the next generation of veteran entrepreneurs. There’s something here for everyone.

And if you’re curious, I encourage you to check out my first business, StrengthsMugs.com, and take Gallup’s CliftonStrengths® assessment. It was a complete game-changer for me, and I’ve been intentionally designing my life and work around my strengths ever since.