"Don't have to tell me to stay home. Don't have to tell me twice. I haven't been home in years."

Fresh from cancer treatment and nine years of military service, Matt Meyers returned to a family business he barely recognized. The 20-30 person operation he'd left in the late '90s had exploded to 180 employees—only to be gutted back to 55 in one devastating year.

In this episode of Good Life Stories, Matt shares the brutal reality of the post-deployment drawdown: four layoffs in twelve months at a company that had never laid off a single person in 40 years. As a new product manager, he watched the infrastructure collapse. The people who documented everything—those essential 700-page quality control manuals—were gone. The choice? Focus resources only where absolutely necessary and embrace common sense over bureaucracy.

But this story isn't just about survival. Matt reveals the remarkable origin of B.E. Myers and Company, founded by his father—a college dropout who sold encyclopedias, dug graves, worked in a Milwaukee garage band, and taught himself explosives (surviving when most self-taught experts didn't). From underwater salvage diving to accidentally discovering how to clean ship hulls with explosive netting, to selling night vision on kitchen tables, his dad turned odd hobbies into a defense contracting powerhouse.

Matt's journey from soldier to steward of this legacy reveals lessons about pulling the "red string," questioning assumptions, and bringing common sense to uncommon challenges.

For more episode info and additional inspiring stories, visit https://www.goodlifestories.com/.