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Defense After Dark — Our New Low-Light Defense Course with Dan Brady

By Jacob Paulsen / August 20, 2026

Defense After Dark is a new five-module course with Dan Brady on defending yourself in low light — handheld and weapon-mounted lights, tactics, and drills.

S14E5: Top Ways to Get More Out of Your Next Training Class

By Riley Bowman / August 19, 2026

Whether you’re booking your very first class or your fifteenth, this episode breaks down the habits that separate the students who walk away transformed from the ones who walk away with a certificate and not much else.

12 Ways to Get More Out of Your Next Firearms Training Class

By Jacob Paulsen / July 14, 2026

You paid for the class. Here are 12 things to do before, during, and after a firearms training class so you actually collect what you paid for.

New and Easy Resources For Concealed Carriers

By Jacob Paulsen / June 4, 2026

In the last several months we’ve been methodically working on some significant redesign and user interface changes to ConcealedCarry.com. We’ve crossed the threshold of basically done with the project and…

Introducing Guardian University — Your New Home for Defensive Training

By Jacob Paulsen / April 20, 2026

Guardian University is our new dedicated learning environment inside ConcealedCarry.com, built from the ground up to be the most organized, intentional, and accessible defensive training resource we’ve ever offered.

3 MORE Lessons From Concealed Carry Renewal Classes

By Jacob Paulsen / December 22, 2025

Three more lessons from concealed carry renewal classes: outdated or ultra-small guns, overconfidence without skill awareness, and why most carriers are curious about pistol optics but haven’t made the switch.

S11E8: Gear Trends – Dots, Lights, Malfunctions, and More

By Riley Bowman / March 19, 2025

In this episode of the Concealed Carry Podcast, we discuss gear trends from a recent training class, highlighting popular firearms and the increasing use of optics. I, Riley Bowman, and co-host Jacob Paulsen examine reasons participants chose different equipment than their everyday carry, addressing the dual benefits of familiar versus new gear.

S8E8: Maximizing Your Learning at Training Events with Mickey Schuch

By Jacob Paulsen / March 31, 2023

Jacob sits down with Mickey Schuch of CarryTrainer to discuss different types of training events, the values of each, and some tips to maximize your return on the investment. They talk about Mickey’s S12 event as well as the annual Guardian Conference and how different these events can be.

S7E10: Takeaways and Lessons Learned From the 2022 Guardian Conference

By Riley Bowman / October 18, 2022

Riley Bowman and Matthew Maruster share our main takeaways and lessons learned from the 2022 Guardian Conference. We recently returned from the event where over 100 people attended for 3 days of world class training and instruction. Next year’s event is also already scheduled and super early bird signups are taking place!

S3E8: Spend Less – Learn More – Get the T-shirt

By Riley Bowman / August 12, 2021

Riley Bowman and Jacob Paulsen discuss the 2021 Guardian Conference in Oklahoma City on September 17-19. We have a HUGE announcement regarding the event. Trust me, you won’t want to miss this episode. Plus we’ll talk about ways you can train more, pay less, and get better.

Episode 469: The Mantis Elite Marksman

By Jacob Paulsen / January 12, 2021

Jacob welcomes Ratigan back as a guest to help discuss a series of free training courses Jacob just completed via the Mantis app; and what he learned from them. Tune in to understand how you too may benefit from Jacob’s takeaways or from completing the training program yourself.

What I Learned, Mantis Elite Marksman

By Jacob Paulsen / January 7, 2021

I’ve been familiar with Mantis since they had their “popup” booth at SHOT Show in 2016. We’ve been resellers of the product here on our site since 2017. About a…

The Importance and Value of A Visual “Go” Indicator For Defensive Training

By Jacob Paulsen / October 8, 2020

As an industry, we’ve become accustomed to auditory “go signals” in our competitive and defensive firearm training. This generally takes the form of an instructor or range officer standing behind…

Episode 422: 11 Tips To Getting The Most Out of Your Next Class

By Jacob Paulsen / June 12, 2020

Jacob & Matthew discuss the little things you can do to 5X the value you get from the next class you take. These are the things we consistently see our students NOT doing that they really should do.

Are Online Concealed Carry Permits a Scam?

By Jacob Paulsen / October 11, 2019

More than half of US states will accept a permit that is obtained by taking an online only concealed carry class. This article explores how that works and how your state laws may or may not apply.