Paul Sweeney grew up in a Marine Corps family and began to train at an early age to become a Reconnaissance Marine, eventually applying to the Marine Corps.

Paul graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) San Diego California in 1988 as the Company Honor Man.

While in recruited training, he was screened and selected for a special intelligence program. Upon graduation he was stationed overseas in the United Kingdom at Naval Security Group Activity Edsel Scotland. While there he was selected as Marine of the quarter and Marine of the year and was meritoriously promoted.

Following the recognition for his performance, Paul was hand selected for a classified joint program conducting operations throughout selected areas of operations. Next, Paul received orders to Camp Lejeune NC, where he ran assessment and selection for Marine Reconnaissance. During his time at Camp Lejeune, Paul Sweeney trained and lead Marine Special Operations Teams around the world in direct support of operations concerning national security. After 20 years of service, Paul retired in 2008 as a Master Sergeant and the Senior Enlisted Marine from the National Reconnaissance Office.

After retirement, Paul was hand selected to define and develop the Expeditionary Combat Shooting Skills Program for the Naval Expeditionary Combat Command. Through this program, he developed the Expeditionary Small Arms Marksmanship Instructor (ESAMI) program and turned his sights on working with government agencies as a government contractor. While working for these companies, he developed, trained and deployed programs in support of national interest around the globe.

In 2014, continuing to follow his passion, he founded Total Defense Solutions (TDS), a Service - Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). As CEO of TDS, the company specializes in training top-tier operators in weapons, tactics, high threat driving and combatives. Focusing on the warrior and his mindset, he has been able to overcome deltas and gaps in training, and deeply rooted training scares brought on by outdated training techniques, and philosophies.