I’ve written six speeches in 2025. Each one taught me something new about resilience, creativity, and purpose. But this one? This one is about becoming someone I haven’t met yet—the version of me who leads with grace, not just grit; who listens more than he speaks; who treats every interaction as sacred time.
So I ask you—not to applaud, but to reflect: What would shift if we chose to be better to each other, even when it’s hard?
Imagine a world where grocery-store clerks greet you by name. Where colleagues check in after a tough meeting. Where strangers pause mid-scroll to comfort someone who’s just shared pain. A world where devotion outlasts convenience, where small acts of kindness ripple into something greater than any trending hashtag.
That’s the kind of leadership the world is starving for. And that’s the kind I’m learning to live.
Tonight, let’s promise to trade performance for presence. To treasure each conversation as a moment of devotion. To become the witnesses who hold each other’s stories in the light.
Because when we stop performing—and start caring—we awaken the best in one another. And that is the true magic we all have the power to create.
risingwithlight.org 