I’m not afraid to admit I spent years rolling over, waiting for a hero to come and stop the bad things that always happened to me—whether that was being bullied at school or dealing with horrific workplace behavior.
But no one came.
Exhausted from the drama one day, with an unrecognizable version of myself at the wheel, I intentionally swerved off the interstate in an attempt to take my own life.
But in that half-second, my reflexes responded, and I yanked the wheel away from disaster. As I clipped the guardrail on I405, I discovered a strength inside me. I realized:
Still, it took years for me to fully awaken to a simple truth: I had to become my own hero.
Most people think kindness means being a pushover. But that’s not kindness. That’s weakness disguised as virtue.
From that broken moment to testifying before Congress, I’ve spoken across three continents and built a worldwide movement around this message.
As the CEO and Founder of Together Global® and best-selling author of three books—Making Work Work, Go Together, and Civil Unity—I now help organizations worldwide discover what I learned the hard way: that being Strong Enough to Be Kind isn’t just nice to have; it’s essential for survival.
Together, we get to create cultures worth fighting for where people have the courage to do what’s right in their careers and in their communities.
