We hosted the EO Global Board for dinner at Aiii, a fusion restaurant owned by our member Vinh Nguyen. No keynote, no slide deck, no formal program. Just entrepreneurs around a table, eating great food and talking honestly about what it takes to lead.
It is easy to expect distance from people elected to help lead 18,000+ entrepreneurs worldwide. There wasn't any. They own businesses like we do and face the same realities we do. The difference is simply that they have been in EO longer and chose to walk the path of leadership.
Jamie, our former Global Chair, described the Global Board as a kind of second forum: deep, trust-based relationships, board meetings in cities around the world, and unscripted conversations you cannot manufacture anywhere else. We opened the night with a spontaneous Tet-inspired tradition, a hat on each board member's head and a story they had never told. Silly, human, and the perfect icebreaker.
Global leaders aren't different from us. They're members who developed their leadership over time and chose to serve beyond themselves. The path is visible, and the chapter grows stronger when more of us walk it.