Latest from Tommy Spaulding

When I graduated college from East Carolina University in 1992, my dream was to run for public office. I wanted to be elected on a platform of bringing together leaders from both sides of the aisle and delivering real, bipartisan change to the American people. I know...

A few weeks ago, my good friend Link Wilfley emailed me a story about a famous college baseball coach named John Scolinos. In 1996, after he’d been retired for a few years, Scolinos gave a keynote address at the annual American Baseball Coaches Association convention...

At the end of August 1988, my parents dropped me off for my freshman year at East Carolina University, handed me a Walmart bag full of school supplies and snacks, and drove eight hours back to New York. When I shut the door to my dorm room, I suddenly realized that I...

A few weeks ago, I was having dinner with my daughter, Caroline. She’s heading off to college in a few years, so I’m trying to spend as much time with her as humanly possible. We got talking about school, and she mentioned offhand that her GPA was 4.35. “I didn’t even...

I’ve been a full-time student and teacher of leadership for the past 30 years. I’ve coached and been coached by everyone from high school seniors to Fortune 100 CEOs. The most common question I get, no matter whom I’m coaching, is this: “What’s the most important...

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than four million refugees have fled the bombing and devastation. I read recently that nearly a million displaced Ukrainians have settled in Poland. Over 150,000 are now living in Krakow, increasing its population by 20...

  I have spent most of my life working with young people and helping them grow into the leaders of tomorrow. Ever since I founded the National Leadership Academy and the Global Youth Leadership Academy over two decades ago, I’ve talked to hundreds of thousands of...

I first met André Van Hall when I moved to Denver two decades ago. At the time he was the general manager of a major downtown hotel, but soon after he became CEO of the prestigious Denver Athletic Club. André was a legend in the hospitality industry and a dear friend...

Last week I boarded United Airways flight 1131 from Denver, Colorado to San Antonio, Texas. As I settled into seat 7C, I felt bittersweet. I was looking forward to visiting my good friend Bill, who was retiring from his thirty-five-year career in the hospitality...