There are two days, that make my year as a professional speaker, every year. 

I get on two planes to take me to Montgomery, Alabama to meet the next class of innovation leaders at the US Air Force’s Blue Horizons Institute. Sixteen top Airmen and Women are selected to champion and run pilots on new, top secret defense, communications, weapons and process innovations. Acting like intrapreneurs, their task is to align diverse parts of the Air Force, get buy-in and have the message travel to those who need to hear it. 

My task? Help them prepare the message and the story as a pitch to be presented to the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, its highest rank. 

To say that this is the honor of lifetime is an understatement. I’m used to entrepreneurs and corporate innovators improving on and launching amazing new products. But only here when I ask them, “What’s your WHY behind choosing this project?” The answer is: 

“Ma’am, to protect the homeland and potentially save your life.” 

Whoa. It’s amazing when your work feels like it fulfills its purpose and has real consequences for so many people. 

The men and women are brave, brilliant and so eager to learn. They soon found out that data alone won’t get the thumbs up the Chief. 

Emotion, empathy for the listener, and showcasing that an indisputable and important shift is happening right now that makes their innovation crucial. That’s what gets tough audiences to say YES. 

This year, I was particularly humbled by these Fellows. Colonel Daniel “Sunday” Ruttenber, who heads the program presented me with a Blue Horizons Challenge Coin. Challenge coins are numbered, custom-minted metal medallions symbolizing unit identity, shared allegiance, and achievements in the military. During wartime, friendlies could identify US soldiers shot down behind enemy lines. Today, it might get you a free beer in a “coin check” if you challenge a fellow soldier who fails to carry theirs. 

I was so overcome with shock and emotion that I burst into tears. To even be considered “one of them” for the briefest of moments is an honor I can’t truly convey. I’m so humbled by their commitment to the mission – protecting all of us – that I choke up just writing this. I’ll never take it out of my wallet. 

And I’m rooting for each of them to get a BIG YES at their pitches in May. Go get ‘em!!