I’m an entrepreneur who, along with many talented people, created popular TV channels like CNBC, HGTV and Food Network. Today, I write, teach, and mentor women and men in all stages of life, at for-profit and not-for-profit companies. I focus on practices of good emotional health and self-care in my work and writing. In my first book for women leaders, New Rules of the Game, I touched on grit, resilience, and team trust. In my second book, Fully Human, I highlighted leaders who lead with generosity and compassion, not ego. As a result, their employees feel more secure in their work and remain engaged and loyal.When the pandemic hit – which has cratered our emotional health – I had just given a Michigan State University Commencement Speech. I did something during that speech that I believe was brave. I shared part of my addiction and recovery story with 5,000 graduates and their families. My hope was that students would see mental health as just one of many dimensions that define us, and that a mental health challenge need not block us from realizing our dreams.That moment began my third book, which I'm currently working on. I've met with college students in recovery who have transformed their lives from dark, bleak places to those rich with hope. I’m collecting their stories, along with stories of sober working millennials too.I didn’t know I had a disorder until I was thirty-nine, and I’ve since learned that understanding the basic truths of ourselves, early in life, gives us a huge leg-up on growing into our full true selves. This book will be for students, and other young adults, for their families—and, for all of us struggling with our own mental health today. It will offer tools and new ways forward. Mental health is a spectrum that we’re all on. Due to the tailwinds of COVID, many of us are on the fragile end of the spectrum. That tenuous place can feel like you don’t belong anywhere, a hopeless, out of control place. That’s why in the work I do now – facilitating leadership retreats, speaking, and teaching mindfulness practices – I beat the drum of hope. Hope propels us to believe in the best of ourselves. As a leader or teammate or human, we can inspire others to believe in the best of themselves too. That’s how we change the world.