Reclaim Your Influence: Making Moments Matter in a World That Feels Out of Control

If it feels like the world is changing at an unsettling pace right now, you’re not imagining it.
The speed of everything from technology to business, politics and social movements is dizzying.

And if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the state of things, discouraged by the kind of leadership you’re witnessing, or unsure what your role even is in all of it, you’re not alone.

For many LGBTQ+ business professionals, entrepreneurs, and supplier diversity advocates, the ground under our feet seems to be constantly shifting. What was certain yesterday feels uncertain today and unclear tomorrow.

But I’ve come to believe something powerful, if not hopeful, about moments like this:

While you may control less than you’d like, you influence more than you realize.

Control is comforting. It gives us the illusion of safety. But leadership, business, and life rarely work that way.

We can’t control the market. We can’t control the decisions of others. We can’t control how the world reacts to progress or change, or more recently what feels like lack of progress for many.

(And no amount of binge watching hot takes on YouTube is going to give us any more control).

What we can control is how we show up: the energy, intention, and kindness we bring to every interaction.

That’s where our influence lives.

Every interaction with a client, a teammate, a supplier or a stranger is an opportunity to create a ripple effect.

“Every interaction with a client, a teammate, a supplier or a stranger is an opportunity to create a ripple effect.”

And I would encourage you to start seeing those moments as opportunities, what I call Ripple Effect Moments.

There’s a misconception that meaningful change requires big, dramatic events: launching a new initiative, landing a huge client, passing a new policy.

Those big moments matter, of course. But they’re the byproduct of all the small Ripple Effect Moments that came before them.

Landing a big promotion isn’t the result of one big interview you nailed.
Or one big goal you wrote on your vision board.

It’s the result of a series of small moments where you showed up and made a difference for others.

In other words, success isn’t the byproduct of strategy and structure alone. It’s the byproduct of the accumulation of small moments you make matter.

The moment you choose to thoughtfully listen instead of instantly react.
The moment you share credit and amplify others instead of taking the spotlight.
The moment you ask a hard question with empathy and curiosity instead of defensiveness.

Those choices, or micro-moments, compound over time. They shape trust. They build relationships. They create the foundation that every great partnership, every inclusive workplace, and every thriving business stands on.

If we can agree that the world doesn’t need more control, more division, or more noise, then what does it need?

It needs people who lead with intention.

People willing to bring vulnerability into the room to say, “I don’t have all the answers, but I’m here to listen.”
People kind enough to make others feel seen, even when they disagree.
People curious enough to ask questions that expand perspectives instead of confirming biases.
People empathetic enough to feel someone else’s reality.
People willing to practice humility and say “I could be wrong.”

These are the skills necessary to compete and lead in the future of work.

They’re the skills that rebuild trust, inspire collaboration, and accelerate growth. The very things every business, team, and community needs right now.

When you show up with vulnerability, kindness, curiosity, empathy and humility, something incredible happens: your influence expands.

You start a ripple effect.

You might never see how far that ripple travels. How your encouragement led someone else to speak up, or how your presence helped someone feel safe enough to be themselves.

But it travels.
It always travels.

“But it travels. It always travels.”

That’s how real change happens.

You don’t need to make any big sweeping changes in order to make the small moments matter. You just have to start noticing the moments that already exist.

Ask yourself throughout the day:

• Who is a little bit more deserving of my attention today?
• Who might need to feel seen right now?
• What conversation deserves more listening than talking?
• How can I create more space to hear what's not being said?

Then act on it. And when we all start to do this, it scales quickly. Across our teams and businesses.

That’s how you build the kind of team, company, or culture that people are proud to be part of.

It’s easy to look at the state of leadership today and feel discouraged.
But I think discouragement is also a signal. It’s a sign that you care deeply about something that isn’t being done well enough yet.

That means the invitation is yours.

To lead differently.
To lead humanly.
To be the leader you wish you had.

That’s where the ripple starts.
And it starts small. In the next meeting, the next conversation, the next choice to make someone feel safe, seen and heard.

The world you’re proud to be part of…the one with more equity, inclusion, and humanity…doesn’t appear overnight. It’s shaped by the daily decisions of people who choose to start a ripple by making moments matter.

And if each of us does that intentionally and consistently, the ripple becomes a current.
A current strong enough to reshape teams, organizations, and industries.

You might not be able to control everything happening around you.
But you can influence what happens because of you.

“You might not be able to control everything happening around you. But you can influence what happens because of you.”

So today, maybe the question for you isn’t “What can I fix?”
It’s “What moment will I choose to make matter?”

When you start with one moment, one conversation, one act of leadership,
you begin to build the teams, the world and the future you’ll be proud to belong to.