Hiba — finding her voice

Hiba came to Champions at a moment of transition.

She had recently graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a degree in Political Science and a minor in Cybersecurity Policy.

Based in Michigan, just outside Detroit, she was exploring what might come next: employment, law school, public service?

She was already capable, thoughtful and ambitious — but she was also standing at one of those important thresholds in life, where achievement alone is not enough.

The question was no longer simply, What have I learned?

It was becoming, Who am I becoming — and how do I want to lead?

Hiba’s story had already been shaped by movement, resilience and identity.

Of Iraqi descent, born in Syria, and arriving in the United States as a refugee in 2008, she had lived across cultures, communities and expectations.

She grew up first in Idaho and later Michigan, the middle child in a family of five — old enough to take responsibility, young enough still to be finding her own way.

That place in the middle perhaps says something about Hiba’s journey.

She had learned to observe, adapt, care for others and navigate different worlds.

But now she was asking how those experiences could become a source of leadership.

When she joined the first Champions retreat in Chicago, Hiba was nervous. She was meeting most of the group in person for the first time.

She was also entering a program unlike an academic class. It was not about theory alone. It was about people, relationships, self-awareness, stories and practice.

Her reason for joining was clear.

She wanted leadership skills that classrooms had not given her.

She understood that moving into the workplace meant moving from being a student receiving instruction to someone who might need to give instruction, influence others and take responsibility.

The first breakthrough came through understanding communication.

Hiba began to see that people do not all communicate, think, respond or lead in the same way.

Some people move quickly. Some need time to think. Some lead from the front. Others contribute more quietly. Some need directness. Others need warmth, context and relationship.

This was not just interesting to her. It was practical.

She began to realise that effective leadership does not begin with asking, How do I prefer to communicate?

It begins with asking, How does this person need to be understood?

That insight stayed with her.

By the time she reflected after the second retreat, she could see the impact in her professional life and her personal relationships.

She was learning to analyse the personalities around her — at work, at home and among the people she cared about — so she could communicate with them more effectively and more humanely.

The shift went deeper than technique.

Hiba began to rethink leadership itself.

Like many young people entering professional spaces, she had seen leadership modelled as authority, toughness and control.

She described it as the idea of “ruling with an iron fist.”

But Champions helped her understand that this was not the only way to lead — and not necessarily the best way.

She discovered that she could lead with compassion.

Not softness. Not weakness. Compassion.

She began to recognise that she did not have to copy the leadership traits of people above her.

She did not have to become someone else in order to be taken seriously.

She could lead with the personality traits she already carried — with calm, understanding, thoughtfulness and strength.

That realisation changed how she showed up.

Her confidence grew. Her voice became more grounded.

Even when she was not formally in charge, she felt that her opinions were listened to. She felt more well-rounded, more experienced and more secure in leadership spaces because of what she had learned through Champions.

And people noticed.

Friends, family and colleagues began to comment on the change.

They saw that she was speaking with more calm and less emotional reactivity.

They noticed that she was leading with more understanding.

Hiba herself recognised that her mindset had shifted: she was no longer seeing people only as “a team,” but as individuals within the team — each with their own needs, motivations, communication style and story.

That is where her journey began to move from learning to the ripple effect.

By April 2026, Hiba was already applying Champions in her workplace in law enforcement in Michigan.

She led an exercise with supervisors and colleagues using the communication styles process she had learned through the program.

It worked well, and her growing confidence at work was being noticed. She was no longer simply a participant.

She was becoming a carrier of the work.

But perhaps the deepest part of Hiba’s journey came through purpose.

After the second retreat, she spoke about gaining a clearer understanding of what her purpose was and how to move forward with it.

She began to feel more confident standing her ground when something did not align with her — and equally confident recognising when something did.

Then came the statement that captures the heart of her story:

She was “100% sure” that she wanted to lead a life of service.

Not necessarily in the traditional way people might expect.

Not through a fixed route or a single role. But by taking everything she had learned — academically, professionally, personally and through Champions — and applying it to serve other people, her community and her country.

For Hiba, service was not an abstract ideal. It was becoming a way to organise her life.

At the same time, she learned something essential: service does not mean pleasing everyone. It does not mean losing yourself. It does not mean abandoning your own purpose to satisfy the expectations of others.

She began to understand that it is okay to serve yourself and serve your purpose, while also serving others.

She became more comfortable in her own skin. More grounded in her own direction. More able to say: this is who I am, this is how I lead, and this is the story I want to create.

Hiba came to Champions seeking leadership skills beyond the classroom.

She found confidence.

She found compassion.

She found her voice.

She found herself — and so did those around her.

And she began to see that her own life, shaped by movement, resilience, identity and service, could become a source of leadership for others.

What Hiba’s story means for us

Hiba’s story reminds us that leadership does not begin with a title.

It begins with self-understanding.

Many young people are told to achieve, perform and prepare for the future.

But too often they are not given the tools to understand themselves, relate to others or lead with humanity. Hiba’s journey shows what happens when that missing piece is provided.

She did not lack intelligence, ambition or experience. What Champions gave her was a way to translate those qualities into human leadership.

Her story also challenges a damaging myth: that leadership means control.

Hiba had seen models of leadership that looked like force — the “iron fist.”

But through Champions, she discovered that leadership can be compassionate, grounded and still strong.

In fact, her story shows that compassion can make leadership stronger because it helps people feel seen, understood and valued.

That matters in every workplace, every family and every community.

Hiba’s journey also shows why communication is not a soft skill.

It is a human skill — and a leadership skill. Learning to communicate according to another person’s style is an act of respect. It moves us from assumption to understanding, from reaction to relationship.

That is where humanity becomes practical.

It changes conversations.

It changes teams.

It changes how people experience being led.

Hiba’s story is also a reminder that confidence grows when people are given space to practise.

She did not simply listen to ideas. She applied them. She tested them in real life. She carried them into her workplace. That is the ripple effect: one young person grows, then others around them begin to benefit.

Most of all, Hiba’s story reminds us that service is not something reserved for later in life.

It can begin now.

A young person does not need to have everything figured out before choosing a life of service.

Purpose often becomes clearer through action, reflection and relationship.

Hiba’s clarity — that she wants to lead a life of service — is powerful because it is rooted not in pressure, but in self-awareness.

She is not trying to become someone else.

She is becoming more fully herself.

And that is the heart of Champions: helping people discover the humanity already within them, strengthen it, practise it, and use it to create a better future for others.

Hiba’s story shows that when young people find their voice, understand their purpose and lean into their own humanity, they begin to shine in a way others notice.

They begin to change themselves — and through the ripple effect, they begin to change the world around them.