Why I'm Excited About This Year

FROM ROB GOELLER | INTENTIONAL IMPACT

Why I'm Excited About This Year

Rob Goeller, Incoming President, EO Utah 2026/2027

When our Marcomm team asked me what I'm most excited about as I step into the

president role, I didn't have to think long. It isn't more events or bigger speakers. It's the

chance for all of us to be more intentional about the impact we make, in every part of our

lives. And I think the best place to start is at home.

We're starting from strength

Let me start with gratitude. Brent, the current board, and every president before them

have handed us a chapter in a really good spot. When speaking with leaders from other

parts of EO, we hear about chapters fighting fires, and we're fortunate we're not.

So this year isn't about fixing what's broken. It's about building on a solid foundation.

That's a gift, and it's why I get to focus on something I care about deeply.

Our theme: Intentional Impact

Most of us already make an impact. The invitation this year is to be intentional about it.

To decide ahead of time where you want to make a difference, in your family, your

health, your business, your employees, your community, or even your role as a citizen,

and then build a little rhythm around it so it actually happens.

Six invitations, not six assignments. Pick the one that's personal to you.

Why this is personal

I grew up poor, raised by a single mom with a heart of gold who taught me to help

people even when we had little. But for years my giving was opportunistic, chipping in

when an opportunity arose, but not really planned.

What changed was my wife, Tess. She grew up with far less than I did, in a rural part of

the Philippines, and she carries that same heart, except she's deliberate about it. She

designs it into our life. That instinct, building the impact in instead of waiting for it to show

up, is exactly what I want to bring to EO.

Start with family

If there's one place to begin being intentional, I think it's at home. When things are right

with your partner and your family, the rest of life has a way of falling into place. So that's

where I want us to start.

Here's what I keep coming back to. Some of the very things that make EO great are the

same things that pull us away from home: forum, events, the retreats we take with a

spouse or with only our forum. They matter, and I'm not suggesting we change that. But

our families feel the absence.

So this year we're being just as intentional about the other direction. We'll design part of

our calendar specifically to bring partners and families into the EO experience, events

built for the member, their life partner, and their family, and something I hope they can

genuinely look forward to each year.

Meet EO NextGen

The first big expression of that is EO NextGen, a program for our kids ages 14 to 19.

They'll run real businesses and earn real money, starting with a Family Carnival in

October that the kids plan and run themselves. I want our families to look forward to EO,

not resent it for always taking us away.

What you'll feel day to day

A newsletter and website that are actually worth your time. Strategic Alliance Partners

who teach instead of pitch. Events worth showing up for. Not more for the sake of more,

just more intentional.

What success looks like next June

Members, and their families, looking back on the year and feeling how meaningful it was.

Because I really believe that as you increase your impact, you don't just make other

people's lives better. You make your own better too. That's what I'm excited about.