What happens when an improv mindset meets real-world leadership? For the first EntreX Impact Talk, Leadership Delaware CEO Mike Eppehimer showed our students and educators how a simple phrase—“yes, and”—can transform teams, careers and communities.
Drawing on research and lived experience from ChristianaCare, GWU Hospital, his own leadership consultancy, and now Leadership Delaware, Mike connected the dots between what people admire in leaders—honest, competent, inspiring, forward-looking—and how those qualities show up in daily practice. He reminded us that leadership journeys aren’t perfect slopes; the dips often produce the most meaningful growth.
Mike’s improv lens invited a shift from “What will I say?” to “How will I engage?” That means setting the tone with your presence, embracing the pause so you truly listen, and adding one brick at a time so others can build with you. The result is a culture where people lift one another—and those ripples travel farther than any single leader’s output. We’re grateful to Mike for launching the series with candor, energy and actionable tools, and to the educators who created space for students to practice real leadership in the moment.
The next EntreX Impact Talk will be in December 2025 (date TBD). Contact Felicia Harrington, feliciah@udel.edu, for additional details or to register.
About EntreX Lab
The EntreX Lab program works with nearly 100 schools world wide to give students early access to entrepreneurial education with the added benefit of opportunities to earn college credits for their hard work. The experiential style curricula focus on entrepreneurship, sustainable design, and leaders all while supporting students to develop skills of idea generation, creative problem solving, leadership, evidence-based decision making, resilience, teamwork and persuasive communication. Learn more about the EntreX Lab program and adopt it at your school.
About Horn Entrepreneurship
Horn Entrepreneurship serves as the creative engine for entrepreneurship education and advancement at the University of Delaware. Currently ranked among the best entrepreneurship programs in the US, Horn Entrepreneurship was built and is actively supported by successful entrepreneurs, empowering aspiring innovators as they pursue new ideas for a better world.
