On 18th December 2025, business leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers gathered for an inspiring end-of-year event hosted by the All-Ireland Business Foundation (AIBF). From the outset, the day struck a warm and welcoming tone, beginning with open networking and live music from Sonarai, which encouraged connection, conversation, and a sense of shared purpose as the year came to a close.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

Leadership isn’t a choice — it’s a way of being

To begin with, the event was officially opened by Elaine Carroll, whose words resonated deeply: “Leadership isn’t a choice — it’s a way of being.”

This framing set the tone for the day, reminding us that leadership is not confined to titles or roles, but lived out daily through values, behaviours, and decisions — particularly in moments of challenge.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

Celebrating Irish impact and embracing the S-curve

Building on this theme, we then heard from Bevon Mahon, President of AIBF, who spoke powerfully about Ireland as a nation of firsts — from banning smoking in public places, to leading progressive social change, to introducing the plastic bag levy long before it became global practice.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

Importantly, her message to the room was affirming and energising: we are exceptional. Not only as business owners and entrepreneurs, but as contributors to wider social progress.

Bevon also reframed how we view business growth, reminding us that our journeys are not linear upward lines but S-curves — full of peaks, dips, pauses, and sideways moments. Growth involves uncertainty, recalibration, and resilience, and embracing this reality is part of sustainable leadership.

Legacy, collaboration, and wisdom

In contrast to the myth of the self-made leader, Margaret Considine offered grounded and timely wisdom, encouraging leaders to stop trying to do everything alone and instead to play together — to collaborate, seek perspective, and value shared learning.

Her reflections prompted deeper questions for the room:

What is your legacy?

What impact are you truly making?

Nobody can know what you don’t show.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

These reminders highlighted the importance of visibility, connection, and humility in leadership.

Health is leadership

A particularly important contribution came from Dr Robert Kelly, who brought attention to the physical and mental health of leaders. His message was clear: you have the power to make a change.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

He shared a simple yet evidence-based practice — eight repetitions of box breathing, three times a day, which can reduce blood pressure by up to 10 points. In a room full of high performers, this was a powerful reminder that leadership sustainability begins with self-care.

Learning fast, failing forward

Later on, the event also celebrated excellence, with Gavin Kelly of Purple Panda announced as Entrepreneur of the Year 2026. His advice was refreshingly honest and practical: fail fast and learn faster — a mindset that aligns strongly with innovation, adaptability, and growth.

Being seen, heard, and understood

One of the standout moments of the day was the performance by Keith Barry, who explored the use of NLP in leadership. His message closely aligned with values central to trauma-informed and motivational interviewing-based practice: people want to be seen, heard, and understood.

Through tactical empathy and authenticity, leaders can build trust, connection, and influence — not through control, but through understanding.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

Ending the year in connection

Finally, the day concluded with a beautiful three-course Christmas dinner, filled with conversation, laughter, photographs, and meaningful exchanges.

As we look ahead, the AIBF December event made one thing clear: leadership is something we live, growth rarely follows a straight line, collaboration strengthens outcomes, health underpins performance, and authenticity creates lasting impact.

All-Ireland Business Foundation Christmas Lunch 2025 Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

At TSK Academy, these principles sit at the heart of how we work — with organisations, leaders, and teams who want to create meaningful, inclusive, and sustainable change.