Meet Ryan Hayes

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ryan Hayes. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ryan below.

Hi Ryan , appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

Where do I get my resilience from? That’s a great question. I’d say it really started about a quarter of a century ago when I had no idea what ‘resilience’ even meant, but I was already living it.

Back in grade school, I was placed in all remedial classes. From the outside, it probably looked like I wasn’t trying hard enough, or that I just couldn’t keep up. But inside, I knew even then that I was an excellent, capable person… Just an unfortunate one. One who had to work thrice as hard to be seen for what I already knew I was.

Resilience didn’t come from motivational quotes or success stories. It came from showing up, day after day, being underestimated, and deciding sometimes out of sheer defiance that I was going to believe in myself anyway. That I would work smarter, not just harder. That I would carry the weight without letting it crush me.

So when you ask where I get my resilience from it’s not a thing I was given. It’s something I built. Quietly. Over time. Through every early morning, every setback, every moment I felt invisible. Resilience is now just a part of my essence. The same way breath is, it’s not always loud, but it’s always there.”

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I’m the President and Founder of Cairo and Friends, a certified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Tampa, Florida. This isn’t just an organization it’s a personal mission, a calling, and in many ways, a response to a world that too often forgets to lead with compassion.

Cairo, which is my service dog and co-pilot actually inspired this mission, hence why it’s named after him. What started as a bond between a man and his dog became a blueprint for what healing, trust, and service could look like in real time. We created Cairo and Friends to be a positive, disruptive force in a system that often overlooks the everyday human and the power of connection, especially when it comes from an animal.

What makes our work different is that we’re not just filling gaps we’re reshaping how people think about mental health, community support, and corporate responsibility. Our services are wide-reaching but deeply personal:

Tailored therapy sessions built around the individual, not the diagnosis.

Service and therapy dog programs rooted in real, humane connection not just protocol.

Humanitarian aid that shows up where it’s needed most whether it’s families hit by a natural disaster or individuals navigating invisible storms like grief, homelessness, or mental health crises.

One of the things I’m most proud of and something I wish more people would talk about is our push for what we call the TRUE RIPPLE EFFECT. We’re actively encouraging every business, every corporation, every brand to form a meaningful partnership with a nonprofit within 15 miles of their registered office.

Not just donating for tax purposes, but actually investing in their own community. Because change doesn’t need to be complicated it just needs to be close, consistent, and real.

Professionally, this is what I’m all in on. No side hustle, no backup plan, this is it. We’re working on expanding our therapy dog program, deepening partnerships with schools and local governments, and building out mobile aid units that can respond faster and more personally to crises.

If you take anything away from this, let it be this: compassion is not a luxury. It’s infrastructure. And Cairo and Friends exists to make sure no one forgets that.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

First, higher education wasn’t just about earning the conferred degree it was about exposure. It introduced me to ways of thinking I hadn’t considered, and it taught me how to question, research, and problem-solve on a deeper level. It gave me a kind of intellectual grit. My advice to anyone starting out? Don’t just chase credentials; chase understanding. Use school as a launchpad, not a finish line.

Second, networking changed everything for me. Not in the cliché “shake hands, pass cards” kind of way, but in the sense of building real relationships. Every opportunity I’ve had was connected in some way to a conversation, a shared mission, or just mutual respect between two people. If you’re starting out, be intentional. Go where people are doing what you want to do. Ask questions. Offer help. Stay curious, and stay connected not for clout, but for growth.

And then, there’s the big one: believing in your “spirit”. That’s not just a feel-good mantra it’s survival. There were times when I had no blueprint, no backup, and no outside validation. But I knew who I was, even when no one else saw it. That belief? That quiet, stubborn belief? It got me through. For anyone early in their journey: you have to build that inner fiber muscle. Don’t wait for permission to be great. Start from wherever you are, and keep going.

We all begin somewhere, but what we build depends on how we learn, who we connect with, and how deeply we trust in our own path. Everything else grows from there.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

One book that played a major role in my journey without question is
The Kybalion. Now, I’ll say this right away: we can’t even begin to unpack that subject matter in a short answer. It’s dense, ancient, and layered. But what I will say, on the record, is this: it changed the way I see everything.

The Kybalion didn’t give me surface-level motivation it gave me structure. It helped me lean into nature, both in the literal and metaphysical sense, and become more steadfast. The Hermetic Principles, especially ideas like Mentalism, Polarity, Rhythm, taught me that life isn’t just random. It’s patterned. It’s governed by unseen laws that, once understood, allow you to move through the world with a quiet kind of confidence. Not control, but understanding.

One nugget that stuck with me is the idea that “as above, so below; as within, so without.” That one line reshaped how I dealt with struggle. If there’s chaos around me, I look inward. If something’s not flowing, I ask where I’m resisting. It’s that alignment the syncing up of inner and outer that became my compass.

I don’t recommend the book lightly. It’s not an easy read, and it’s not supposed to be. But for me, it offered a kind of spiritual scaffolding I didn’t even know I needed. It didn’t hand me answers it made me earn them. And that made all the difference.

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Productivity
Where do you get your work ethic from?

We’ve all heard the phrase “work hard, play hard,” but where does our work ethic

Productivity
Tactics & Strategies for Keeping Your Creativity Strong

With the rapid improvements in AI, it’s more important than ever to keep your creativity

Productivity
From Burnout to Balance: The Role of Self-Care

Burning out is one of the primary risks you face as you work towards your