VOICES IN LOCAL INSPIRATION:
Malcolm Nowlin

Founder and CEO, M. Nowlin Enterprise, LLC

I am Malcolm E. Nowlin, Founder and CEO of M. Nowlin Enterprise, LLC. I serve as an executive and leadership coach, keynote speaker, and advocate focused on resilience, mental and emotional well-being, and purpose-driven leadership.

My work takes me into conferences, organizations, workshops, and communities where people are carrying more than most ever see. I don’t come as a hype man or a cheerleader. I come with solutions — grounded in lived experience, neuroscience, leadership, and faith — meeting people where they are and helping them move beyond where they believe they can go.

At the core of my work is a simple belief: people are meant to live, not merely exist.

That belief did not come from comfort or privilege. It came from survival.

I grew up in a home marked by addiction. My mother struggled with drugs and alcohol. My father struggled with drugs. My mother’s partner struggled with drugs. Our home was what many would call a shooting gallery — people coming in to cook it up and shoot heroin into their veins. Chaos was normal. Instability was expected. Safety was not guaranteed.

But I had help.

There were people throughout my life who saw me when it would have been easier to overlook me. Neighbors who believed in me. Adults who gave me chances. People who showed up when they didn’t have to. I learned early that rejection didn’t get to decide my future.

As a kid, I knocked on doors asking to cut grass, shovel snow, paint homes, clean houses — anything to earn money honestly. I stood outside Giant Eagle grocery store asking strangers if I could carry their bags to their cars. I heard a lot of no’s. But every no taught me how to communicate, how to connect, how to advocate for myself. Long before I ever stood on a stage, I was learning how to speak to people — how to listen, how to serve, and how to move forward anyway.

I want to see greater emphasis on mental health and emotional well-being, especially in leadership, healthcare, and underserved communities. We must break stigmas, create space for honest conversations, and invest in people — not just performance.

Those lessons shaped everything.

I didn’t come from great means. Life was hard. But I kept moving forward — because people helped me move forward. That truth is why I am so adamant about moving forward together. I am living proof that none of us get where we are alone.

Professionally, my journey spans corporate leadership, banking, coaching, and speaking. I led high-performing teams, managed large regions, and received top performer recognition. Yet even while thriving externally, I began to recognize a deeper truth: many leaders are silently breaking down. They are succeeding on paper while suffering internally.

That realization — combined with personal loss — changed everything.

My wife of 28 years died unexpectedly from cardiac arrest. Nineteen months later, my son, who was working as a security guard and doing the right thing in the right place, was fatally shot in the head. In a matter of months, my world was forever altered.

I know grief intimately. I know shock. I know the kind of pain that makes breathing feel optional.

And yet, I learned something life-changing: healing and purpose can coexist.

Pain does not disqualify purpose. Loss does not eliminate calling. We don’t move on — we move forward. Helping people rediscover their “why,” regain hope, and remember that they still matter fuels everything I do.

Nowlin says we don’t move on, we move forward.

My work is also deeply shaped by healthcare advocacy. My wife is a pediatric neurosurgeon, and through her calling — and the lives she touches — I have seen firsthand how many caregivers, leaders, and professionals give everything to others while neglecting themselves. Too many are exhausted. Too many are burned out. Too many are dying young. This must change.

My impact in the community, particularly within the Black community in Central Florida, centers on resilience, healing, and wholeness — not just survival. I speak openly about grief, mental health, faith, and perseverance — topics often left unspoken because of stigma or fear. Through speaking engagements, mentorship, and storytelling, I aim to normalize healing and empower people to live fully, love deeply, and lead with purpose.

Not through theory.

Not through platitudes.

But through lived experience.

Looking forward, I want to see people come together in deeper, more honest ways. I reject the mindset that says, “I had to go through this, so you will too.” I went through what I went through so that others might have guidance, wisdom, and support along the way. Life will bring challenges — but we do not have to suffer in isolation.

I want to see greater emphasis on mental health and emotional well-being, especially in leadership, healthcare, and underserved communities. We must break stigmas, create space for honest conversations, and invest in people — not just performance.

When it comes to legacy, I want mine to be one of hope, healing, and forward movement. I want my life to remind others that progress is possible — and that we move forward best together.

To inspire young Central Floridians, we must be authentic and present. Young people don’t need perfection — they need examples of resilience, integrity, and courage. When we ask them what they think, we must show them their voices matter by acting on what they share.

To support older Central Floridians, we must honor their stories and value their wisdom. Dignity, purpose, and belonging do not expire with age. Their experience carries lessons we have not yet lived.

And for every Central Florida resident, strengthening our community begins with compassion — choosing people over indifference, unity over division, and service over self-interest.

My life’s work is not easy, but it is clear: to help people live fully, love deeply, and lead with purpose.

We don’t move on.

We move forward.

Together.