As I travel and speak across North America, there is a moment in almost every assembly when the energy in the room spikes. A student is invited on stage. The crowd leans forward. And sometimes, yes, I get physically tackled.

I have been doing this since I was nineteen years old. Now that I am in my mid-forties, I occasionally joke that one day my back may finally protest. But until that day comes, I will keep bringing the energy. Because what happens in those moments is not just entertainment. It is one of the most powerful lessons students can learn about conflict.

At the center of it all is a principle they have heard a thousand times but rarely seen demonstrated in real time: the Golden Rule.

The Law That Traps Us

When someone is mean to us, our instinct is almost automatic. We fire back. If they insult us, we insult them. If they push, we push harder. If they post something cruel, we escalate the tone.

This is the law of reciprocity. We respond in kind.

The problem is that reciprocity does not resolve conflict. It multiplies it. One sharp comment becomes two. Two become ten. Soon both people feel justified, and neither one is in control. What began as a minor offense becomes a full-scale battle of pride.

Students live inside this cycle every day. Hallway arguments escalate. Group chats explode. Social media threads spiral. Everyone believes they are defending themselves, but in reality they are fueling the fire.

That is the trap.

Breaking the Cycle

In my assemblies, we demonstrate this twice in front of the entire student body.

The first round looks familiar. A student insults me, and I respond the way most people naturally do. I argue. I get irritated. I escalate. The crowd laughs because they recognize it. They have seen this play out in their own lives.

And something predictable happens. The student finds it easy to keep going. My reaction feeds their energy. The more upset I appear, the more powerful they feel. The conflict grows because I am cooperating with it.

Then we reset.

The second round begins the same way, but this time I refuse to take offense. I stay calm. I treat the student like a friend instead of an enemy. I respond with humor, kindness, and warmth. I do not match their tone.

The shift in the room is immediate.

It becomes difficult for them to continue being mean. The insults lose momentum. The emotional oxygen is gone. What could have turned into escalation dissolves into laughter and connection.

Students can see the difference with their own eyes. They feel it.

And that is when the breakthrough happens.

Refusing Offense Is Strength

Many students assume that kindness under pressure is weakness. They think that not reacting means losing.

In reality, it is the opposite.

It takes far more strength to stay composed than to explode. It takes maturity to absorb an insult without returning it. It takes leadership to treat someone like a friend when they are acting like an enemy.

When students realize that they control the second half of every interaction, their perspective changes. They understand that the first insult does not determine the outcome. The response does.

The Golden Rule is not sentimental advice. It is a strategic interruption of escalation. When you treat others the way you want to be treated, especially when they are not doing the same, you break the cycle of reciprocity. You step out of the loop.

And once you step out, you are no longer trapped.

Why Schools Invite This Message Back Year After Year

This is not a lecture about being nice. It is a 45-minute, high-energy, interactive experience that fills the auditorium, gymnasium, or cafetorium with laughter and insight.

Students volunteer. They engage. They see conflict dynamics unfold in real time. They walk away with practical tools for emotional regulation and de-escalation that they can use immediately in class, online, and at home.

Generation after generation, I have had the privilege of teaching students this skill. Thousands have watched the Golden Rule demonstrated under pressure, and thousands have discovered that they are not powerless in the face of meanness.

They can choose differently.

When they do, everything changes.

Bring the Golden Rule to Your Campus

If you are looking for an assembly that combines humor, movement, audience participation, and meaningful skill development, I would love to partner with your school.

For 45 powerful minutes, your students will learn how to manage their emotions, resolve conflict without escalating it, and rise above the trap of retaliation. They will laugh. They will think. They will see strength modeled in a way that feels real.

And yes, there is a strong possibility I will once again risk my back for the sake of the lesson.

But the result is worth it. When students understand the wisdom of the Golden Rule and experience its power to de-escalate conflict, they leave with more than inspiration. They leave with a strategy.

Let’s bring that strategy to your student body.