Sometimes all you need to turn hope into action is to write your promises down and say them out loud—to make a promise to no one but yourself. This book is about many things—faith, courage, creativity, determination—but above all it’s about the promises we make to ourselves about the future. These stories will inspire you to believe in yourself and to believe in the power that each and every one of us has to shape our lives through the power of “I Will.”

Shaun Tomson was born in Durban and is an entrepreneur and inspirational speaker living in Santa Barbara, California, with his wife, Carla, and son, Luke. He is a former World Surfing Champion, and has been listed as one of the 25 most influential surfers of the century (Surfer, 1999) and one of the 16 greatest surfers of all time (Surfing, 2004). He has a BComm from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, a Master of Science in Leadership from Northeastern University and has created two popular apparel brands: Instinct in the 1980s and Solitude in the ’90s. He is the author of Surfer’s Code (2006), producer of the documentary film Bustin’ Down the Door (2006), and a former board member of Surfrider Foundation and the Santa Barbara Boys & Girls Club. Patrick Moser is the editor of Pacific Passages: An Anthology of Surf Writing (University of Hawaii Press, 2008). He collaborated with Shaun Tomson on Surfer’s Code: 12 Simple Lessons for Riding through Life and has written articles for The Surfer’s Journal and Surfer. He currently teaches writing and French language at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, where he also offers a course on the history and culture of surfing.