Some journalists might call this a “throwaway column” or say that I’m already on the plane for vacation (even though I’m not going anywhere!), but I have much to be thankful for this year — and I think that many of you out there can say the same. This is a time for celebration, but it is also a time for self-reflection, whether you’re happy as a clam, down in the dumps or somewhere in between. Without self-reflection, how can you learn from your successes and mistakes? Businesses do it all the time (or at least, they should) — and people should do the same.
First of all, I want to thank Barbara Young, who is now on our Editorial Board following her retirement, for her support, guidance and acceptance of me over the years. Her knowledge and advice has been invaluable through my “grooming” period — it’s not easy for a hard-working person like Barbara to make a major change like retirement (and she will still be working with us, of course), but I feel as though I’m doing her proud every day leading this magazine to continued success.