A few weeks ago, Scott Lowe wrote a post entitled No Man is an Island in which he thanked the folks who had contributed to his career. I really liked the post, and felt inspired to write my own.

In case you want to join in with a post of your own, here is Scott’s original idea:

… in the spirit of recognizing that no man is an island—meaning that who we are and what we accomplish are intricately intertwined with those around us—I wanted to take a moment and express my thanks and appreciation for a few folks who have helped contribute to my success.

I’m going to generalize a bit, but there are several people I could not have made it without:

• My kids. I originally went to college just to be sure by the time they were teenagers I had one job, it was M-F 9-5, and I had insurance. So without that inspiration, I’d still  be a waitress in the Redneck Riviera. 🙂
• My friends back in Florida. For some reason, they always kicked my ass. Ok, they still do. Sure, they’d let me drink and talk about weird stuff because they thought it was hilarious, but they would never let me feel sorry for myself. They reminded me of my responsibility to the kids, and also to myself.
• Susan, just for being the voice of reason who loves me unconditionally. Sometimes you find the family you need.
• My current set of girlfriends (Leah, Christina, Polly, Amy, Maggie, Lori). Y’all know the deal. 🙂
• People in the EMC Education organization. From the old timers who inspired me to get my graduate degree who loved seeing me challenging the system, to the execs who taught me to listen when someone tells you no (because there is always a maybe-if-you-came-back-with-a-different-plan-it will-be-a-yes in there…).
• My current boss Micheal Grant, who gets exasperated with me when I get in my own way, but who can see my vision and makes me stick to the straight and narrow so I can execute that vision
• People like Scott, Ben Keeps, Alistair Croll, Chad Sakac, Chuck Hollis, and many many others who are true to their day jobs, but are more true to the technical community at large.
• All of my edupunk friends! OMG y’all made me bolder than I ever thought I could be. I love you Marcia, Harold, Aaron, Stephen Downes, Mark, George Siemens and many many more. Y’all still impact everything I do.

I agree with Scott, I didn’t get anyplace on my own. One thing I’ve realized about myself is that I’m not happy if I’m not giving back. So this is just one small way to give back by saying thanks. And I challenge everyone reading this – who can you thank for your successes? Why not do it publicly? 🙂

Happy new year y’all!