Go the hell away, 2017

Hi there. Alright, I'll admit it, this wasn't the greatest year. Job problems aside for me personally, it seemed like the world was in constant turmoil. Hurricanes. Nuclear threats. A wave of disgusting revelations concerning sexual harassment among high-profile personalities.

And a killer clown. But I actually didn't mind that. Saw it in the movie theater and it was like a breath of fresh air amidst all this madness.

Rather than dwell on the negative, I went through all my freelance clips from 2017 and looked for some inspiration. I highlighted the best things I heard from interview subjects this past year. They are listed below in no particular order (with credit to the Washington Business Journal, where the articles appeared). I hope you enjoy them (and the random dog pic that has nothing to do with this blog entry).

Happy New Year to you all. Here's to a prosperous 2018. Talk to you soon.

"The best piece of advice I received was from the greatest mentor ever, my grandfather. He was a tool and die maker. He urged me to have a life 'toolbox.' I decided long ago to apply this to my professional life as well. When you admire something in someone, learn from that and put that 'tool' in your own toolbox. When you observe someone doing something that isn’t effective, or not leader-like, remember to never put that 'tool' in there." -- Marc Mentry, chief brand officer, Capital One Financial

"My least favorite work task? Meetings. Kill them if you can. And if they’re necessary, have an agenda, ensure everyone knows the topic in advance so they can come prepared, and limit the time to as few minutes or hours as possible." -- Charles Gold, chief marketing office, Virtru

"It’s never as good as it seems, it’s never as bad as it seems. Reality lies somewhere in between." -- Aaron Black, chief data officer at Inova Translational Medicine Institute, when asked about the best advice he has received from a mentor.

"I love to ski. My wife asks me why I wouldn’t want to be on a beach. When I’m on the beach, my mind usually starts wandering toward business. On a mountain, my mind is only on survival." -- Peter Barris, chairman and general partner of New Enterprise Associates, when asked what was his favorite way to relax outside of work.

“It’s important to understand that deaf people are autonomous. Ninety-nine percent of the time, they can do the same job that anyone else can. The deaf community is a historically marginalized group. Because of that, they are waiting for an olive branch." -- Jessica Moseley, CEO of TCS Interpreting, a provider of sign language interpreting services. Moseley, whose parents are deaf and who is the mother of a deaf child, was talking about the struggles that deaf workers face when looking for jobs.

“What I preach in this organization quite often is that the demographics in this country are shifting. We are quickly approaching a time where we will have a minority-majority. Being culturally competent is the most important skill you will have going forward.” -- Machelle Williams, general manager of diversity and corporate social responsibility for Volkswagen Group of America

“As human beings, we work, we set goals, and when we reach those goals, we are happy. [Achor’s] main point is, that’s not how you should go about it. If you enjoy the journey and you’re happy with the work, you will be successful even if you don’t reach the goal. Whatever you are doing, whatever the challenge you are facing, enjoy the journey instead of just getting hung up on the end goal.” -- Shyam Salona, CEO of REI Systems, talking about inspiration he received from author Shawn Achor's "The Happiness Advantage."

“Young people are very civic-minded and astute about the issues that face our communities and our country. My advice [to future leaders] would be, there must always be a balance between patience and fervor, and an importance of understanding the views of others. Sometimes, the roads we want to use to reach our goals might be dissimilar, but the objectives are the same.” -- Tamara Copeland, president of the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers

"I mowed lawns in a cemetery when I was 14. The priest in my church used to say, "Well, you’ve got several thousand people under you, that’s very impressive." -- Barris, when asked what was his first job.