We entrepreneurs have much for which to be grateful. As I write this at the beginning of 2018, what better way to start a new year than to express gratitude? We have been blessed with so much and it’s helpful and healthy to reflect on these blessings.

I am grateful for my wife of more than 44 years and all of her love and support through the peaks and valleys of our lives. I am grateful for our daughters and how they have become great mothers to our three beautiful grandchildren. I am grateful to my son-in-law for the way he has become a terrific father. I am grateful to my parents who chose me through an adoption process and gave me an amazing childhood. I am grateful to my sister for so many things, but especially the way she cared for our mother before she died. I am grateful to our many friends who have joined us over the decades in countless moments of laughter and joy.

I am grateful that I learned to play the piano when I was young for it paved the way for me to type and be very efficient on the computer keyboard today. I am grateful that my parents helped me become a disciplined young man through many hours of piano and clarinet practice, as well as assigning me family responsibilities and holding me accountable accordingly. I am grateful that I was able to play basketball as a youngster and for the various summer jobs that taught me how to work hard and save money. I am grateful for having the opportunity to be a Boy Scout and all of the experiences that led to my Eagle award. I am grateful for having grown up in a small college town that was safe and offered a myriad of productive activities for a young person in the 1950s and 1960s.

I am grateful to my partner who gave me the opportunity nearly 43 years ago to become a part of a quality organization, and then let me spread my wings and soar. I am grateful to my other partner of nearly 22 years who has taught me empathy and understanding. I am grateful to the other senior leaders of our various companies who are helping to build a strong and sustainable culture. I am grateful to the hundreds of team members who advance our cause every hour of every day. I am grateful for the opportunity to use our platform to create and innovate. And I am grateful that our entrepreneurial endeavor has allowed me to live my “Why” which is to make sense of complexity.

I am also grateful for my physical health and the fact that I have few maladies for a person my age. I am especially grateful to each of my health care providers who have supported me in achieving great health. I am grateful that I have all of my mental faculties which enable me to read, write and think about the wonderful world in which we live.

I am grateful for having the honor of helping a number of mentees grow their businesses over the years. I am grateful for being invited to serve on different boards and various search committees. I am grateful for the young people who have participated in a university teacher’s scholarship program that my wife and I started in 1999. Many of them have now gone on to touch the lives of so many others as teachers.

I am grateful for having been able to earn an income that has provided a comfortable lifestyle. I am grateful to be able to travel throughout the country and abroad. I am grateful for my various hobbies including publishing this blog and recording a podcast – and of course I’m grateful to each of you who reads and listens.

I am grateful for my positive and optimistic outlook on life. I am grateful for my resilience and perseverance. I am grateful to be able to say that I have no real regrets, nor have I ever done anything to intentionally hurt someone else. I am grateful that I have a strong moral compass and that I can continue to explore my spirituality. I am grateful to all of the men and women who have sacrificed their lives for my freedom and for all of the first responders that stand ready to assist when needed.

My list could go on and on, so please don’t take offense if I didn’t make reference to you. It’s exhilarating to become immersed in gratitude and realize that our lives have been shaped by so many other people. I’m betting that you could also identify much for which you are grateful. To that end, let’s all be grateful for a Happy New Year!

You can also listen to a weekly audio podcast of my blog. What you hear will be different than what you read in this blog. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also click on this link – Click here to listen to Audio Episode 78 – Oatmeal on the Floor.

This blog is being written in tandem with my book, “An Entrepreneur’s Words to Live By,” available on Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle (My Book), as well as being available in all of the other major eBook formats.