The Season of Gratefulness
It’s the season of gratefulness, and the research is clear: the more time we spend noticing what’s good, the healthier we are. Not in a vague, inspirational-poster way, but the real stuff that steadies us and reminds us we’re part of something larger, something made of presence, connection, small beauties, and the kind of perspective that outlasts any to-do list or crisis moment.
So I try to pay attention. And here’s what comes to mind as I write about gratefulness:
I’m grateful for each reader — EO’ers — who send notes, ask questions, and share feedback and story ideas. (Scroll down in this week’s edition to see some of the favorite comments we’ve received.) This awesome community is growing, and we love meeting new folks.
I’m grateful for the incredible clients at Clarity Channels Communications who have invited us onto their teams to help support incredibly important work.
I’m grateful for my parents. Nuggets of their support include:
My mom, aka Grandma Colleen, who is a night owl, texted me at 10:55 p.m. on a Monday night to excitedly share that one of the people interviewed in the Boy Scouts KETV story we featured is one of her bridge partners. I went back to sleep. Ten minutes later she texted again: “Love the Cub Scout story.” I am grateful to wake up to maternal enthusiasm and late-night compliments.
My dad, aka Papa Fonz, applies his skills from his editing and writing days at the Omaha World-Herald to each edition. I look forward to learning his take on what we published and the legions of connections to our stories and his deep well of even more interesting history.
I’m grateful for my mistakes. Don’t get me wrong, I hate them and want as few as possible, but I try to take away a lesson to make the pain or discomfort worth it. Mistakes are underrated teachers with terrible timing.
I’m grateful for the moment another newsletter on LinkedIn accused The EO Report of being a bot. Honestly, a milestone. You know you’re doing something right when someone thinks a robot is writing your work.
I’m grateful for colleagues who cite The EO Report in meetings, including Sarah Ann Kotchian, Scott Hazelrigg, and T. Hank Robinson. There is nothing quite like hearing your communications work brought into a conversation by someone seeking to elevate planning.
I’m grateful our story on visits to lakes helped plan Eva Robert’s family vacation to Okoboji.
I’m grateful when Rachel Sissel shared The EO Report on Facebook and encouraged people to follow the channel and someone commented, “What is The EO Report?” A perfect, unintentional prompt we turned into a social media post. (Ask ChatGPT the question! We agree with its answer!)
I’m grateful for Michaela Jean Sims Stewart — aka Sims or Simmy. She is the one who told me to start my own business, so I did. She has been an incredible support ever since, even though the only “clients” she’s sent my way, so far, are projects with $0 budgets. That’s because her heart is as big as Nebraska, and she’s one of the leaders in the D.C. lobbying world working every day to make life easier and healthier for all of us. I’m grateful to hear her laugh as often as possible, and I hope you’ll join me in wishing her a happy birthday on November 29. (And I am very grateful to her son and my Godson, Jack!)
I’m grateful for the awesome team I get to surf, ski, and cook with. (IYKYK)
And I’m so very grateful for having Kelly Jefferson Minty as my partner in this newsletter and Clarity Channels Communications. There is no one better. I mean, she is genuinely excited to see our Facebook followers tick from 30 to 40. (But please go check out where that channel is now!) We celebrate small wins like we just won an Emmy. After a particularly small accomplishment, we can be heard bellowing, “We’re unstoppable!” Bless you, Kelly, for your smarts, care, kindness, and homemade sourdough cookies!
And, of course, I’m always grateful for AEO, DRO, and Sinclare (aka Super Puppy).
Gratefulness doesn’t require grand gestures. Sometimes it’s late-night texts, small numbers that feel big, the courage to name mistakes, big laughs, small budgets, or the simple joy of seeing your work bring important clarity.
If the research is right, noticing these moments isn’t just good for the heart. It strengthens us.
And that, in this season, is more than enough for me.