A Thankful Heart

When I was in second grade, I received speech therapy for stammering.?I would have such a rush of thoughts and I couldn’t get them organized in my head before I articulated them.?Sometimes the words would come out rushing in a run on sentence, or I chose the wrong words (blanket instead of towel, one that I still struggle with today).?I remember the speech therapist asking me to read the words in a sentence, making me pause … and take a breath … between each word. She would show me flashcards and ask me to pause … breathe … then state the word.?Suddenly, the word I was going to say was corrected in my head and I said the right word. It was pretty amazing how much the pause… and breathe… helped me gather my thoughts. It’s something I lean on today when I’m at a loss for words.?

Pause… Breathe… Speak.

I never thought much about this particular time in my life until this past week. As Thanksgiving approaches, I’ve had a hard time with word selection and taking a moment to pause… and… breathe.?I have written in my head so many different thank you messages and words of appreciation, but I find myself having that same second-grade experience when word selection is becoming jumbled and right words seem so inadequate.

• How do you find the words to thank a Leadership Team that shows up with optimism and focus every day, is dedicated to a bright future even on the really hard days, and is always willing to challenge and push me to think differently?
• How do you thank an incredible team of Case Managers and Nurses who somehow find the right balance of empathy, compassion, professional skepticism, and critical analysis, all while leading with a servant’s heart?
• What are the right words to say to a small but mighty Learning and Development team for their commitment to delivering creative, inspiring, and motivating content day after day?
• What do you say to a Managed Care and Bill Review team that magically manages hundreds of thousands of lines of bills and seems to do so with flawless accuracy and attention?
• How do you thank the Support Function, Operators, Financial Processors, and Technicians without whom our processes would come to a full stop and are often the first point of contact and impression for our customers and partners?
• How do you recognize an Insight and Analysis team for keeping the work moving forward, creating innovative ways to discover new insights, and converting countless reports while bridging old and new systems?
• What is the right way to appreciate a Technology and Systems team for maintaining legacy systems, all while leading one of the most complex and large-scale system implementations we’ve ever experienced?
• What do you say to a newly formed Compliance, Contracting, and Project Management team that’s pushing new ways of working, thinking, and defining the next generation of what world-class looks like?
• What do you say to the countless Partners and Stakeholders who work arm-in-arm to deliver on our promise of Expertise, Speed, Culture and Outcomes?
• How do you properly thank an incredible team of associates who make you a better person and leader every day?

When word selection is a challenge, I tend to bend towards simplicity, so I want to simply say Thank You.?Thank you to each and every one of you for showing up and being you. We are a team that is stronger because of our cumulative energy, wisdom, contributions, and collective heart.

What you do matters, and I thank you.?