What are YOU Thankful for this Thanksgiving?

Like millions of Americans, I am celebrating one of my favorite and uniquely American Holidays - Thanksgiving!

?What are YOU thankful for this Thanksgiving? I’ve decided to ask myself the same question as it relates to my extended family of friends, colleagues, clients, and fellow HR/talent acquisition professionals here on LinkedIn. The reality is I have a lot to be thankful for this year and as we are coming towards the end of 2022, I was inspired to revisit an article I originally wrote around Thanksgiving time back in 2013, with some obvious updates. Here goes!

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In my personal life I am thankful to be a son, husband and the father of three adults now: two sons and a beautiful daughter. I have managed to marry off all three of my Children during COVID most recently with my oldest son Joe this past Halloween Weekend. He and his beautiful wife Angela are homeowner’s in Chicago and is doing well in their respective career as a healthcare consultant in revenue cycle management for a large global firm in Chicago, and a development executive in the NFP space. My middle son Matt is an attorney with a law firm focused on real estate and has been married to Sean and educator since May of 2021 and lives close by in a neighboring suburb; my daughter Jenna is a pre-school teacher in a CPS school in Chicago and is married to JT, who works in finance. They are moving into their new home in a week and will be blessing me with my first grandchild in March! To say that I am a father filled with pride does not even halfway describe my emotions. Each Thanksgiving my son Matt suggests that we should all jot down what we are thankful for and share our lists with the extended family during our Thanksgiving holiday dinner.

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As you are reflecting on what YOU can be thankful for this year, here are a few ideas to get you started:

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? Be thankful for some of the most obvious things; family, faith, friends, health, job (both the clients you support and the candidates you meet in the course of doing your job), the team that works with you to execute your work! This year in particular I am thankful to work alongside all my great colleagues at Felix .?I am so humbled to be surrounded by such a talented team and grateful for what the future hold for all of us!

? Be comforted by the fact that, despite the struggles we have as a nation, we still are blessed to live in the greatest country on earth. When people ask me about my political leanings, I like to say that I am American, not loyal to any political party but loyal to my Country and those who strive to do the right thing for it and are not motivated by self-interests. Remember: the topic of politics doesn’t make for a great conversation during Thanksgiving!

? Look inside and recognize the gifts that you have from within. I am thankful that I can be happy, resilient, passionate, hardworking, intense, idealistic, loyal, friendly, clever, knowledgeable and a little bit irreverent.

? It would be impossible to be thankful without recognizing all of the family, loved ones, friends, and colleagues that are no longer with you, but are still very much a part of you. The people who leave this earth before us influence our daily actions and routinely remind us of who we are and what we stand for and have a profound influence on how we live. This Thanksgiving I pray for those family and friends who have left us too soon.

? Be grateful for this past year and the chance to dream about the coming year. I would be remiss if I did not thank my wife Debbie for putting up with me for 37 years and allowing me to go through this crazy journey of life, family, health and all the trials and tribulations included in that journey. So, with 2022 ending, I encourage you to give thanks for having the chance to live through it and now experience the joy of thinking about all that’s in store for 2023.

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This reflection has been a great exercise for me, and I would encourage you to do the same to refresh, refocus and re-energize yourself for the coming year. Give yourself the gift of reflecting upon those things for which you are most thankful and spend a few minutes to write your thoughts down. I would be thankful if you share your thoughts and reactions to this with me! Happy Thanksgiving!

This Thanksgiving and for the remainder of the Holiday season please keep the needy and less fortunate in your thought and prayers and consider the gift of your help and charity. For me is our young people that need a boost and my time, talent and treasure go towards supporting HFS Chicago Scholars and education.