Day 2 - 207 -- Thanking a Mentor

I reflected on my career today when a woman I consider a mentor received a life achievement award from her peers. We met only once, but I had seen her speak years before that. I read much that she wrote and it fit well with my doctoral research and the research that I have been doing ever since. The first time I heard her present at a conference she spoke about qualitative research methods  -- in particular an unstructured interview. There was a single question -- "Tell me about cholesterol." -- that wasn't really even a question. The rest of the interviews went along like a conversation. The information gathered with this technique answered many of the "why's" rather than just the what and how many. It fascinated me and I began to look for others in the nutrition field using these methods. There were precious few finds for that search. Now, there are many people utilizing these techniques to understand people and allow the creation of messages that can help them with food choices.

So -- today I was able to let her know the impact she has had on my career -- just one of many she has inspired without really knowing. It was good to be able to tell someone this. Far too often, we never get the perfect time to tell someone what they have done for us, or else we just never get around to it. If someone has made a difference in your life, they should know this. Find the words to say or type or write in a real card -- it may make a difference in their life.

The song today speaks to the difficulties along a career path. Staying the course can be difficult, but others can help us to get over the hurdles or choose the path to take. It is sung by a wonderful gravelly voice and is somewhat autobiographical in nature. Enjoy!

Can't Stop me Now -- Rod Stewart