Hi, First name / friend
I was lucky to get to attend the 2026 MTNA National Conference in Chicago last week and as usual, it didn't disappoint.
There are so many angles I could share with you — but the one I want to lean into right now is this: FRIENDSHIP.
MTNA reached out and asked me and a handful of others to participate in short video interviews they planned to use in a variety of ways, both to celebrate the 150th anniversary and to promote the profession going forward.
They offered seven prompts to choose from, and I pondered them off and on for a few days before sitting down to write out my answers in preparation.
One question had sparked a great response in my head during that pondering time — but I actually forgot about it when I sat down to write my final thoughts. So I decided to share it with you today.
The question was: Share a memory of an impactful experience you had at an MTNA event or an example of how MTNA has impacted your life (not event-specific).
My answer came to me immediately: FRIENDSHIP.
Believe it or not, I can't tell you how many times I've wrestled with the thought of leaving this profession. Honestly, it's something of a hereditary trait — all of my aunts and uncles on my mom's side have a history of moving on, whether that meant relocating ten times or changing jobs multiple times as adults. It's an urge I've had to fight, even though I truly love what I do.
In the past five years, especially, though, something has continued to keep me here — and that's friendships.
Some of my best friends these days are my colleagues. Even though we might live an hour, two hours, or an entire day's drive away from each other and even though we're not in each other's lives every day, I cannot imagine living life without them anymore.
Geesh, I am literally about to shed tears writing this. (Maybe it's a good thing I didn't answer this one on video! LOL)
It's not the only thing that keeps me here, but it's certainly playing a larger and larger part as the years go by.
The more time I spend in this profession, the more I see how much we need each other. We sustain each other. We lift each other up. That's what friends do.
So whether you take two minutes to hit reply to my emails once in a while and let me know you're listening, engage with me on social media, support my work financially through
Patreon, or by purchasing resources — thank you.
