Unfortunately, saying thank you seems to be an after thought more and more. So at least once a month, I will take a few minutes to publicly appreciate someone that has had an impact on me.
This round: Gil Broza
I met Gil many years ago in the Agile community. I can’t remember which conference or the exact moment but if I had to guess…I probably attended one of his sessions (around 2009 maybe) and enjoyed what I heard – prompting a conversation post the session. Regardless, over the years, he is someone that I always enjoy our time together. So much so that while I was in Toronto, I looked up a local user group and saw that Gil was presenting. I made the decision to swing by simply so I could say hi.
This particular appreciation is for something very recent. As the entire world is trying to cope with working from home and social distancing by staying home, this extrovert was struggling. I’m not sure what prompted it on his part but I got a message asking if I would be up for little video checkin. Without hesitation, I agreed and we figured out a time. The conversation spanned family, life, work – pretty much any topic we flowed into. He was a breath of fresh air in helping me feel heard, connected and a voice of reason in my need to risk mitigate. I’m truly appreciate that Gil has not only been an influence in my growth but I can say has become a friend. He took time to engage with me even as he was dealing with his own priorities. He made me a priority. Seriously, how can one not be grateful for people in your life that do that?!
Thank you for truly caring – mad respect,
Tricia
Picture from LinkedIn 
This round: Gil Broza
I met Gil many years ago in the Agile community. I can’t remember which conference or the exact moment but if I had to guess…I probably attended one of his sessions (around 2009 maybe) and enjoyed what I heard – prompting a conversation post the session. Regardless, over the years, he is someone that I always enjoy our time together. So much so that while I was in Toronto, I looked up a local user group and saw that Gil was presenting. I made the decision to swing by simply so I could say hi.
This particular appreciation is for something very recent. As the entire world is trying to cope with working from home and social distancing by staying home, this extrovert was struggling. I’m not sure what prompted it on his part but I got a message asking if I would be up for little video checkin. Without hesitation, I agreed and we figured out a time. The conversation spanned family, life, work – pretty much any topic we flowed into. He was a breath of fresh air in helping me feel heard, connected and a voice of reason in my need to risk mitigate. I’m truly appreciate that Gil has not only been an influence in my growth but I can say has become a friend. He took time to engage with me even as he was dealing with his own priorities. He made me a priority. Seriously, how can one not be grateful for people in your life that do that?!
Thank you for truly caring – mad respect,
Tricia
Picture from LinkedIn 
