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It happens nearly every fall. I\u2019m browsing the home improvement store\u2019s garden section and pause at the spring bulbs on display. Usually, I pass them by, preferring plants that result in instant gratification. Yet when spring finally arrives and daffodils and tulips make their appearance, I feel a sense of gratitude for the younger version of me\u2014the proactive planter who decided to invest in the future and get her hands dirty.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n That sense of springtime gratitude is an appropriate metaphor for what I\u2019m feeling as the current SMPS president. This year, we\u2019re celebrating 50 years since the organization\u2019s founding. And this past month, presidents-elect from coast to coast gathered in D.C. for the Chapter Leadership Symposium (CLS), where they shared ideas to help their chapters, and each other, grow and succeed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Our landmark anniversary demonstrates how the SMPS community benefits from past leaders who planted seeds and cultivated our organization into what it is today. And witnessing the connections and collaboration at CLS was a reminder that\u2014as volunteer leaders\u2014we wouldn\u2019t be where (or who) we are without the people who encouraged and inspired us along the way.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Spending time with the CLS class of 2023 last month (Hi, Hillraisers!) brought back memories from 16 years ago when I was gearing up to serve as president of SMPS Indiana. A few months later, I would reunite with my fellow \u201cBig and Bold\u201d presidents-elect at the SMPS conference in Denver. One of the conference\u2019s keynote speakers was Mark Sanborn, author of the book,\u00a0You Don\u2019t Need a Title to Be a Leader.<\/em>\u00a0His message stuck with me\u2014that a leader is someone who wants to make things better, and that you can lead from any seat. I\u2019ve always believed that if you\u2019re in SMPS, you\u2019re a leader because you\u2019re most likely interested in helping others, pursuing lifelong learning opportunities, and improving our industry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Whether we\u2019re supporting others or building upon our own knowledge base, the effects of our efforts are seldom instantaneous. Lightbulb moments\u2014opportunities that\u00a0seem<\/em>\u00a0to pop up out of nowhere\u2014are typically the result of cumulative efforts or past experiences that connect to the present day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n So, I invite you to continue investing in yourself and helping tend to our community for the good of the future, whether you\u2019re empowering others to lead or inviting transformations that will help us continue to provide value in the years ahead. As you do that, know that everything you\u2019re doing today will make for a better tomorrow\u2014both for yourself and those who share space with you. Together, we can meet the SMPS vision of business transformed through marketing leadership.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n