I just got home from my holiday in the Bahamas and I’m still expecting to find umbrellas in my drinks. So as I’m trying to get used to wearing boots instead of sandals again, I’m also trying to get my head around what an absolutely crazy fall I just had.
The sixth season of Dragon’s Den is in full swing — I still don’t know how I ended up at the altar with Kevin! — and at the same time, I’ve been filming my new show The Big Decision. On top of all that, I travelled back and forth across the country, speaking at events in Halifax, Dawson Creek, Kitchener, Edmonton, and Toronto (just to name a few!). In November, I got to spend an incredible weekend in Kananaskis with the whole team from Venture — now that’s an inspiring bunch of people.
And my book Persuasion came out this fall. And the response has been far beyond my wildest dreams. I just found out it was 17th on the Globe & Mail bestseller list for 2011. That was a nice surprise.
But as I look back, what I’m going to remember most about the past fall is all the conversations I’ve had and the reactions I’ve received from readers all across the country. At book signings, by mail, online, or just on the street, so many people have spoken to me about how Persuasion has touched them and inspired them and encouraged them.
It’s hard to describe how special it is to me to know people have read Persuasion. To choose to read a book is a sizeable commitment in time and energy. When you decide to read a book, you are dedicating a portion of your life to it. And that’s a responsibility I don’t take lightly. So to know people have given their time to my words and my thoughts and then felt like they had received real value from it — that they feel it has changed who they are and how they think — I literally can’t think of a better Christmas present. So to all of you… thank you. So much.
But enough of this. It’s a new year full of new opportunities and new surprises. And I can’t wait to see what happens.
I also can’t wait for spring.