My leadership departure from YPK

Well, I did it.

Effective June 1, 2008, I will become member and President Emeritus of Young Professionals of Knoxville (YPK). After agreeing to serve a second year, I have decided that it’s best for me to hand the torch to a more fitting individual and relinquish my leadership role.

In my e-mail to the executive committee I stated that it was hard to pin-point a single reason for my decision. But, that kind of reason never satisfies anyone. To cast a better light onto the situation, here are a few reasons for my departure:

• Vision: I’m a firm believer in that a founder should only lead for so long. Since 2005, I have worked on YPK to take it from idea to organization. I have always been an “insider” so I feel it’s time to bring on someone who has an “outside” view of the group to spark new energy.
• Pockets of Energy: Knoxville is sitting on the tipping point for a myriad of great ideas. I want to make some of those happen and keep my home life intact. So, my priorities received a much needed shift.

As I stated above, I will remain a member, focusing my efforts on becoming a technician rather than an entrepreneur. We have started work on a brand new website which I will manage until completion.

I still very much believe in what YPK stands for and know that it will thrive throughout the Knoxville community.

Many thanks go out to those who helped get YPK started, those who keep YPK running and to those that will come along and change the future.