With Pride and Gratitude
Cheers to you and your favorite posts of 2024
One of the things I’m proudest of this past year is this blog.
I relaunched Some Guy Named Rae on June 30, and have published a weekly post since then—27 in total (including this one).
I’ve written off and on for years, but never this consistently.
Numerous friends and colleagues encouraged me to start writing again. A weekly Saturday morning writing date with my girlfriend has made it easy—and enjoyable—to do.
It’s your totally unexpected and thoughtful notes that have kept me going week after week, though. Notes like this one …
I love and look forward to your weekly essays - insightful, clear and an underlying sense of humor and forgiveness for our human faults. Thank you!
… let me know that what I’ve shared has had an impact. That my words matter.
When I publish something, I’m always interested (and sometimes surprised) to see what hits the mark—and what doesn’t.
Over the past year I’ve talked to a number of folks about leaning into what scares you, so I thought for sure this topic would be a big hit. But What Scares You Most? has the dubious distinction of being my least-viewed post of 2024.
On the other end of the spectrum, the posts that have resonated the most with you this past year, by number of views, include:
My favorite post of the year was also yours, with nearly 60% more views than the next highest viewed post. Y’all know how I feel about the phrase “hey guys.”
164,000 Women Are Not "Guys"
A few weeks ago I—along with 164,000 other women—logged into Zoom to participate in the “White Women: Answer The Call! Show up for Kamala Harris” meeting. Kamala Harris had just announced her candidacy to become America’s first female president, and
Two of the year’s top posts were about leaving a job. I regularly talk to colleagues who are unhappy in their roles but don’t see a path forward. I suspect we’re going to see a lot of movement when the job market starts to open up again.
Not gonna lie—the high interest in this post surprised me a little bit. I didn’t realize so many folks would appreciate the insights I’ve gained from being an Amazon Bar Raiser.
The day after my hope was shattered, I couldn’t focus on work. This post is vulnerable and raw, a gut reaction to an election that made it clear that people like me, people I love—women, non-white, LGBTQ, Jewish, and so many others—are not valued in this country.
And finally, this post on psychological safety rounds out the year’s top posts. I hope we all can be a little more honest, humble, and human—as leaders and as citizens—in 2025.
I’m so grateful to each and every one of you for subscribing, reading, and sharing my writing—thank you for going on this journey with me.
Here’s to you and to a wonderful 2025 ahead!
Has one of my posts impacted your thinking or approach? What topics would you like to see me cover in 2025? Add a comment or message me directly—I’d love to hear from you!