It's hard not to be impressed by this year's crop of Ottawa Business Journal Forty Under 40 recipients.

As a judge, I certainly found the task of picking the winners particularly difficult. And as someone of the same age as many of the recipients, I could not help but be awed by how much these businesspeople have accomplished in their young lives. From high-flying entrepreneurs who have started, grown and, in some cases, already sold their own business, to consummate professionals who excel as part of a larger organization, all the stories motivated me personally to do my best at work each day.

But what makes these awards even better is that these businesspeople aren't just about work. They're about play, they're about family and they're about compassion. In their personal profiles, a significant number of recipients stressed the importance of making time for fun, friends and family in their busy working lives. And, when asked to name the businessperson they most admire, many recipients looked to their parents, their siblings, their colleagues or their supervisors as sources of insight and inspiration.

I was also intrigued by the fact that, when asked to name what one skill has helped get them where they are today in their careers, virtually all recipients pointed to the oft-forgotten "soft skills": communication, relationship-building, passion, determination and commitment, to name a few.

But what sets these recipients apart from the many young achievers in Ottawa's business community is their dedication to their communities and to causes dear to their hearts. As one recipient stressed, "It is in giving that we receive". This lesson has obviously been learned well by all our recipients and it's one we hope they will pass on to the next generation of young business

professionals.

- Anne Howland, Editor