Take good care, 2014
What a great way to end an interesting year. I had the rare opportunity to interview a future star of the concert piano circuit, Russian-born virtuoso, Anastasia Huppmann. She spoke to me via Skype from a café in Vienna. Her friend, Dr Maria Babak, graciously and patiently helped with the translation. 
Anastasia is a child prodigy, coming of age in a competitive and challenging profession. Her drive is admirable; her insistence on knowing not just every nuance of the piece, but the composer as well, push her performances to higher plateaus.
Anastasia typifies the women I’ve been honored to meet, thanks to a little good fortune, but mostly because of the support of my friend, mentor, guide and editor at About.com, Lahle Wolfe. This is a woman who runs companies, edits her site, raises a family—one with more than a fair share of health issues—and manages to find the time and room in her heart to rescue horses. I’m guessing she gets roughly 2-3 hours sleep a night.
All the women I’ve been privileged to meet this year, including Anthoula Katsimatides and Divine Capital Markets CEO, Danielle Hughes, possess an uncommon grit and perseverance that essentially says, “Yeah, there’ve been obstacles—so what? I’ve got goals, and family, and I set a higher standard for myself than others expect of me, so get out of the way.”
I’m looking forward to my next interview. I can’t wait to make a new friend and learn another valuable lesson in positive drive.
I’m a better man because of the women I’ve learned from. It’s a lesson we all should embrace.
Read the full profile of Anastasia Huppmann here.
Enjoy her latest video
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