Well.

While the S&P 500 was setting records last week, young professionals from around the state were working on their own business futures at the Kentucky Young Professionals Summit.

Now in its second year, the summit, hosted by the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, gives young professionals the opportunity to network and learn from industry experts.

The biggest challenge, I would say, is the opportunities.

I think there's a big challenge there.

Within Kentucky in general is you have generations that are in the workplace, so many different generations, and just giving young professionals that opportunity to be listened to, to be able to innovate, to be able to create because they can see what others may not be able to see at this point.

It really is important to create these opportunities for all professionals, but especially young professionals who are starting off their career to be able to network, meet people from other Kentucky communities, meet people from other industries, hear their stories, hear the life lessons they've learned.

So I think especially when sometimes we seem to be kind of more divided or more remote, it's important that we create space to make sure that these young professionals have an access to all these important conversations and the networking opportunities.

A lot of our workforce now, they really only known work since Covid, where things have been more hybrid or more remote.

And so maybe not as traditional.

So there's a difference in various generations in the workplace.

And I think we're at a really interesting time right now where we potentially have four generations in one workplace kind of learning how to work together and their different styles.

And it's important that you as a health professional not only use your voice, but encourage others young professionals to use their voice as well.

Also create space for others.

Get to get inside the community and really learn the community and engage and learn what is needed so that you can fill in the gaps where needed.

And that would really allow young professionals to know that not only they are needed, but they are valued as well.

I think young professionals are craving interaction.

They're craving networking, and this provides them that outlet.

I think the Kentucky Chamber really prides ourselves of being able to have these important conversations with people on various sides of the issue, tackle them, and hopefully come out with some really good solutions.

It takes that fear away like it gives young individuals the faith to actually step out.

Being a business owner, it is not easy.

It is not for the weak.

And so having these type of events, it really shows that you're cared for.

It also shows that, hey, there's somebody that's out here that's also doing it.

So it's giving people hope.

That they can do the same things.

Kentucky's Young Professional of the year was also named at this year's summit.

Brandon Pennington was selected, according to the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.

Pennington was a key member of the team who took Harlan from a coal based economy to a tourism based economy.

The county's most recent numbers show that tourism had a $38 million impact in Harlan County, and more than $20 million right within the city of Harlan.

Being from Appalachia and a small town of Kentucky.

You kind of had a whole host of stereotypes.

Fighting those stereotypes every single day is an important thing for us to do within our community, and to be given a platform where you become the young professional of the entire state.

I hope that it gives inspiration to other people just to follow their dreams, to pursue entrepreneurship, to work with their communities, to work within their state just to make the site a better place.

To tell myself every single, every single day, whenever I'm trying something new or whether I'm trying to, put on a new event or do something new for my community or to do something within the state.

I always tell myself it starts by trying and just to take a second to, to try, and just to keep pursuing your dreams, to keep moving forward.

Whether you're a young professional who is fighting Sarah Thompson in Appalachia, whether you're a young professional who is being told that you can't do something, keep trying, and eventually you will let.

One trend.

The Kentucky Chamber noted, is that employers are rounding out their benefits packages to attract young professionals looking for a good work life balance.