Nearly 1,600 professionals responded to our call for information about their facilities, budgets, construction plans, operations, programming, staffing and more. Here, we summarize their responses.

People keep talking about a "post-fact world," but you and I know that what is true is still true, and what is untrue remains untrue, no matter how hard you might wish it were otherwise. This month, we're focused exclusively on the facts. Specifically, the facts delivered by you, our readers, via your answers to our Industry Report survey, which we sent out earlier this year.

With so many moving parts involved in their daily operation, from staffing and programming to water management and equipment maintenance, aquatic facilities can present overwhelming challenges to facility budgets.

Back in September, I adopted a new dog. She's grown—5 years old—because I know better than to adopt a puppy. (We have no time for a puppy.) When you adopt a grown dog—or really any dog—you have to be prepared to work with their existing personality.

Parks and outdoor sites designed for leisure are among the most beneficial amenities communities have to offer. They give people a place to get together, to get active, to find some relaxation, to play and to have some fun.

According our annual Salary Survey, published each July, most of you readers out there are pretty happy at work. Every year, the Industry Report results reveal an audience of recreation, sports and fitness facility directors, managers, CEOs and so on who are overwhelmingly satisfied with their work.

If you're a long-time reader of Recreation Management, you likely are familiar with our annual State of the Industry Report, where we delve deeply into the who's, what's, where's and how's of recreation, sports and fitness facility management. In this issue, we introduce more specific research into the aquatics industry.

In January, we all make resolutions. And by March, we mostly forget all about them. But wait. Let me tell you a little secret. You can always start again. Any time.

There's no doubt about it: If you can turn exercise into fun, you're two steps closer to finding exercise that will last for the long haul. And if aquatic facilities provide anything to the visitors who come to splash about, swim and work out, it's fun. Water is just one of many paths to wellness, but it's a powerful one.

We all, at some point in our lives, will feel excluded. And because of this, we all know how bad that feels. But for most of us, the feeling of exclusion is not all that common. It just pops up every once in a while, whether it's showing up for school on Monday to find out everyone else was invited to a birthday party, or it's just a general sense that something is happening somewhere and we're missing out.