This article provides practical thoughts and insights on the essence of Process Safety Management (PSM), distilled from the author's 34 years in the industry, the past 19 of which have been spent solely in PSM practice. It focuses on several key elements, which make up the heart and soul of PSM and comments on the importance of and a few of the challenges presented by each of these elements. It offers some thoughts on key focus areas as PSM continues to move forward and briefly touches on a few of the frustrations that can be encountered in PSM practice. A key takeaway relates to the importance of never losing a sense of one's own vulnerability with regard to future PSM events. (c) 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog 32: 260-263, 2013