What does the ‘new’ in New Year mean to you?

I have recently been quite surprised by the number of people who have commented to me that they will be celebrating the new year quietly at home. It may be a sign of the age of some of my colleagues (apologies if that offends anybody!), but the general consensus seems to be that it is very expensive to go out, difficult to travel and people feel pressurised into feeling jolly whereas that might not be exactly how they feel on 31st December as the year comes to an end. So that got me thinking about endings and beginnings and how people cope generally with the change. Is there too much expectation piled onto people to behave in a certain way – even if that doesn’t feel right to them? Do some people go against their wishes purely to keep the rest of the crowd happy? Why shouldn’t those who wish to sit quietly at home and reflect just be allowed that space rather than being pressurised into a behaviour that they either don’t want or need? Of course, the answer should be that everyone should be allowed to decide how, and where, they are going to be without any undue pressure. So, as we look to begin another year where there is potentially a lot of change being played out (Brexit?!), are you thinking about how to support your teams in 2019? Will it be a new approach or more of the same – even if that hasn’t been wholly productive in the past? Do you sometimes feel the need to sit quietly and reflect on where your business is going but maybe all you feel you can do is just cope with all the ‘busyness’ sometimes expected of a successful business person. If you want to maybe think about trying something new that can support you and your team in the New Year, we have supported both individuals and organisations in exploring how change can both affect and exhilarate a business. Each business is different and shouldn’t have to follow the crowd in a certain pattern of behaviour, so if you are interested in trying something new to support, develop and bring a new perspective to your business, get in contact with us. Everything we do is tailor made and there is nothing more exciting and new for us than to develop a programme of support for a client. Wishing you a very happy and successful 2019 – however you chose to see it in!