As Big Ben struck midnight on the 31^st of last month, we all raised our glasses and toasted the New Year in and cheered as we bid farewell to 2016 – a year of major events for the UK and USA.

I have held off in writing the January newsletter for a couple of weeks to see how my renewed optimism and pledges to commit to old and new resolutions in the New Year have manifested themselves.

This is the year I try Yoga (if it is good for Ryan Giggs it must be for me) two classes missed due to work already; we finally get fit – rowing machine remains unused, we read all those books we’ve had piling up, yes completed my first book of the year Phil “the cat” Tuffnell’s autobiography a very amusing read and I am still setting about achieving those career goals. So how are you getting on as you progress into January, has the fitbit we received at Christmas been kept on, have you created a space to read all those books and are you managing work life balance and priorities in the office and home; still filled with a renewed enthusiasm?

Questions to ask: by February, is this momentum beginning to dwindle? By March, is the enthusiasm still evident? And by April, we have taken the fitbit off out of frustration as it only counts 99 steps, when you know full well you walked 133 steps and the book-reading seat still looks new and comfortable – having not been touched since its creation. As for your career, have you returned to the same routine and patterns and have not made any (dramatic) changes. 4 months into the New Year do we run the risk of being back to square one as we return to our same routine, waiting for the next New Year when we will make those same promises again to ourselves.

But why must we always wait every 365 days to consider what positive changes we want to make to our lives and career as the two undoubtedly are intertwined? Surely, we should regularly review our paths taking responsibility into our own hands and make those changes when we need to. Don’t wait until the start of a new year to get active, or to take time to read or to consider what your career goals are, and how you can adapt to achieve these in the most efficient way.

So if it is simply a career and CV health check or something more substantive including your own team’s requirements, we at ABPM are experienced in supporting you while you take stock. Thus we look forward to hearing from you and helping you in your career. Do have a successful and healthy 2017.

Rej Abraham Managing Director