For many of us, returning light, springtime flowering, and birds across the skyline are longed for and hopeful signs.

Whether you live in a throbbing urban village or your gaze is wider and opens onto quiet countryside, the pull of the seasons is powerful.

The new year is yielding to spring, and January brightens into February. As the days lengthen, our energy for the future begins to gather again. We can imagine what might be meant by the poet Brendan Kennelly when he predicts “every beginning is a promise”.

This column is also beginning. We would like it be a place for you to stop by; to replenish hopeful energy as you navigate the months on your never-less-than-full calendars.

Host of themes

We have a host of themes planned for you – from mindfully caring for yourself to becoming masters of your time.

We will talk mental and emotional health, physical and professional wellness, sources of motivation, and how to navigate challenges and loss. Guest columnists from the worlds of psychology, leadership, coaching and business will pop in from time to time, as will legal practitioners – sharing personal stories and hard-earned wisdom.

So back to now. A season rich with potential. I like to use the leadership metaphor of ‘balcony and dancefloor’ at this point in the year. To lead, we need to be on the balcony – not lost on the dancefloor.

And yet, in professional life – and indeed in our personal lives – we are inevitably pulled onto the dancefloor. Caught up in the action, seeing and hearing only what’s close to us, and missing much of what is unfolding out of reach and out of sight.

Call to action

By consciously making time to climb onto the ‘balcony’ at the opening of a new year, we lift our gaze and can see the much needed meta-picture. To begin (again!) we must first determine what it is we want. In this, the beginning of 2018, the call to action is simple. Don’t just live your life – lead it.

Make time to come off the dancefloor regularly – the view from the balcony will make it worth the climb. 

Though we live in a world that dreams of ending
that always seems about to give in
something that will not acknowledge conclusion
insists that we forever begin.

(‘Begin’ by Brendan Kennelly, from The Essential Brendan Kennelly.)