New Year Considerlutions
Happy New Year! It’s that time again where the reset button gets pressed and we start to look ahead to longer, warmer days and hopefully some races or events.
Now this might not be your typical ‘New Year, New Me’ type blog because I have rarely made (if ever) a resolution kicking off on 1st January, and I am certainly not intending to preach!
In years gone by I have, from different angles, made some subtle tweaks to things which have then since become routine. One example is to read from a book every day. At first, it was hard but now it’s part of the routine and I am well over two years of keeping this up.
This isn’t revolutionary and nor will it turn me into a ground-breaking author. But as part of an overall package of small tweaks it can lead to improvements. For me, one of those improvements is an obvious and stronger ability to focus. In the current age of ‘always instant’ focus has dwindled, but reading books is definitely helping me maintain focus in everyday life and switch off from everyday life at the same time - a strange win-win!
So here’s a few considerations to take away and maybe try in January 2024, or possibly later, that I think will improve you as a human being:
Engage with global geo-politics and world affairs; Where are you going with this Matt? Good question! I think the point here is to continually broaden worldly views and constantly reframe your perspective. This in itself can be quite humbling, or frustrating as you feel quite powerless to influence matters thousands of miles away. Global geo-politics is complex and incredibly nuanced and likely never fully understood, but I see little harm in growing your base knowledge and gaining greater perspective.
Read about adventurers of the past; Here I have to confess that this is a slight hobby of mine (one on the side of the desk, if you like). My current interest yo-yo’s between the Middle East and the polar regions, notably the few centuries between 16th and 20th. This in particular is a period when parts of the most northern and southern areas of the globe remained unexplored and the sense of mystery associated with adventure was unparalleled. Stories of HMS Terror and Erebus, the Belgica, Fram or Jeannette are fascinating, as is the background and character of individuals like Scott, Shackleton, Cook, Amundsen et al. When you don’t fancy a modest hike in 70% precipitation, you can lose yourself in polar adventures of centuries ago for some perspective.
Volunteer; I believe the western world is crying out for a shift away from monetary value towards social value. The current system is unsustainable. Volunteering offers the opportunity for everyone to contribute to increasing social value, and the good news is it can of course take many different forms. I volunteer with RSPB during the spring doing wader surveys, I support nature walks with a local community group. I know corporate colleagues who volunteer at art galleries and charity shops. How you volunteer is irrelevant, just get stuck in and I’m pretty sure you’ll feel good about it.
Slow down, make time for you; This, for me, is really important. I know I am a deep, long, constant thinker. Walking/ hiking has become my ‘head space download zone’. Slowing down, walking in nature and ‘reorganising’ my thoughts probably adds more to my daily performance than anything else. Find your ‘zone’ and make time for it.
Give more; I’m leaving this one for you to interpret in your own way. It could be that you give more time, money or blood, or you decide to continue giving by giving more often.
This isn’t an exclusive or exhaustive list, it’s simply a set of suggestions that I would like to pose to you to have a think about. You don’t need to do any, or you might have your own resolutions or be able to find solutions to local or world problems - this is all worth - and if this is you, I’d be very interested to hear your thoughts and ideas.
I do hope that 2024 is a rewarding and successful year for you.
Coach Matt