Just back from a welcome break after a hectic start to 2024. As I head to my 60th Birthday (I am still only 59.5) I am taking time to stop and reflect again on my progress towards my ‘retirement’ plans. I need to make better progress this year!

So I spent the last couple of weeks taking some family and friends away who share a similar outlook on life and the definition of success. Ironically neither of them are on Linkedin. Obviously. Each of us have tried to take a path of a balanced and purposeful life avoiding the pursuit of accumulating stuff for its own sake. The others are much better at this than I am, but I am learning from them.

“There are two ways to get ‘enough’:one is to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less.”
G.K Chesterton.

We check and challenge and make ourselves ‘accountable’ to each other on our motivations and actions. I know I regularly need to check in to maintain the right pathway because I get (happily) pulled in all directions in my desire to be helpful! But this is my weakness. I am too keen to be ‘involved’ and need to check my motivations for this. If I can’t be a helpful contributor it is time to step back. I will be doing more of this in the coming 12 months to create a core offe through SAJEIMPACT LTD and The Sports Think Tank as well as writing for View from the Margins

Fortunately this month a lot of my volunteer roles in Economic Development with the LLEP come to an end as we hand over our functions to the local councils. In one go I get back 1-2 days of volunteer time back and I will try not to fill this with more ‘stuff’.

So from April 1st I am still not quite sure what the new balance will look like and I quite like that uncertainty and freedom in the diary. Honestly.