The New Year is upon us and whilst many are wondering what happened to 2020. Some people are still scrambling to recover from the shock that the 2020 pandemic brought us – and many are shocked that the first month of this year seems to have vanished. Still, we carry the hope that every new year, and every new beginning brings new hope, and a fresh outlook. It is wonderful to find many people upbeat about a new start.

My computer sometimes slows down. It freezes or hangs, and then needs a reboot to get back to normal. After restarting it, it’ll go back to functioning as it was before the freeze; and if it was working efficiently beforehand, it will do so again.

Things are much the same with us. The idea of a new beginning brings a burst of fresh energy, but soon the energy will fade and everything goes back to the way it was. Very few people will get a new beginning, because hoping for a fresh start is not the same as making a fresh start. Our minds will go back to the way it was functioning beforehand; the same old problems will return to put us down and the same demons will return to haunt us. However, there will be some people who will turn things around and it will usually be those who have changed their mental programming, modified their mental diet and/or updated the software (mental program) that runs their minds.

Surely, no one would expect to get a change in output without making a change in input! In most cases therefore, people will carry on where they left off in 2019 – or in 2020.

Those who want a fresh start must do things differently – because, if you keep on doing what you’ve been doing, then you’ll keep getting what you’ve been getting!

At Knights Preparatory, we have committed to help our #YoungKnights get off to a great start this year! Our Winning Edge coaching programme will be incorporated into the weekly #YoungKnights sessions, where key issues around personal and leadership development will be explored and discussed. A very exciting time of exploration and self-discovery for our #YoungKnights!

In addition, if parents join this drive by engaging their children in these meaningful conversations, igniting curiosity and encouraging life-long learning together with us – what a solid start to a year that promises to be challenging and filled with change.

No matter how tough things are, resolve to make a better life and a better world – and find a way to make your resolutions stick! Let me encourage you with this – and I hope that you will share this idea and encourage your children with this too:

• Jesus sent His apostles two by two to face the harsh world ahead of them. Probably because we get more done when we work together, share resources and synchronise our energies. When we share, our burdens are lightened and our blessings multiplied.
• Commit to make this a progressive and productive year, by finding a BUDDY to work with – so set up your own share and care program.
• Instead of lamenting the time lost, aim to celebrate a new beginning.

In the long run, whatever you achieve or fail to achieve in life is not going to matter as much as who or what you’ve become in the process of life.

So, instead of getting back to the same-old, same-old – challenge yourself to make this re-start a real, and truly meaningful experience. Use the COVID crisis to reflect on the things that really matter to you, and then set goal accordingly