What is so unique about a change of date, that we wait for it with so much anxiety and fondness? I am growing more and more cynical lately, so it is possible that I don’t have my rosy lenses on. But why do we wait for the date to change to start adopting new resolutions and habits? If the rationale is that one can start from a clean slate. Well we do that each day. Can’t we?

Agam and I saw more sunrises than sunsets in 2016. Tara’s morning wake ups and our interesting lives contributed to that. But I think there is a trend beginning to emerge here. As one grows older, we stop chasing sunsets, we start reaching out for the sun rise. Perhaps there is so much more to do, as one grows old, and you simply need more hours in the day to keep your boat afloat. Or you realize that there is no point chasing something that is short lived and temporary, like a sight of a dipping sun. You value things that give you energy and hope and have a longer run way. Just like the rising sun that gives way to a new day.

On to welcoming 2017. Nothing special about this year on the onset. I am looking forward to resuming our life that hit the pause button last quarter. And apart from that we hope to have a lot of family time this year, and may be some travel.

I don’t get marred by incidents easily and hence in retrospect, 2016 was a fulfilling year for me. I did a few things differently last year that I want to continue to tweak and a few things wrong, that I want to correct. And a few new that I want to dabble with.

**So what worked in 2016**

– Fixing things. An attitude to take what’s broken, and fix it.
– Let others lead – Once you set the direction, you can let other lead. They are as capable as you and you cannot do everything in the 24 hours that you have. Applies to both personal and professional domains.
– Meal planning and intense focus on healthy eating.
– Crafty execution on long term projects like the Nook/Nest swap.
– Responding to love and affection regardless of the source. Renewing old friendships
– When I observe Tara’s caring and social personality, I feel warm and happy. She is my mirror, and I think I did well there.
– Nothing made me more happy this year, than seeing the expressions of my friends and peers when I told them what makes them special.
– Some sort of meditation and journalling

**What did not work in 2016**

– Trying to discipline Tara about eating. I failed at most of my attempts. The fact is that she eats when she is hungry, not when the clock says its time, and she usually picks the right thing to eat. I spent endless hours in the kitchen making the most healthy things for her but it was a waste.
– I did not write much in 2016. I let the busyness of life get to me.
– My transparency and matter of fact honesty was rewarded at work, but not on the personal front. I learnt some lessons about being discrete.
– Advance Planning – a lot of trips had to be canceled, changed and moved.
– We were frivolous during the holiday season.
– I give way too much advice even when no one is asking for it. Not everyone is receptive to random trivial advice. Gauge your audience. Not everyone is worth your time.

**What are we going to do in 2017**

– Be a good role model for Tara
– Make people happy – Let them lead, let them know why they are special, let them help
– Keep the focus on health + add some workouts to it too. Keep at the meditation routines.
– Manage spending
– Be discrete. The world does not need to know all the things that make you happy. Only you do.
– Plan judiciously
– Listen more than talk
– Focus on building new skills. Learn something new every month. Be accountable.
– Create more and consume less