“It’s a new dawn, a new day….”

Do you start the year with resolutions, plans and goals?

I gave up on the “I’m going to eat an apple a day, or walk 5 miles every other” kind of new year resolutions as they invariably fall by the end of January. I am however, a strong believer in committing goals to paper and working towards them. Lorna Sixsmith wrote a very helpful post a short while ago explaining how to make and stick to business goals – there’s no point making any kind of goal if you don’t figure out a strategy how to see it through!

Catherine Drea of Foxglove Lane on the other hand uses a single word to guide her throughout the year. Looking back at her beautiful photographs over 2013 it’s now very clear that her word was ‘light’ as she plays and features it in so much of her photography. This year I’m looking forward to seeing how Catherine’s word ‘pilgrimage’ works out for her.

Roisin Markham has chosen three words to help her through 2014 and as our friendship has developed over the past couple of years, I can see that each of them is perfect for her personal journey right now.

And so to my own word. Surprisingly, I didn’t have to think too much about choosing one – it chose me and it screams at me when I close my eyes and try to think of an alternative!

“GROUNDED”

As a gardener the word grounded has many obvious connotations but my use of that one, simple word is in relation to my plans for Greenside Up.  In 2009 (perhaps naïvely) I made the bold statement that I wanted to help as many people to grow their own food as I could and in doing so, I set up my small, owner managed business. Initially I offered a personal consultation service but that quickly grew to workshops and by tutoring groups, enabled me to share my knowledge with so many more of you.  That in turn led me to blogging and community gardening and as my passion for both has grown and I approach my fifth year in business, I now have a much clearer vision of the direction I wish to take Greenside Up.

One thing I’ve learnt however, is not to rush things. Despite a bubbling excitement that’s growing stronger the closer I come to sharing my plans with you, I have to stay ‘grounded’, not only to the adventures ahead, but also as a reminder of what drives me:

“I want to help people to grow their own fruit and vegetables, to have a better understanding of food and where it comes from, which in turn will help us all to lead more sustainable lives, wherever and whomever they might be.”

Do you have a single word that will guide you through the year ahead? It will be interesting when we look back next year and see how we all got on.