One of the things that I learnt a number of years ago was that I was the one in command of my life. Alright, there are always things going on around us that impact on what we do, but ultimately, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, you are in control. You make the decisions. You choose.

From the moment that you wake up in the morning, everything that you do is a personal choice. You decide when to get up, how to spend your day. No-one else can ever take that away from you.

Now, don’t get me wrong here. I realise that we all live in an environment surrounded by other people, but you choose how to respond and what you will do at every moment of the day. You could decide, for instance, that you are not going to work anymore. That’s fine. That is your choice. You then have to accept the consequences, but the choice is yours and yours alone.

You choose what you eat, what weight you are, who you associate with. It is all entirely up to you. You look at the environment and the people around you and you decide what you will do and how you will react.

I suspect that there are a few, or maybe more than a few, who think this is complete and utter balderdash and that you have no choices. You have to feed yourself and your family and keep a roof over your heads. That means you must work etc. But these are all choices. You could give up work, live rough etc. Your choice. My guess is that your close family would not think much of your life choices but nevertheless, those choices are yours to make.

2022 is here. You have a clean sheet of paper in front of you, on which you can write anything that you choose. What choices will you make?

Personally, I have every intention of building on what we have already achieved in our own small way. I choose to live a challenging life full of ups and downs. My choice, not anyone else’s choice.

I recognise that we all have responsibilities to others. If you have a young family, then you have a responsibility to them. Our own children are now old enough to make their own choices and experience their own successes and failures. However, we still have a lot of people who rely upon us and we choose to accept that responsibility.

On our chosen path there are challenges that we will face. But that is our choice. We choose to accept the burden of fulfilling the responsibilities that come with the path we have chosen. Isn’t that the way for anyone in business?

There are challenges that we must rise up to meet. We choose to accept the responsibilities.

Have you ever considered the meaning of the word responsibility? I looked it up in a dictionary and it said:

“Responsibility is being answerable or accountable, as for something within your power, control, or management, having a capacity for moral decisions and therefore accountable; capable of rational thought or action, reliable or dependable.”

It’s an interesting word. But let me give you a much shorter and more succinct definition and that is that responsibility is “responding with ability”. In any situation, you bring all of your knowledge and experience to bare in the way you respond to that situation. You don’t run and hide or leave it to “someone else” but you respond, and you do it with all the abilities that you possess.

So, when we make our choices, we embrace the moment, confident in our abilities to move forward positively, and we respond with ability. That is our choice and that is a choice that no one else can make for us.

Many years ago I came across the expression “ If it’s going to be, it’s up to me”. I have never bought a lottery ticket since. Any success that I achieve will be through my own efforts, albeit that I am just one member of the team, but it will not be through a roll of the dice or a spin of the wheel. That was my choice, but I believe it made me stronger as an individual.

So, 2022 is here. What choices will you make? How will you respond with ability to the challenges of the new year?

From everyone here at The Long Partnership, we hope that 2022 brings you happiness and fulfilment in all aspects of your life. Business is going to be challenging in 2022 but if we all respond with ability and make the right informed choices, we will get through it.

Remember that we are always here to support you, in the good times and the bad.

If you want to carry on this discussion but you are not sure where to find us, please click here.

Alan E Long

The Long Partnership

07770 738770