Generally I start each New Year with an epic list of resolutions and a mild sense of panic. You know the sort: I will whisper affirmations while eating kale. I will sing the house clean like Mary Poppins. I will plan and schedule weekly blog posts… (ahem). By the time I drag myself across the finish line on the 82nd of January I’ve usually succumbed to crisps and chaos.

But not this year. This year, I decided to just shut up and be thankful for all the nice things in my life. I don’t know about everyone else, but I increasingly feel like the world (and social media) is becoming a pretty dark place. We need all our flawed humanity now more than ever. 

And with that slightly different perspective I launched myself into a really busy and exciting first month of 2025. Funnily enough, that theme of being human seems to keep cropping up in every aspect of my work. Earlier this month, I interviewed a finance executive for a global energy company, asking him to share the biggest lessons of his career. This guy has a stellar CV and is rising steadily through the ranks, so I asked him what his next goal is. His answer surprised me in the best possible way. He replied, “To keep on learning.”

Earlier that same day, I had met a bunch of really talented writers and business leaders, with whom I will be doing some work in the near future. I must admit I had felt an unsettling pang of Imposter Syndrome. On the way home, I thought about that feeling and it occurred to me that in a weird way it comes from a place of arrogance. It’s a scary realisation that you don’t have all the answers and a fear that perhaps you should. But why? There’s a famous saying: “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” Instead of feeling threatened by talented people, see it as an opportunity to learn something.

I think the old approach to business was that Don Draper-style corporate arrogance, and thankfully the world has moved on. Now, we tend to talk more openly on platforms like this, to focus on collaboration and relationships, and to prioritise our wellbeing wherever we can. In that spirit I’m always truthful about my skills and experience, celebrating what I do well and working on the areas where I need to improve.

A thousand lives

One of the ways I’m doing that in 2025 is through creative partnerships, and it’s something I think has immense value. I have teamed up with a PR firm to pool our expertise in communications and political/stakeholder engagement, and with a business consultancy to offer a wider range of development and strategy services. This enhances my experience in PR and financial modelling respectively, while I can bring my copywriting skills to the table. Win-win.

In fact, learning is the absolute best thing about my job. As a writer I get to live a thousand lives, even if only for a few moments. In January alone I have interviewed a spinal surgeon for a blog about treatment options for congenital scoliosis; a chemist about how molecules first stabilised to form life on earth; a data scientist exploring whether the world is getting better; a young entrepreneur discovering restoration techniques on the UK’s newest World Heritage Site – and many, many more.

I have loved writing since I was five years old and still pinch myself that I get to tell all these stories every day.

Another recent interview that resonated with me was with an artist and actress-turned-business-coach. She was quirky, fun, brimming with energy – and a fierce advocate for finding the human in the corporate. I think we’re also searching for the humanity in social media. So many platforms feel like they’ve been weaponised, their spaces invaded by faceless AI bots or keyboard warriors with an axe to grind. Which is ironic, since it’s a desire for human connection that took us there to begin with.

So, in 2025 I’m going to try to make time to write more, listen more, and learn more.

Damn, that does sound like resolutions doesn’t it? It’s okay… I’m keeping the crisps.

What do you have up your sleeve this year?