The New Year is traditionally a time to make resolutions. I find it a good time to reflect on what is important as I move into the New Year. One way of doing this is to create your own personal manifesto. Why not create one together for your team - your leadership group, your department team etc.? It is a way of creating focus and unity around what you wish to achieve.

A personal manifesto is a declaration of your core values and beliefs, what you stand for. It functions both as a statement of principles and as a call to action. It can serve as:

• As a compass, pointing you toward what you’ve decided is your true north.
• A way of focusing your mind and reminding you of your priorities.
• As a source of motivation.
• As a mechanism to keep you striving to achieve high ideals.
• As a way to begin to bring a new life—or a new way of living—into existence.

Here is an example of a personal manifesto by Alison Yang, of KIS school, Bangkok, Thailand.