Looking back at the year just ended have you thought about the successes you have achieved and the failures encountered?

What have you gained from your successes and learned from the failures?

What events, ideas and experiences are inspiring you and motivating you for the year ahead?

The month of January is named after Janus, a god in Roman mythology with two heads, one looking back at the past and one looking forward to the future.

In the past year what emotions did you experience?

Elation with the successes and frustration and with the failures?

Is there more to be learned about yourself and your emotional intelligence from how you reacted to failure than with success?

It is human nature to feel disappointed when things don’t go as well as planned.

Studies have associated feelings of disappointment, hurt and regret with poor performance, not achieving anticipated results or receiving negative feedback.

On the contrary the “feel good” factor comes from anticipated or unexpected success, achieving or exceeding one’s goals.

When things don’t go to plan, beware of those negative thoughts, “Why me?”, “I am never wrong, always wronged!”

What feels good drives “me”, beware of creating unrealistic expectations, that when not achieved will lead to frustration and disappointment.

From a positive perspective, being aware of one’s capabilities and potential, setting realistic, achievable objectives and appreciating it is not always about “me” creates an environment where when things don’t go to plan, we have the confidence to see it is as a learning opportunity.

The start of a new year should not be a time to dwell on our failures. Rather, it is an opportunity to reinforce our belief in oneself, what we are striving to achieve, our personal values and our business values. Recognising the positive things and generating the energy that drives us.