Many people are back at work this week after taking a break. Others have worked themselves to a standstill and are looking forward to a break.

Whatever group you belong to, welcome to 2017. It is going to be just another year with the same old same old. Unless you do something to change things. We have a sign in our office that reads “If you change nothing, nothing will change”. This cannot be truer. The future is what you make it and it requires a conscious move from being a reactive person to a proactive person.

Reactive people wait to be told to do something before they start anything. They wait for the alarm clock to go off, then get out of bed, they wait for others to do things for them and wait to be told what to do.

Proactive people get up early because they want to. They seek out opportunities and explore them. They invent things to do discovering new ideas and different ways to do things. They engaged with people to initiate conversation and build networks.

May your year ahead, no matter what it may throw at you, be one of focus, enthusiasm and breaking ground for growth and expansion.