​Life gives us new places to start. Each day is a new day. We celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other events like those because these are ways to remind us how far we have come and for those of us who believe in a greater being, they help us marvel at how great God is. It is therefore important that we take the new starts as a time to reflect and prepare for the journey ahead. What then should we do to make our new beginnings count? These are some ideas:

​1.     Be prepared: make sure that you close the previous phase of your life in the very best way possible. Success happens when preparedness meets opportunities.

​2.     Stop and take stock: The past does not determine your future but we can take learnings from our past positive and negative experiences.

​3.     Set Goals for next phase: going through life without goals is like driving without a destination. Make the goals challenging enough to make you better but not unrealistic as to completely discourage you.

​4.     Celebrate the small wins: Many times, we get so focused on the long-term goals that we forget that every small step towards your goal is a milestone.

​5.     Maintain relationships: You can only maintain few deep relationships but having these people is crucial in your life as well as for your success. Having people who you breathe life into and who breathe life into you cannot be emphasized enough.

​6.     Invest for the future: Wealth is not the ultimate goal but gives us the options we need to pursue a good life. Therefore, one should consistently look at their financial future and find out how to make it better.  

​ All in all, knowing when a phase has ended especially when it is not marked by any calendar day is important. For example, end of a relationship, closure of a business or change of jobs etc is key as it helps one start with the next steps.