I treasure this hiatus between Christmas and New Year. No urgent client work to complete, no meetings, a precious bit of breathing space to reset, catch up, look forward.

By the end of the year my diary is battered and worn. The new one holds such promise and possibility! Clean, smooth and with clear edges.

Yes, I’m old school. I like a hard copy diary and I especially like ‘week to a page, with space for notes’. I pretty much always use pencil, because things change so fast.

Looking back through the old one is a walk through last year – the unmemorable as well as the obvious highlights. The projects which didn’t get off the ground, the small but delightful conversations which have got buried under noisier threads, the personal and the professional intermingled.

One of my secret pleasures is to meticulously transfer notes I’ve made about next year’s appointments into my new diary. This year, a diary was one of the gifts in my stocking, so I get to treat myself to this during this quiet time.

As I fill in the interviews, workshops, coaching sessions and planning meetings, I notice those which spark delight and those which make me groan inwardly. The weeks which feel too full already. The back-to-back trips which will make my husband roll his eyes.

The first week with no deadlines or meetings is in early March. I lightly mark the week ‘try to keep free’, in honour of my resolve to take time, practice spaciousness, and do what delights.

What is your diary trying to tell you?