Writing down what matters most - my ten year old manifesto

I didn’t know where I was going. 

Physically, I jumped on a cheap flight to Barcelona. But mentally, I went there with no particular agenda apart from to take a bit of a break. I’d been through a period of uncertainty and I needed a refresh. 

My luggage was light. I didn’t go with much in mind. All I knew I wanted was to get some inspiration, take some time out, wander unfamiliar streets in the sunshine and just see what happens.

I took this trip 10 years ago. 

I may not  have gone with anything particular purpose, but there must have been magic in the air. Because it turned out I got exactly what I needed. 

On the second day, October 3rd, I walked into the buzzing Café Cosmo on Carrer d'Enric Granados. I instantly felt at home there. As I sat with my espresso I got out my notepad and without thinking, started a list. I headed it ‘My Charter’ and there and then cranked out a list of twenty dos and don’ts.

I had created my manifesto. How I wanted things to be from now on.

The list came from nowhere. But deep down, I must have known what I needed. Deep down, I had a sense of  the rules I wanted to set myself for the years ahead. It was 10 years ago, and yet on that Monday morning in Spain I got the clarity and focus that has remained a guide to me a decade later.

I wrote down the things that mattered most in my working life.

A manifesto is a compass. It captures what you stand for; what makes you tick; what you will do and what you won’t. It stands there strong and immutable, a guide to remind you who you are. It points you in the right direction as you navigate your paths and choices in life.

My manifesto is useful to me today. 

On that day in Barcelona, I didn’t think I understood where I was going, but in reality, I knew all along.