Two jobs and a bar

It has been a hugely rewarding start to the year.

I am now two weeks into my new job at PwC and enjoying every minute. It is so invigorating and energising. It offers that brilliant combination of working with very smart, talented people, who recognise their best chance of success for their clients, their organisation and themselves is to work with their colleagues- supported by a set of corporate values and an environment which encourages this team working but also embraces diversity. So far so good and I've only got lost in our various offices once or twice (ok, maybe three or four times!) so far.

Alongside this new job, Mrs J and I are preparing to take on the greatest, hardest job in the world as we contemplate impending parenthood. We are thrilled, excited, scared and nervous but as ready as we will ever be. We just hope and pray that everything goes well over the next few weeks. We are also reflective about the awesome responsibility we will soon have and in awe of those who have gone before us.

I have spent a lot of time over the last few months thinking about everything our parents have done for us and everything we owe them. The two greatest gifts that we have been blessed with are the unending and unquestioning love of our parents and the unshakeable values and ethics they instilled in us. Some of these are rooted in the Catholic Church in which we were both raised- and for all it's failings we are still very grateful for that- but also in own family's values. Working hard, being honest but streetwise, treating people fairly, having confidence in yourself with a healthy amount of questioning of others, having an iron will to succeed but the humility to accept that things go wrong, and a love and belief in family. Not a bad gift to give your children and a legacy we plan to embrace and perpetuate.

If we do half the job with Junior Jones that our parents have done for us we will be doing very well. They have set a very high bar.