IT took leaving my long-term job in the media for me to realise how many things I’d neglected for way too long.

I thought of that story about time management, where the professor fills a jar with large stones and asks the students 'Is it full?' before adding smaller stones, sand and then water. The exercise illustrated priorities, and for a long time my big stones were work, and the smaller materials fitting in around them were family, friends and social life.

It had been years since I'd spent time learning about the things I personally found interesting and important, and in the past few years I’ve made sure to spend more time on that, and achieve a better work/life balance.

One of the things I’d always wanted to know more about was being more green. I recycled, I didn’t leave the tap running when I was brushing my teeth, etc but, unless I took the time to actually do a bit of research, I didn't know what else I could be doing.

I think it's the same for a lot of us – there are so many things in life keeping us busy that, unless something is an absolute priority, it gets pushed to the ‘first of never’ pile.

I recently heard of the Transition Movement, which makes being environmentally aware easy to understand and easy to put into action. The independent, non-political movement started in Totnes, and encourages cities to be more self-reliant, supporting local producers and building local businesses. Therefore, the initiative actually covers two areas – looking after the environment on a global scale, as well as looking after our local interests as well. A group of around 50 Salisbury people are already discussing what the next step could be for us, and there’s a meeting on September 25 at St Thomas's House, St Thomas's Square.

I would welcome learning more about making our homes and businesses more energy-efficient, and any other steps I could take to be less wasteful in my everyday life, and more useful in our community. See you there?