When is the new year?

Well, answering this is not as simple as that.

My friends in Ethiopia are currently preparing for the new year 2017, starting in three days. Yes, it's the year 2016 in Ethiopia.

For my friends in Europe and North America, the new year isn't until three months.

If you ask any of my friends in Iran, they'll tell you they are only five months into the new year. It will take another seven months before this year, 1403, comes to an end.

It's the year Juche 113 in North Korea's unique calendar system. And if we go by the official Nepali calendar, we are in the year 2081 and the new year won't start until after seven months.

It's better not to assume that we are using the same calendar system. It's better to ask and know what lenses each of us sees the world with.

You might as well remember this the next time you think about collaborating with others to get important things done.