Are you considering choosing a word of the year? If so, keep on reading as you’ll find out how to choose your very own word of the year.
WHAT IS A WORD OF THE YEAR?
A word of the year is pretty much self-explanatory.
You choose a word to live by for the year. It is a way of setting a theme or intention for the year.
WHY CHOOSE A WORD OF THE YEAR?
If you are new to the idea of a setting a word of the year you might think it is just an extra thing to do. Setting a word of the year is valuable for a number of reasons:
- It gives you a focus – A lot can happen in a year, but by having a word of the year you are able to make choices based on your word and ensure you stay focused.
- It’s easy to remember – I am a big fan of setting goals, but if you have multiple goals it can be hard to keep track of them. (If you struggle with remembering your goals check out How to keep your goals front of mind. By choosing just one word it will be easy for you to remember throughout the whole year.
DOES YOUR WORD OF THE YEAR REPLACE YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS OR ANNUAL GOALS?
Some people decide to set a word of the year instead of New Year’s Resolution or goals. I recommending setting a word of the year on top of your goals, but ultimately it is up to you.
HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR WORD OF THE YEAR?
Hopefully by now you are ready to choose your own word of the year. Follow these XX steps
- Think about where you would like to be in a year from now
Take some time to really think about how you would like to look one year from now. Then you need to think about what changes would need to happen over the next year.
- Look at your goals
Hopefully, you have some goals written down. If you haven’t written your goals down and you’d like to know how to get started with goal-setting read How To Set Goals For Beginners. Look through all of your goals and see if there is a theme or any similarities.
- Do a brain dump
Now that you have a clear picture of what you want to do over the next year it is time to write down all of the words that could possibly be your word of the year. At this point in time don’t censor yourself. None of these words are final. It is a chance for you to get all of your ideas out of your head and onto paper.
- Review and decide
Once you have finished your brain dump it is time to review the list. Cross of words that when reviewing again you don’t feel are quite right and highlight words that you feel drawn to. Hopefully one way or another you will get to a point where you find a word that feels right.
If you are stuck here are some possible words to get your imagination going.
- Adventure
- Aspire
- Calm
- Change
- Clarity
- Commitment
- Complete
- Consistency
- Courage
- Daring
- Delight
- Discover
- Empower
- Explore
- Focus
- Friendship
- Give
- Grace
- Gratitude
- Happiness
- Healing
- Home
- Honesty
- Hope
- Immerse
- Improve
- Inspire
- Integrity
- Invest
- Kindness
- Nourish
- Love
- Organise
- Play
- Power
- Rebuild
- Renewal
- Rest
- Simplify
- Strength
- Support
- Thrive
- Transformation
- Travel
- Truth
- Wellness
- Put your word somewhere visible
Once you have decided on your word you should put it somewhere visible. Put it on your fridge, the front page of your diary, on your vision board or as a screensaver. Remember the point of choosing a word of the year is for it to guide your year so you want to make sure you don’t forget it.
