As I look around the blogosphere (isn’t that a trendy word?) this New Year,  I’ve noticed more and more posts, not on New Year’s Resolutions, but instead a different but similar idea: choosing a “Word of the Year.” The idea is to pick a word that will speak to what sort of year you’d like to have, or a goal you want to attain during the coming year.

I’ve never liked the idea of resolutions for the obvious reason, that they are too easily and quickly broken. Having a word of the year though is a softer substitute… if you pick “Strength” for example, it covers hardship to be strong through, people you can support by lending your own strength to, etc. It covers a multitude of “sins”: even if you mess up on week 3 of the new year (diet, friendship in disarray, a less-than-tidy living space or whatever one of those old resolutions might be!) With a resolution, you’d be done! Fini! So much for the rest of the year! But with a word, you can chalk it up to working toward Strength and keep on going. Nice concept.

But am I brave enough to pick a word and stick with it for a whole year? Not too sure about that either. I need to work on intentional living, not just floating through life taking things as they come. “Intentionality” seems like a mouthful though. “Peace” is a bit cliched, maybe… How about “Making an effort to step outside of the Introvert Bubble and make new friends.” Can that be summed up in one word?

I’ve read of one lady choosing “Rest” as her word of the year. I understand the concept she was going for; letting go of the busy-busy hecticness of life, cutting out activities and maybe focusing more on the family. But let’s be honest, if I chose something like “Rest” as my word of the year, I’d spend the year on the couch and not much else would get done. (laugh!)

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Maybe I should pick “Brave” but that one seems like it should be reserved for people facing huge challenges, like a cancer diagnosis or something. Perhaps “With” is a good one. Making sure that I’m actively “with” the kids when they ask me questions and need my attention instead of browsing on my phone or thinking about other things.  That’s a possibility, but not as pretty a word as the others. Does that matter? 😉

So while I muse on whether summing up a year’s goals into one word is a realistic goal for me, let me know your thoughts. Have you chosen a word for this year? Why or why not? Or if you did, what did you choose, and why did you choose it? What are your goals for this New Year? What do you hope to accomplish? I can’t wait to hear from you!