Choosing Your New Year’s Word

“Tomorrow, is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.” ~Brad Paisley

I’m a big New Years person. The closing of a year, the reflection of where we’ve come, what we’ve accomplished, and the anticipation of what is to come. Looking back on our peaks and valleys, our struggles and our successes, and turning those into visions of something better. I love every bit of it.

I get it. We don’t really need a holiday to do those things. We could do all of that on a Wednesday morning all the same, but there is just something powerful about New Year’s Day. A true change.

So I read the other day that 25% of New Year’s Resolutions are ripped to shreds, cheated, totally kaput by the end of the week. END OF THE WEEK?! Not looking good for that ‘workout every day for the whole year,’ eh? So I got to thinking what I do with New Year’s and how I make it work for myself. How I take my excitement for the day and make it a real day of reflection and resolution for the new year.

Here’s my greatest tip for you to make it a little further than those 25%! 🙂

Choose Your Word.

I read a story about a mom who taught her family to choose one word every year as their “word.” One word that they want to live by. A powerful word that would embody what they wanted to get from the year ahead. One that would be their guiding word in all aspects of their lives. When times were hard, this word would help to guide them out of it. When times were thriving, this word would center them.

What an amazing take on a new year!

Scratch the resolutions and the goal-setting. Choose one word out of the millions out there…and live by it. Words have power and meaning. Choose a word that is powerful to you.

Since I’ve heard this, I’ve chosen a word for myself to stay with me all year long. For 2018, my word was ‘PRESENT.’ I wanted to be more present in all aspects of my life. Be present with my family and friends, be present with God, and be present with myself. It was powerful and truly stuck with me more than any resolution I ever had. One word dictated my year and it’s now so much more a part of me.

Fill in Your Formula.

There are so many obstacles that hold us back from having our WORD and our intentions guide us through our year. What are the issues that you forsee being an issue with your chosen word?

Does scrolling Instagram mindlessly affect time you could be spending PRESENT talking with your husband?

Does waking up right before your kids make you feel groggy and not ready to be PRESENT in the day?

Does taking on too many tasks make you feel like you’re not doing a great job at being PRESENT in any of them?

*Not like this list is my list of issues or anything* 🙂

Write out the obstacles that are going to make it difficult to follow your WORD. What are the issues you already see? Take time on this because these are the reasons right here that your WORD will lose its power as quickly as resolutions diminish. Grab a sheet of paper and get to work. Devote some time and energy to this part of the process.

Now that you have your list of obstacles you see yourself facing, lets use a formula to help keep yourself focused.

When I ____________, I will ____________ because I want/need ______________.

When I find myself in an Instagram hole, I will put on Screen Time limits because I want to be PRESENT with my husband instead of people I don’t know.

When I wake up late, I will ask my husband to watch the kids for 10 minutes because I need a shower to be the most awake and PRESENT with my kids all day today.

When I am asked to do more than I can handle at a time, I will be more vocal about needing help because I want to be PRESENT in the most important areas of my life.

Grab your scratch paper and start to jot out your WORD of 2019, along with obstacles and action plans to make this the most achievable year yet! Scratch the resolutions this year and have fun choosing your word of 2019!

Happy New Year’s everyone!!

“Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.” ~Carl Bard 

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