3 Words for the New Year
Happy New Year! We have said farewell to 2012 and begin anew today. It’s a brand new chapter in your life, just like a new chapter in a book. What will you write in your life story for 2013?
As ha been our tradition for a couple of years now, it’s time to think about the three words you will use for your year. For those who are new, I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. They often seem to set one up for failure. Instead, we pick three words that will guide us through the year. Last year’s words were education, focus, and write. I love how many of you chose three words for your year as well and shared them here, and hope you will do the same this year.
Selecting three words for the year isn’t as easy as it may sound. It means taking the time to think about where you want to be and what you want to accomplish. Just yesterday I was watching a television program that offered five tips for success when it comes to setting goals. It’s worth checking out as you plan for your year. So let’s get to those three words!
Opportunity
“The opportunity of a lifetime is to pick yourself. Quit waiting to get picked; quit waiting for someone to give you permission; quit waiting for someone to say you are officially qualified and pick yourself. It doesn’t mean you have to be an entrepreneur or a freelancer, but it does mean you stand up and say, ‘I have something to say. I know how to do something. I’m doing it. If you want me to do it with you, raise your hand.” – Seth Godin
This year I plan to focus on opportunities, both finding them and providing them. I believe there are so many things we can do with our skills and that opportunities do exist if we seek them out. For me, it starts with looking for new opportunities to use my skills in a different job situation. It means spending my time with things that I really enjoy and can thrive while doing. It also includes finishing that book that got put on hold in 2012 because I just couldn’t focus on it to get it done. It means continuing to create opportunities for others in education so that we can all find that sweet spot where we are truly prospering where we are.
Health
“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” – Author Unknown
We do a lot of talking about health, and yet somehow it seems to be one of the hardest things to really take action on in our lives. In the past year, I’ve lost people in my life, and I’ve watched others suffer with illness. This year it’s time for me to make a real plan to focus on health. I love the above quote because health really is about more than just physical things. It’s not just about the absence of disease or illness. It’s about the total picture, mind, body, and spirit if you will. For most of my life, I’ve considered something like weight loss a “diet” and this year that is going to change. It’s about being healthy. In that same light, doing things that I really enjoy bring sound mental health. Taking time to actually do social things now and then is important to our lives as well. Like many in our profession, I tend to spend way too much time sitting at a computer. In this last year, I haven’t read like I wanted, I haven’t done much to accomplish the health goals I had for last year, and so I’m choosing health as one of my words for 2013.
Create
You are capable of making a difference, of being bold, and of changing more than you are willing to admit. You are capable of making art. – Seth Godin, The Icarus Deception
It’s no secret that I am a huge Seth Godin fan. Some of his books have indeed changed my life and my thinking. In his latest book, The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly?, he challenges readers to create their art. Art, as defined by Godin, isn’t just about paintings; in his book Linchpin, he says, “Your art is what you do when no one can tell you exactly how to do it. Your art is the act of taking personal responsibility, challenging the status quo, and changing people.”
And so in 2013, I will focus on creating art. Whether through writing, speaking, the things I participate in, they will focus on creating art. In my life, a big part of my “art” is my writing. It’s why I need to finish that book, it’s why I write on the sites I operate. I haven’t done nearly enough of that in the last few months. So it’s time for a change!
Over To You!
And now it’s your turn! What will your three words be for 2013?
Tagged with: Goals • setting goals for the new year • three words
Filed under: Goals • Holidays • Simply Life
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Release: I need to release anger and resentment. I read a great responses by Deepak Chopra today. He was asked about anger towards someone who had done something very wrong or unfair and he responded that letting go of the anger will help you and likewise holding on to it is not in any way punishing the other person.
Energy: My focus on my health lately has been to increase energy. I know what does it for me but when life gets horribly hectic I stop doing this things. That is ironic because those are the times I need the energy the most. I start eating a lot of simple carbohydrates during busy times and that makes me feel weighted down (in more ways than one) and lethargic. Exercise focused on mind-body awareness such as yoga makes me feel very energetic. I am on my own right now more than I ever have been and feel like I have no one to turn to for help with simple things like picking a sick child up from school. It is frustrating and horribly stressful. I need to turn more to the things that give me energy and make me feel positive and not to the things that just weigh me down mentally and physically.
Fun: I will have more fun this year. I spent the latter part of 2012 focused a lot less on work and ambition. The key is to keep a focus on those things but not at the cost of having fun too. Last summer was miserable for my children because I was in school with a heavy load and had to spend every weekend doing school work. We did almost nothing together other than evening walks at the track. If I went summer semester I would have RHIT by August but it would be at the cost of another summer like that. I am going to get tempted to enroll in summer semester. I’m already mentally weighing the benefits of just getting it done. I have to remember not to do this though and remember that the kids are young once and I will never get this time back with them. I’ll take summer off from school and we’ll do some fun things when I’m not at work. I want to take them river rafting this year and fit in a few camping trips. I also would like to take some time to have fun on my own if possible.
That sounds like a good plan and 3 great words for the new year to me.
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Kathy Reply:
January 1st, 2013 at 2:28 pm
Sarah, great words for this year. That release part is actually very true. It only hurts us, not the other person. I’m trusting that my focus on my three words will also include more energy and more pleasure in life. You are wise to remember that those children grow up way too fast.
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Laugh: I took myself to seriously last year, forgot how to laugh.
Sing: I will sing more of my success and my plans for success in 2013 instead of what I mess up on.
Focus: I will focus on rediscovering the passion for my profession that I have lost.
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Kathy Reply:
January 1st, 2013 at 2:29 pm
Tammy, these are such great choices. Sometimes I have to stop and think when the last time was that I really laughed about something. My dog makes me chuckle every day and we all need more laughter in our life!
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Fortitude – health – ambition
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