I have been choosing a word of the year since 2019, and I’m not planning to stop. Today I want to encourage you to pick yours. 

The Word of the Year is an exercise where you choose a theme or a priority for you in the new year. It could focus on your inner world, like a feeling you want to experience, or your outer world, like your behavior and choices, or it could be a quality you want to cultivate in yourself. 

This word would help you filter the decisions you make. It would encourage you if/when feel down and remind you of what’s important. It should make you feel alive and inspired. This word should represent an evolution for you. It declares what you want more of in your life. It’s important to remember to choose your word out of self-love, not due to the shame of your past mistakes. 

If you feel inclined, you can pick a mantra instead of a word to guide you throughout the year, just like I did last year, or one main word and two supporting words. 

Ryan Holiday also encouraged us to choose one word of the year in his Daily Stoic Challenge earlier this January. He says:

“What is important is that the word is not chosen for you in retrospect, by the course of events, because you couldn’t decide. You can see what that looks like if you reflect on where we have found ourselves as a culture these last few years. A lot of us have been calling 2021 “abnormal.” 2020 was “unprecedented.” Search 2016 stories on Google and it isn’t long before you run into the phrase “worst year ever.” In this way, every year seems to end up with its own word. The idea … is we choose the word for the year, instead of letting the year choose the word for us after it’s all over.”

The word of the year is the most fun exercise I do every year during goal-setting and my friends agree, and shared this with me: 

My friend Dina said:

“I have been applying the word of the year method for 3 years in a row. I like It because it is pretty simple but also sophisticated at the same time. The word of the year sets a momentum and an intentional theme for my year to design my professional and personal objectives around it and keeps me focused.”

My friend Diana said:

“Because of you, I picked my word for the year, which was courage, and God oh God, how much that affected me this year, I feel like a different person, mature and confident, so much changed and so much improved. I thank you for that and for your impact on my growth journey.”

A quick guide to help you choose your word of the year:

1. Keep your ears and eyes open to words that catch your attention in songs, quotes, conversations, and books.
2. Keep collecting favorite words and checking them against your goals of the year.
3. Check #wordoftheyear hashtag or my latest post on Instagarm.
4. Your word of the year is not a quick exercise; give it a few days, use time to narrow your list of words to your favorites.
5. Your word of the year will speak to your heart and provoke powerful feelings in you.
6. Your word of the year could come to you while walking or driving or right after you wake up. It will find you.
7. I found out about One Word work by Jon Gordon recently, and it’s pretty interesting, check the resources here.  

When you finally choose your word of the year, share it with your friends! Keep it visible on your desk or on a whiteboard, on your phone, and even on your body as a piece of jewelry, if that’s your thing. 

To stay connected to it, incorporate your word of the year in your weekly/monthly/quarterly reviews using questions like: “How did I live my word —– last week?” 

So, have you picked your word yet?

It’s not too late. Start hunting.