One Little Word® 2014
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Make your word visible: Order your own word from recycled matericals created by artist Colleen Attara here.
My One Little Word for 2014 is thrive.
This year, more than any other I can remember, I'm starting off the year with questions. What does it mean for me to thrive? What does it look like? What does it fee like? Are there areas in which I'm already thriving? What's realistic vs. visions of what I have in my head of what it means to thrive?
Open was an awesome word for me last year. It was a touchstone as I navigated my way through growing pains and man oh man did it work in a million different ways I could not have imagined when I started 2013. More often than not when faced with a decision, I chose to open more rather than closing off which was my number one intention last year. That said, I feel like I've been spinning in circles a lot this past year. I've been reacting vs. being proactive and have been dealing with a variety of issues related to stress and growth (totally all part of my own life journey).
To me thriving is optimal living. It's being present and awake and stepping up to be my best self physically, emotionally, spiritually, creatively and within my relationships.
It's not a quest for perfection. It's an opportunity to continue choosing to let go of things outside of my control and to figure out who that best-me-right-now really is.
It will be a whole new journey and I'm here to tell you I welcome it wholeheartedly.
Bring on 2014.
This year I invited my friend Elise Blaha Cripe to film a little video about her experience with One Little Word. One of the reasons I admire Elise is that she is awesome at follow-through and documentation. I've loved reading about her experience with her words over the last few years on her blog and she inspires me consistently with her projects and her real-life reflections.
Here's Elise in her own words:
Thank you Elise for sharing about your own journey here.
Are you considering selecting a word for yourself (or letting one find you)? There's no right or wrong. The main thing to remember is that this is your word. It's not for your child, parent, partner, spouse, sister, etc.
And what do you do with this one little word?
You live with it. You invite it into you life. You let it speak to you. You might even follow where it leads. There are so many possibilities.
SHARE YOUR WORD THE COMMENTS | I’d love to read what word you’ve chosen or are considering for 2014. In the comments feel free to simply leave your word as your comment or write a bit about why you are choosing this word. In a couple days I’ll combine all the words into a single post – super inspiring to see all the words in one place.
If you’re new to the concept of One Little Word, you can read some of my previous posts here: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013.
ONE LITTLE WORD® 2014 |To help keep your One Little Word® more visible throughout the year I offer a year-long workshop featuring one prompt per month. Read all the details and sign up here. Registration is $5 off until December 31.
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938 comments
After much thought over the past few weeks my word ended up finding me. For 2014 my word is Gentle. I've realized that I've been so hard on myself lately in ways that aren't serving me or those around me. Gentle, for me, is about being kinder to myself. Acting, and not reacting to the situations I'm placed in. Making a point to have softer edges.
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My OLW for 2014 is "Learn".
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Simplify....simplify body,simplify mind,simplify soul, simplify LIFE. This is my 40th year on Earth and I feel it is the best time to simplify all aspects to begin the next 40+ years~
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Choose..that's it! I signed up for the year long prompts because I have done OLW for the past four years, but haven't always stuck with it throughout the year. I have a new principal (boss) and new common core curriculum this year. Making the Choice, maybe that should be the word?, daily to choose what is best for me and not worry about external factors is how I see being happiest in 2014. Additionally, my 13 yo is at a point in his life where he needs to learn to make the right choices regarding school. We live in an area with seven high schools and each has different programs. So, helping to learn to make appropriate choices is going to be a focus for my parenting activity with my son.
Hmm...choice or choose?
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Choose was my word last year. I used choose instead of choice because choose is a verb. I seem to do better with words that remind me of concrete actions I can do.
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Renew-I'm always so intrigued when my word finds me. I look forward to where it will take me and how I will learn and grow from it. I've been choosing a word (and sometimes a second pops up half way through the year) for the last four years. Beginnings, grow (eucharisteo), strong, and this past year was agape (love) and awakening. My pastor has also been in the habit of choosing one word for the church. This past year he chose "awakening" and I was amazed at how those two words become so intertwined. This will be the first year I'll be taking the class--so excited--it's gonna be rad :)
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I have thought of joining this for two years and every time I have gone looking for words and then not gone through with it. The other day a word just came to me and I knew it was time for me to join in.... EMBRACE
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Mine is GROW for 2014. It came to me pretty quickly this Fall when I started thinking about what word I would choose, so I decided to just 'run' with it. I'm very excited about all the possibilities connected to my word.
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Trust… I thought I was really good at this until 3 years ago when I "broke" and I learnt that I wasn't very good at this at all eyes were opened wide and now I really want to learn about it… Thankyou to my friend Tania for sending me this link and thankyou to Ali for sharing so much...
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After more than 4 decades of searching for purpose and the meaning of life I believe I have found it. And it has given me such peace of mind as well an insatiable curiosity of the universe and science. I want to question everything. To be clear, the word I am celebrating in 2014 is CLARITY.
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BALANCE - between work & home, between family & me and so many other things I am sure to discover in the next 12 months.
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I was sifting through the comments here and thinking again about my word for next year, and FREE just popped into my head. It feels really good, so I think I'm going to go with it! This will be my my first time trying OLW and I'm really excited. Here's to a fantastically freeing 2014! =)
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Yay! Finally time to play in 2014. I trUSt that time will allow it all to happen. Double 'T', US, trust in HIM, last name ST...so many letters working to fit this word into my life.
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I've been mulling over a lot of words for my 2014 word (I have been doing OLW for the past 5 years) and wasn't quite sure, but as usual, a word found its way to me that feels just right . . .
*EMBRACE*
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Fierce
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My word for 2014 is LIGHT.
I have no doubt this will seep into every single corner of my life that I try to compartmentalize. Moving forward from a an especially stressful year, I realized now that I allowed myself to sort move into the darkness and just settle there...sober, quiet, serious, and let's not forget, anxious.
But God is good, and his light is steady and true. And here I am, seeking out light with him and who he made me to be, and now allowing my shoulders and my hands and my thoughts and that tight space between my eyebrows to simply relax into light...bask in it.
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For the past two years, my word has been "nourish", before that "patience". This year "emerge" gas choices see end me.
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My word is PATIENCE. I'm hoping this word will keep me focused when waiting for so many things this coming year. My newborn to sleep through the night, while disciplining my 3 year old, for my body to come back, for readership on my blog to increase and a host of other things. I'm looking forward to this adventure.
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Ali,
Love, love, love the concept of One Little Word.
For me, it has made such a difference in my approach to life and business and relationships this year, and to actually accomplishing what I set out to accomplish.
My word for 2013 is CREATE and boy did I do a lot of that!
My word for 2014 is FOCUS.
I have many opportunities and with mild ADD tendencies, I know that I have to stay focused on the goals and not let myself get easily distracted by others and/or by opportunities that are not in alignment with where I want to go and what I want to accomplish this year.
I am taking your class and I look forward to documenting how my new word affects my life.
See you soon!
Steph
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My word for 2014 is ORGANIZE. This focus makes the new year so much more exciting!
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I have picked organize as well, my first year! I just can't get it out of my head and it will be interesting to see where the word takes me throughout the year :)
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Calm.
I love that just the thought of the word, helps me to feel calm. Really looking forward to my first year of OLW.
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Me, too. When I looked at synonyms it really hit me, because it stands for so many things that I am looking to find in 2014: balance, patience, quiet, still, space, in order, breathe, cool, soothing, slow, tranquil, harmonious, relax, steady, easy, even, kind, light, enough. So after less, focus, simplify and choose CALM will be with me in 2014.
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