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.


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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 thoughts

  1. Elena says…
    01/02/2014

    I suddenly ended in this blog and decided to join to the group today. Because I am decided to do what I want and show who I am. Time to be me.
    My word is fearless

    Reply 0 Replies
  2. amy says…
    01/02/2014

    my word for 2014 is CHOICES. for me it means being more proactive in my daily life. it means recognizing that my attitude + my choices = MY LIFE. as long as i have faith in GOD, i can choose to be happy. i can choose to be healthy. i can choose to make the best decisions for my family & myself without having to worry about what others will think. i choose to accept the consequences of my actions and use those consequences to learn, to grow, to be stronger, smarter, more confident, HAPPIER. it's all about CHOICES.

    Reply 0 Replies
  3. Julia says…
    01/02/2014

    My word is HOPE. For me it's the perfect one for 2014.

    Reply 0 Replies
  4. Verbena says…
    01/02/2014

    My word for this year is EVOLVE. The word came to me while sitting in a coffee shop in November. There was a display containing a variety of mugs and cups that were for sale. One cup had these words: "evolve and grow." A small boy went over to the cups and spelled out the word to his mother and asked her what it meant. She told him the word was "evolve" and that it means to change slowly in a good way. The boy said the word again and then went back to the table with his mother. A light bulb went off in my head. "Evolve" was to be my word for 2014. The mother's definition was so on target for me. I am retired, but I find that my life is changing constantly. The change is sometimes slow and almost imperceptible, but I want to embrace the change, nurture the good things that come my way, and cope effectively with the obstacles that may arise in the evolving life that I choose to lead.

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. Amber says…
    01/02/2014

    Create.
    It's time to create the life that I want and get a little creative in the process!

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. #OneLittleWord #OLW says…
    01/02/2014

    […] wasn’t going to pick a word for the new year, because nothing was really standing out to […]

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. Lee Ann says…
    01/02/2014

    Be...
    I"m going to BE myself... The real, imperfect, flawed, quirky, weird, beautiful, magical me...

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. Jessfo says…
    01/02/2014

    My OLW word for 2014 is AIM.

    You can read all about it here: http://www.lifeonleeavenue.com/blog/2014/01/one-little-word-2014-aim.html

    Reply 0 Replies
  9. tape says…
    01/02/2014

    TEE (Finnish for 'do', 'make', 'tea')

    Just do it. Also, keep calm and have a cuppa.

    Reply 0 Replies
  10. LisaAnn says…
    01/02/2014

    Pray

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. Sylvia says…
    01/02/2014

    My word is Flourish.
    (It's like a "fancy" vigorous growth... and that made me smile)

    I want my relationship with God to Flourish.
    I want my creativity to Flourish.
    I want positive thoughts and behaviors to Flourish in my life.
    I want my ideas and dreams to Flourish into actions.
    I want 2014 to be a year of Flourish!

    I'm signed up for the OLW class and super excited!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. Kyrstin says…
    01/02/2014

    My OLW is ENERGY. Partly because I feel like I lack it in everything i do.I want to be energized to do more and accomplish. To finish grad school, work more and work harder at my goals. I also want to lose weigh, so I need the energy to move more and lastly because I want to start feeling positive energy and stop sending out the negative.

    Reply 0 Replies
  13. Grace P says…
    01/02/2014

    I picked believe.. I had actually chose "grow" and then it hit me How can I grow if I do not believe in ME? I need to learn to believe I can do things and feel things and accept things andLife. Thank you to You Ali and Margie Romney Aslett for your inspiration. Good luck to you and your thriving journey! Grace

    Reply 0 Replies
  14. Julie says…
    01/02/2014

    Accept.

    Reply 0 Replies
  15. Angela says…
    01/02/2014

    My word this year is CREATE! This is my first time doing this and I am so excited!

    Reply 0 Replies
  16. kelly says…
    01/02/2014

    my word for the year is PARE. i like to think of it as if simplify and focus had a love child. :) thank you so much ali for always sharing yourself so freely. always such an inspiration. all the best for your 2014.

    Reply 0 Replies
  17. New Year, New Word | ordinarycreative says…
    01/02/2014

    […] I have talked about the power of one little word before (here and here).  The brilliant creator of the one little word project, Ali Edwards explains it best on her AE blog. […]

    Reply 0 Replies
  18. Rayann says…
    01/02/2014

    My word for 2014 is Define.

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Rayann says…
      01/03/2014

      As I was falling asleep last night I was thinking of my word, 'Define', and as I thought about it I felt that the better word to describe what I want to accomplish in 2014 is 'Commit'.

      I COMMIT to prepare a family budget
      I COMMIT to take better care of myself
      I COMMIT to get heatlhy
      I COMMIT to define my education path
      I COMMIT to being a present person

  19. Sarah says…
    01/02/2014

    Trust - the word kind of picked me so I'm going with it.

    Reply 0 Replies
  20. Diane says…
    01/02/2014

    Connect

    Reply 0 Replies
  21. Bobbi Jo says…
    01/02/2014

    My word is compassion. I've been fretting over the fact that I see less tolerance and compassion for others in everyday life, so I'm going to "be the change {I} wish to see in the world." Thanks, Ali!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  22. Sue says…
    01/02/2014

    I first joined you in 2009 and have done it each year since. Thanks for inspiring me. My word for 2014 is MEMORY.

    Reply 0 Replies
  23. katie scott says…
    01/02/2014

    Improvement

    Reply 0 Replies
  24. Debbie (from Sugar Land) says…
    01/02/2014

    This will be my 7th year for One Little Word. It has been such a wonderful influence on my life. My words have been ME, BALANCE, REDUCE, CREATE JOY, TIME, and BEGIN. This year is time for me to THRIVE, not just exist. I can't wait to see what my word brings me - but I know I have to concentrate on more than just living - I want to THRIVE this year!

    Reply 0 Replies
  25. Word of the year: 2014 – the day to follow your heart says…
    01/02/2014

    […] came across this idea of choosing a word for the year via Ali Edwards. This year, she has chosen thrive as her […]

    Reply 0 Replies

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