One Word 365 calls us to choose one word to focus on for the year. This is really about streamlining for me, avoiding a list of things I have to do, achieve and be, and embracing a more fluid way of approaching things. It isn’t easy, it requires me to go easy on myself, to tear up my rules and regulations and to forget about the impossibly high standards I like to set for myself.
It’s less about holding myself accountable and more about releasing myself from self-constructed boundaries and hurdles.
This isn’t an added burden but a freedom. It’s a journey that doesn’t have a definitive destination and there’s something really exciting in that. So often we have an A to B or a series of steps and an expected result. What I love about living the One Word way is that it’s impossible to do that. There is no prescribed way to do this, no manual to follow. It doesn’t come with a checklist.
The word that we choose has a definition and meaning, but there are so many ways to explore it, address it, cultivate it and work with it.
Community is so important to me, the sense of not being alone, of doing this together, of being part of something bigger than myself. The opportunity to spur or be spurred on, to encourage and celebrate, to see the impact of a word in the lives of others. It allows for an openness, a sharing of self, a vulnerability if we choose it.
Living the One Word way, I gain not only a tribe for my chosen word but also a greater community of people sharing, exploring and conversing about it all.
For me, my word over arches my day. In some ways it sits above me, but not in an overbearing way. My day begins and ends with it — like bookends holding everything in between secure. It motivates me but is not a hard taskmaster.
It makes me purposeful — moments aren’t wasted but savoured instead. The little things matter.
What does living the One Word way look like for you?
Louise is a 30-something teacher, mother, wife and friend. Navigating this crazy life and learning to relax and enjoy the ride! Follow her on twitter and find her on her blog.