For the past few years, instead of writing a long list of goals or resolutions that may (or may not) be realistic to achieve, I have been choosing one word for the year. I forget where I first heard of this concept, but it really appealed to me since I can easily get overwhelmed and stressed out if my focus is pulled too many directions.

This was especially true my first one word year – 2014. My second baby was 4 months old and I was back to working from home full time. I was feeling a bit scattered, and was bound and determined not to get sucked back into the depression I experienced after having my daughter. My word for 2014 was “Community”. The nature of my work and personal life made it really easy to become isolated, so I made an effort to push myself out of my comfort zone to forge friendships with my neighbors and other women who could relate to what I was going through.

In 2015, while coming to terms with the fact that our family was complete and I would never be pregnant again (sniff), I decided that it was time to take some time to work on myself. What started out as trying to figure out my style quickly turned into a deep dive into my personality and what made me tick. I would call this the “Year of Claire”, but that seems a bit self-centered. Perhaps “Self-Discovery” is better?

Now it is 2016, and I finally feel like I almost have my feet back underneath me, but being a mom is tough. I’m tired. So, I have decided 2016 will be the “Year of Simple”. Simplicity can make some people envision scarcity and lack, but I love how Tsh of The Art of Simple explains it:

“Simplifying your life is meant to make things better, not worse. It’s about choices — about saying no to the things in your life that aren’t the best so that you are free and available to say yes to those things you truly want.”
― Tsh Oxenreider, Organized Simplicity: The Clutter-Free Approach to Intentional Living

That’s what it is for me this year – figuring out what is truly important and valuable to me and removing all obstacles that keep me from enjoying those things. Two months in, and I already love my word for the year. So far, I have simplified our personal finances and television programming and it has freed up more time for other things I love to do, like reading and writing.

What do you think of the one word concept? Do you have one word for 2016?

—

The post above may contain affiliate links.  More details here.