Choosing & Using A Word Of The Year To Reach Your Goals

Do you pick a word of the year?

I started this practice about 4 years ago and it has had a huge impact in how I set and achieve my goals throughout the year.

Here's where many people go WRONG when choosing a word ??

• Picking a word based on what someone else picked!This isn't going to help YOU in your goals for the year if that word isn't aligned for YOU and your goals.
• Picking a word at the start of the year, getting all excited, and then never thinking about it again until the end of the year...Many people do this with the best of intentions but then don't take the next step of figuring out HOW they are going to live into that word during the year.

Picking a word of the year can help you achieving your goals for the year.

When you pick a word for the year, it helps you:

• Take time to reflect on what you want to achieve this year and WHO you want to be in achieving that goal.
• It gives you direction and focus on what you want to work on during the year.
• When you feel like you are getting off-track with your goals, it can be that compass that helps you get back into alignment.
• It's setting the intention for what you want to bring into the year.

When I go through this process, I really reflect on what went well the past year, what I want to release from that year, what I want to bring into the new year, and how I want to show up in the New Year.

I really think about my goals for the year, and take the time to choose a word that is going to help me achieving those.

Last year my word was SIMPLIFY. I thought of this word each week and how I could simplify areas of my life.

• My home (we brought in a professional organizer to help us do just this and simplify, de-clutter, and organize our physical space!)
• My business (how we could streamline and simplify business processes)

I would actually ask myself:

"Is this helping me to Simplify?"

And that could be the filter that I made decisions through.

My word for 2024 is EMBODY.

For me this looks like embodying and showing up as the person I want to be NOW.

Not putting things off for later that I could get done now.

Thinking, acting, and showing up as the person I desire to be vs. feeling like I need to "wait" for something else.

Embodying the CEO I want to be.

Embodying the mom and wife I want to be.

Embodying the woman who is BOLD and confident and adventurous.

Here's What I Do Each Year when I pick a word to help me actually achieve my goals:

1. Write it down each day-->I actually write my word of the year on the top of my agenda/journaling each morning to remind me to demonstrate that word during the day.
2. Identify what it means for me-->A bunch of people could pick the same word, and what it means to them or what it looks like in action, could be totally different! Once you pick the word, be sure to get really clear on what that means to you and looks in in action!
3. Set goals with that intention in mind-->As you are setting the tangible goals you have for the year, think about if those are in alignment or out of alignment with your word. For example, if your word is PEACE, and then you set a bunch of goals that bring you a ton of STRESS...maybe you need to re-examine those goals.
4. Set Check-In's with yourself-->Every month, or every Quarter, revisit how you are doing at executing on that vision you set with that word and see where you might need to adjust course.

If you've never tried picking a word of the year, maybe this is the year to give it a try! If you have but haven't seen the benefit, try out those tips!

I have a whole podcast episode out diving further into this topic if you want to check it out!

Listen Here

Do you have a word for this year? Drop it in the comments, I love to see other people's words for the year!

-Julie Menden is an Executive & High Performance Coach, Speaking Mentor & Speaker who helps executives, teams, and business leaders reach their peak performance. She is a member of the Forbes Coaches Council, a contributing author in the book "Peak Performance: Mindset Tools For Leaders", and the host of the?"It Starts With You" Podcast".

#2024 #2024goals #goalsetting #leadership #personaldevelopment