The Power of Belief: My Word for the Year

"To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe."?-?Anatole France

As we are now fully embedded in the new year, I have finally chosen my word of the year.

Years ago I read Jon Gordon’s book One Word. Ever since I’ve picked one word to that will help me focus throughout my year. Every January I do the exercise of sitting quietly and journaling. I consider my past, contemplate the future, and cogitate on what’s important to me right now.

And then I pick my word. The words are simple – the actions sometimes are hard. Each one has a particular explanation that is completely personal to me. I’ve picked words like create, be (as in “just be”), and complete (as in “I am”).

I’ve also done this exercise with individuals and organizations. One client still chooses a new word of the year every year to inspire their teams. Their very first One Word: Momentum.

After I pick my word I put it on a bracelet made by MyIntent?so I can be reminded of my word every time I look at my wrist.

This year I struggled to ?pick my word. I don’t know why but it took well into February as I considered many different words. I typically focus on words based on what I’m trying to accomplish and this year that includes a major milestone: finishing writing and handing in to my publisher the manuscript for my upcoming book, Play You: The Role of a Lifetime, How to Bridge the Believability Gap.

This year something happened, I eventually picked a word for the year, but for the first time, after some consideration, I changed it. As I was living with it, I realized I wasn’t ready for that word (maybe next year).

So I did the exercise again and came up with this year’s word: Believe. Why? It occurred to me that in order to finish my book about how to bridge the believability gap to grow your confidence and connections – I actually have to believe in myself and take stock in what I believe in to accomplish something that is really hard.

The idea for bridging the believability gap came from my background as both an actor and a lawyer. It’s inspired by two heroes of mine, first, the legendary acting teacher – Sanford Meisner, who said that “acting is the ability to live truthfully in given imaginary circumstances. ” I believe this is something we hope and expect from our leaders every day.

And a broadcasting hero, Edward R. Murrow, who said: “To be persuasive we must be believable; to be believable we must be credible; to be credible we must be truthful.”?

Believability is at the heart of leadership at any stage of your life and career. Most important, to be believable we need to believe in ourselves first. To do that we need to know what we believe in, what’s important to us, and what we want to focus on. Because what we focus on will help us to connect with all our audiences in order to achieve well, anything.

To live into my word for the year I want to share with you what I believe in and in no particular order.

• Choose and live by your core values (what is important to you) and you’ll grow your impact.
• Empathy, kindness, and generosity are the keys to human connection. (AKA it’s not about YOU).
• Preserve and protect your energy in order to unleash the energy of others.
• Be curious. (AKA, ask better questions).
• Stories from the past illuminate our path to the future (so share them).
• A dream is a story that hasn’t been written yet (so write it).
• Gratitude does not go without saying (AKA, say the THANK YOU).
• Lose the psychos - they do not serve you.
• We are what we pay attention to.
• ?Show up. You never know what you might learn or the difference you will make with your presence.

Of course there are so many other things I believe in, especially right now as we are deep into this very long winter, including, great soup recipes, cuddling with my warming blankets (AKA my dogs), and reading great fiction.?

I’d love to know what you believe in that is helping you grow yourself, your team, your community.

One person I know who is making a difference with what she believes in deeply is my friend Lindsay Scola who is a sleep and productivity expert borne of her own life experience. Lindsay is offering a science-backed workshop for teams entitled. The Power of Sleep: Unlocking Productivity and Well-Being,?to discover how prioritizing sleep can transform performance. Lindsay is on a mission to equip teams with the tools to harness sleep as the ultimate productivity booster—fostering better health, resilience, and creativity when it’s needed most.

I’ve been traveling all over the country the last few weeks helping teams and individuals grow their presence, communications, and connections. Through deep dive coaching and facilitated retreats I have had a great time helping participants play the role of a lifetime: themselves.

I look forward to the opportunity to work with you or your organization to grow your EDGE: Explore, Dream, Grow &?Excite?. Feel free to reach out any time.

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