How to Simplify Your New Year’s Resolution: Choose a Single Word of the Year

As the year comes to a close, it’s that time again – time to make a New Year’s Resolution (or more like a big long list of resolutions).

I love making resolutions! For the most part, I’m a motivated, focused, organized person and love following an action plan and checking things off my list. But I’ll confess, it’s rare (if ever) that I make it to the other end of the year having accomplished all I aspired to do.

Why is it so difficult to stick with resolutions?

What happens to me usually begins with setting unrealistic expectations, followed by unexpected life events that impact my energy and priorities, ending with a feeling of stress and defeat over getting off track and having “failed” in my goals. Does this sound familiar?

If so, here’s a simple, less stressful way to approach making your New Year’s Resolution: 

Choose a single Word of the Year 

Instead of thinking of resolutions as a lengthy list of specific goals (which I still recommend creating), consider thinking about the overall theme you’d like to blanket your entire year. This theme can then be described by a single word – your Word of the Year.

This word will then be the motivation and inspiration to guide you through your goals all year long.

In no way did I think up this concept, but I’ve been practicing it for years. Some of my past words have been: Engage, Focus, Fearless and my favorite so far: Moxie!

I’ve experienced far less stress and the happiest sense of accomplishment when I’ve embraced my word and used its energy to guide me through the year.

As I’ve been working through selecting a word for this coming year, I got to thinking about how this practice could be applied to home. When I first meet with a client we spend time discussing their goals for their space and how they want to feel when coming home each day. We then keep this desired feeling in the front of our mind to guide us in the organizing process.

So, if one of your New Year’s Resolutions is to “get organized,” consider also selecting a word of the year specifically for your home to guide and inspire you along your organizing journey.

Here are some great Words of the Year specifically relating to home:

• Peaceful
• Nurturing
• Comforting
• Welcoming
• Healing
• Energetic
• Family
• Entertaining
• Safe Haven (ok, that’s 2)

Would you like to get organized this year using your own word of the year as inspiration? Check out my program, The DIY Approach, where I help you create a personalized 30-day action plan to get organized!