Teachers at the Jewish Community Center of Dallas with their One Words for 2018.
Dear Audrey,
I am the early childhood/camp director at the Jewish Community Center of Dallas (and parent of 4) and I really enjoy everything that you put out! We use a lot of the same strategies, philosophy, training and readings/books with our families here at the J. I wanted to send a quick note to share with you that I did your one word exercise with my early childhood faculty today at our in-service training and it went really well!
I first asked them to share their personal words and then I asked teaching partners to come up with a shared world that they wanted to bring into their classrooms in 2018. They loved the reflection time for them personally as well as for their classrooms. Their words are posted in their classrooms as reminders for those days when those intentions are not easy to remember! I have attached some pictures. Thanks again for the great idea and for all the incredible work and thinking that you do!
Tara Ohayon
Picking One Word for Your Year
Inspired by Tara’s email, today I’m sharing about a fabulous activity to do with your work team or your family: Picking One Word for the year!
I spend time selecting the word over the month of December.
Here are some tips for choosing a word from oneword365:
Focus on being rather than doing.
Different than resolutions, your one word isn’t a constant reminder of what you “should be doing”. Instead, it stands to inspire how you want to live. Think about who you want to be, and choose a word that will help you become that.
Be authentic.
Your word should reflect YOU, and no one else. It’s easy to listen to others’ words and then pick one that sounds good. But you want a word that’s uniquely yours… one that resonates with you on a deep level.
Don’t overthink it.
It’s not rocket science, and there’s no wrong answer. Don’t analyze it to death! It’s simply about identifying the word that keeps coming back to nag at your heart. Keep an open mind and heart, and pay attention to the word that you see, hear, and recognize the most in the coming days…
And the process I use includes these steps:
Step 1: Determine the kind of person you want to become.
Step 2: Identify the characteristics of that person.
Step 3: Pick a word.
Have you heard of the One Word concept? There are a few different websites devoted to One Word, including:
oneword365.com
getoneword.com
myoneword.org.
Search the hashtag #oneword on social media, and you’ll find thousands of posts with the words people have chosen as their one word for the year.
For the past several years, as a New Year’s Eve activity (one of my favorite year-end reflection activities), I ask everyone in my family (including my kids and my parents) to share their One Word for the coming year. The words everyone chooses provide guidance, inspiration, and direction for the year.
I remind everyone about a week before New Year’s to start thinking of their words. Around the dinner table on New Year’s Eve, we each share our One Word. We say the word, why we picked it, what it means to us, and how we plan to apply our word. I absolutely love hearing each family member’s thoughtful explanation of the word they picked.
The great thing about choosing One Word, instead of a long list of resolutions or goals, is that it can be easily remembered and referred back to throughout the year. You can post your one word as a reminder on your bathroom mirror, in your car, on your computer desktop, etc. It can serve as a reminder of your intention for the year.
According to Get One Word:
One Word creates clarity, power, passion and life-change. The simple power of One Word is that it impacts all six dimensions of your life – mental, physical, emotional, relational, spiritual, and financial. Simply put, One Word sticks. There is a word meant for you and when you find it, live it, and share it, your life will become more rewarding and exciting than ever.
Are you going to pick One Word for 2022? I’d LOVE to hear what your word is and why you picked it. Email me your word or comment here with your word. I’d also love to hear your stories if you, like Tara, do the One Word activity at work or with your family!
Resources/Related Posts
Presence: My One Word for 2020
