You guys!! I’ve FINALLY chosen my word of the year for 2018.
But first, let’s backtrack a minute. For the past 9 years, I’ve been choosing a word that serves as a guidepost for what I want to manifest in the coming year. So far I’ve had: do, plan, build, inspire, finish, focus, ease, and most recently, adventure (which has been such a fitting word since we moved across the country this year!)
Every year, I try to find ways to incorporate my word into my everyday life. For 2012, when I chose build, I was in the process of leaving my corporate job and building my photography business. I was building a website, building clients, building skills and building my confidence to take a big leap. For 2014, with finish, I was finishing items on my long-term to-do list, finishing projects that I’d started and left behind, working on my finishing skills in Photoshop to make my artwork more polished and learning about printing as a finishing step in my photography work. Needless to say, having a word to focus on each year has helped me immensely.
This year, in preparation for choosing my word, I made this gigantic list of all the words that popped up in my head, but nothing seemed to fit. So, I opened up the trusty thesaurus and started finding the synonyms for the words I was writing down. After reading through so many entries, I still hadn’t chosen anything. I was beginning to feel disheartened. In the past, my words have come up for me so organically – I never really had to search. But this year, after all my forcing and willing the word to come up, a quiet voice in the back of my mind started to whisper. “You don’t have to try so hard,” it said. Over the next few moments it got louder and louder and then it hit me. My word for 2018 is Amplify. To me, this means that I need to stop trying to force everything and let the voice of my intuition be heard. I need to take my photography out of my comfort zone and let it be seen. I need to do more of what I love and stop holding back. I need to be my whole, complete and perfect self without feeling the need to tone it down.
I doodled my word into my new planner already and started working on some personal inquiry questions to help guide my year.
My generous and amazing friends at Meraki Printing gave me an extra planner to give as a gift to one of YOU lucky readers. To be entered into the giveaway you must leave a comment by December 23rd at midnight MST telling me your word of the year and how it will help guide you for 2018. (US residents only, please.) I’m so excited to read about what incredible things you’re up to in the New Year! I’ll choose a comment at random on December 24th and notify the winner to set up shipping.
One last housekeeping note – the Viewfinders will be taking a break for the holidays. Posts will resume on Tuesday, January 2nd. Until then, here’s hoping the remainder of your year is fabulous and that your 2018 rings in with a BANG!
Amping it up – Angie
UPDATE! Congrats to Suzanne! I will be in touch to get shipping details for your awesome planner. MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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Drum roll please, my word for 2018 is CONNECT.
It is just too easy to click “like” on social media, or just ignore posts. My goal is to reach and do more than just “like” but to also check in, ask questions, engage.
Same goes for everyday “real” life, I need to focus more on relationships.
Here’s to a great new year of connections!
Love it, Kate. And your reasoning. We could all stand to have a few more “real” connections!
Angie! This is such a great word and ide. letting that inner voice and knowing be heard is so very important. Happy holidazzle my friend! (And to all of you Viewfinders ✨❤️✨)
Happy Holidazzle to you too! XOXO
I love this word and it seems so perfect for where you are right now, Angie, after your huge year of change.
Quietly, quietly, I think my word is making itself known to me. I’m not certain yet, but if feels like Perspective might well be my companion for 2018.
I love the idea of Perspective. It serves us so well as photographers, and it’s exciting to think of how you will use it in everyday life too.
My word for 2018 is CREATE. My word for 2017 is Joy. At first I didn’t understand WHY I would choose Joy as my word. Mom passed in February and I was angry, sad, lost. As the sting of her death passed I started to understand…find the joy in life! I so appreciate that word, Joy. CREATE keeps coming to me for this next year. Create things, create the joy and happiness I need in my life. ❤️❤️❤️
What a perfect word for you. Isn’t it cool that we get to create the life we love through the way we choose to see the world? Also, I agree that joy was a good word to help you navigate through 2017. <3
Such a great word Angie! My would is curious. This will open up a whole lotta goodness for me I think. I don’t mean curious in its normal manner, but curious as to what might happen if I listen more closely to that voice inside my head, curious as to what might happen if I think of myself first at times, or say no. But also curious as to what happen if I step outside that comfortable box I am in and envision something different.
Curious is such a fun word! Saying no is just another way of saying yes to something else – so I love that you’re hoping to think about you first! If we make sure to care for ourselves, we end up being able to take of others better too!
I love the one little word inspiration – I’ve been doing mine for 7 years now, beginning in 2011 – appreciate, recharge, simplify, balance, opportunity, joy, and this year’s was focus – focus on cleaning out clutter, on financial stability, and on tweaking my teaching expertise. For 2018, I choose LOVE. I have been widowed since late 2011, and as I look back on my one little words, they really have been all about everything, and everyone, but myself: I have spent so much time being a Mom and a teacher, that I forgot about my own needs: it’s time to dust off the cobwebs and put myself out there. Wish me luck!
I’m so excited that you chose LOVE! Definitely a winner for you. XO
Oh myyy, I love your blogs!!! Yay so happy to discover you here, Angie!
My word , for the next whole year.. one word.. to ground into.. to express out from… this word simply emerged for me after reading your posts, like the quiet whisper voice you speak of, it surfaced like , “duh.” My word for 2018 is Center. Thank you for inspiring this in me. The word Center came to me and I experienced it resonating in my bones. Ringing in my Center! In closing 2017, I acknowledge great accomplishments and self-revealing adventures. What has been cultivated in me throughout these recent endeavores is the space I know to be my Center. My Center has been called forth and what that looks like is responding to gut intuition, spontaneous creativity, and the state of flow. By allowing myself to fully trust, connect and listen to my Center, a magical current of ease-filled harmonious living has filled my days. Amazing things are opening up for me! Living from my Center is an actual physical body sensation , like a pulse that moves my feet. I feel mentally freed up from “trying too hard”. I am smiling more 🙂 In my yoga teachings, I speak to this liberated place and I refer to it as “The Unshakeable Self”. I am super excited about my Center being the driving force in the new year ahead! I am grateful for your inspiration leading me to this clear vision. I mean, I have felt Center lead me strong lately and by putting vision and purpose to this tool, what I see ahead is that absolutely anything is possible for my life. Thank you! Xx -Amanda
Center is brilliant! I love that idea. Maybe it will manifest for me too as part of my word. Maybe I’ll be amplifying from my Center? XOXO
Much like you…this is the first year my word hasn’t just come to me. I’m still trying to figure it out. Although I’m trying to just let it come to me instead of forcing it. I’m sure something will come to me before the end of the year!
My word is WONDER. I’m it helps me find the magic in my ordinary days.
I’m going with Renaissance
As I reengage the arts in my life.
I’m stuck between content and opportunity. I want to focus on being content with what I have (not what I want), who I am, where I am. Being content will help open my eyes to all the blessings I have in my life (big and small). I like the word opportunity because it challenges me to see anything (good and bad) in a positive way and as a chance to grow and learn.
My word for 2018: WITH
I’m entering a new stage of life – bittersweet, but exciting. My last child graduates this year and leaves home this year. I’ve started reflecting, dreaming…really, I’ve felt like my slate is clean and the sky’s the limit. No more making choices for anyone but me.
Then I realized that everything that’s made me who I am is related to the people in my life, my community. My husband, my best friend, my co-adventurer. My friends, who have helped become, and like, the real me. My faith – a God WITH me. So, WITH. Because no decisions, no jobs, no adventures, will be as rich or lovely unless I make room in them for others.
Thanks for considering me. I loved hearing the process of how you chose your word.
“I need to do more of what I love and stop holding back. I need to be my whole, complete and perfect self without feeling the need to tone it down.”
So so good! I love that. I’ve never done anything so distilled as choosing a word for the year, but I’ll have to think about that now. I love the idea. Thanks for the inspiration, Angie.