Each year I choose a word or theme for the year. To learn more about the background of this annual exercise please click here.
Part of me wants to keep the same theme as last year – Notice and Create Joy (when(ever) possible)”. I truly want to find and appreciate more joy in my life and I don’t think I did a great job of focusing on JOY in 2022. I debated keeping the same theme but I have decided to try something new.
I am choosing my word for 2023 to be “Connect” or the year of connecting / connections. I want to make an effort to connect with my friends and family more often. I want to be present and connect with new people too. I also want to connect with myself, nature, and good ideas.
One of my key and memorable take-aways from 2022 was “Connection First” which was emphasized in Dr. Becky Kennedy’s parenting book, Good Inside. Hearing, learning, sharing and understanding don’t happen if connection is not established first. Connect with your child, spouse, friend, co-worker etc. before anything else. Connecting is the most important part and a foundation for more. Connecting also is what brings happiness and meaning to our lives.
I want those I love to feel connected to me. I want to feel connected to them. Part of connection is spending time together. I aim to make time to connect with others AND be fully present when I am with them. I want to reach out and talk to someone each week that I don’t usually talk to. It can be on the phone or in person. More than once per week is encouraged but I am setting a minimum goal for at least once a week in 2023. I am going to keep track! I am trying to figure out the best system to make sure this happens.
This theme is about focusing on and prioritizing LOVE. My love language is quality time. For me an expression of love is connecting with someone. I want to slow down and BE with people I care about. I am a driven person and all too often I focus on efficiency which means I am not present or prioritizing the people in my life. I am curious to see what will happen in my business and my life if I shift my focus to connecting instead of “doing” and accomplishing things.
I think part of my issue in the past is that I decide on my theme and then I forget about it. To keep my theme more of a focus, I am going to try to review my theme each month. I am going to keep track of who I connect to, and even journal about what comes of having this as a theme for me. I want to record the benefits, challenges and surprises of focusing on “connecting” on the first of every month this year.
I will share more about my theme and how it develops as the year progresses.
I would love to hear what YOUR theme or word is for 2023. If you have goals or habits that you are working on, please share them too.
Happy New Year! Hoping it is a great one for you.
P.S. My theme partly comes from something I do daily and wanted to share here.
Each morning when I meditate I ask to:
Be Open –
- Open my Mind
- Open my Heart
- Open my Soul.
- I visualize my thoughts, my heart, my energy and my spirit reaching out beyond my physical self, going out into the world.
Connect –
- Connect my Mind…to great, creative, innovative, and helpful ideas
- Connect my heart…to the people I love
- Connect my Soul…to God, the Universe, the unseen, the spirits and energy around me
Free –
- Free my Mind…of limiting beliefs and things that are holding me back
- Free my Heart…to love fully and courageously without fear of being hurt
- Free my Soul…to the otherworldly, to beyond myself
Connecting feels important to me right now. I am hopeful and excited to see what this theme brings for 2023.
P.P.S. My son showed me this and I think it demonstrates what I hope my year of connection can do. Skip to 5:15 in the video.
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