This year’s word was gentleness. I wanted to cultivate a gentleness toward others in 2016, a way of being and speaking that wasn’t pointed or aggressive but instead spoke and moved with softness. In the end, it was me who needed that word the most, who needed to be gentle with myself.
I’ve stepped way back in the past few weeks, slowed WAY down, and I find I need this. I need to wake with a day ahead that contains all kinds of good things but not a good thing for every minute. I’ve found that I need to be more gentle with my body, with my business, with the way I let my words rise up. Gentleness has settled into me.
For a while, I thought 2017’s word would be trust since just now we are trusting for a lot of things – a baby, the finances to pay for fertility treatments, a shift in how I do business, the growth of our farm – and trust will certainly be – as always – a major part of the next year.
But lately, I think my word needs to be listen. It seems a good next thing after gentleness and a good pair to the idea of trust.
Once many years ago, my dear friend Molly told me I was a great listener, and it felt like the most amazing compliment I could receive. I feel like I’ve lost that capacity in the intervening years, and I’m sad for that. I want to be a woman who is known to listen well.
I want to listen to people when they speak. I want to sit in small rooms and hear the voices in the songs I love. (Just now, I’m celebrating with Over the Rhine in their Christmas album Blood Oranges in the Snow). I want to listen to the books I read for clients. I want to listen for the stories that are tucked in the corners, the singing violins that soar above the melody put down by the piano.
So my word for 2017 is listen. I’ll let you know next December how I carry it with me and how it changes me.
What’s your word for 2017? I’d love to hear it in the comments.
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Tomorrow, registration for Michael Hyatt’s 5 Days to the Best Year Ever Course closes.
I hope you’ll consider signing up to get some help with your goal-setting for 2017. I’m excited by what the course offers, and even the webinar Michael led helped me to clarify both my personal and professional goals for next year.