My 2011 necklace from the lovely Lisa Leonard. Get one for yourself here.
My word for 2011 is light.
This year my word sure seemed to choose me.
Most years I start thinking about my word for the following year in November or December. I think about it in passing and start listening, looking, and being open to the possibilities of a new word.
This year the word light seemed to be trying to catch my attention.
I found it in books, in magazines, in music, in conversations and in quiet moments.
So I’m going with it. It’s already surprised, delighted, challenged and sparked some new things within me.
Some years I’ve had to look harder or listen longer or simply choose one that fit with what was on my mind and heart at that moment. There’s no right or wrong. The main thing to remember is that this is your word. It’s not for your child, parent, partner, spouse, sister, etc.
And what do you do with this one little word?
You live with it. You invite it into you life. You let it speak to you. You might even follow where it leads. There are so many possibilities.
I’d love to read what word you’ve chosen or are considering for 2011. In the comments feel free to simply leave your word as your comment or write a bit about why you are choosing this word.
In a couple of days I’ll post a compilation of the words as an inspirational reminder to us all.
If you’re new to the concept of One Little Word, you can read some of my previous posts here: 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010.
NEW FOR 2011 : ONE LITTLE WORD at BIG PICTURE CLASSES
I’m excited to be offering a brand new One Little Word online workshop through Big Picture Classes in 2011 as a way to connect with and honor our words throughout the year.
Each month you’ll receive a prompt with a simple creative project and a gentle reminder to check back in with your word. By the end of the year you’ll have compiled the contents of an 8.5×11 album that documents, defines, celebrates and generally makes your word more visible. Workshop materials include printable elements, full-color PDF handouts, and video presentations.
People have been asking me if you have to be a scrapbooker for this class. My answer is no. Even though we are making an album it’s really more of a journaling/record keeping/thinking/exploring project. I’m excited to see how people interpret the prompts and make them meaningful for their own lives.
This is not complicated and it’s not time-consuming. It’s simply a way we can come together to share our experience with our words throughout the course of the year.
The One Little Word classroom opens on January 1, 2011.
![Two Peas](http://www.avantlink.com/gbi/10513/24901/21775/26723/image.jpg"width="120"height="240"style="border:0px;"alt=)
This is my 4th year doing this challenge and each year my word has been easy to choose. Not so much this year. I’d been struggling with a few words and none of them seemed to be “it”. Finally my word has chosen me! For 2011 it is CULTIVATE. Then I saw this blog post: http://www.beckyhiggins.com/blog/2011/01/happy-new-year/2011-2/. The word just grabbed me and planted itself in my heart! It sums up my wishes for this year – cultivate my dreams, cultivate my relationships, cultivate the seed of who I want to become. I can’t wait to start putting this idea into practice.
I just love reading all the comments. I’ve known what I want my word to represent. I want it to help remind me to excerise and eat healthy, to keep up with my bookwork (we own our own business and I work from home), to stay on top of keeping the house organized and clean. Stop procrastinating and do things.
I thought of do, but that sounds bossy and negative as in “do this, do this, do that”. I saw the word become as in become the women, wife, mother I’m meant to be but that sounds quite big and daunting.
So I finally decided on ACCOMPLISH. I know that everday I by ‘do’ing small things I can ACCOMPLISH my goals and ‘become’ who I want to be.
Content
I think I’ll just leave it at that.
Last year I made a lot of progress with Release. This year my word is Explore. I’m going to explore new ways of cooking, getting out of debt, handling fear, trying new things.
Here it is the first day of 2011 and as of last night I still did not have my word. (I have had a word for the last 2 years). Alas on my run this AM (about 6:30 and the sky was just barely starting to turn pink) my word came to me – PERCEPTIVE. I have always struggled with a disposition that leans toward the negative side and I realize this has prohibited me from truely having joy in my life and being present to my husband and boys. I believe by changing my PERCEPTIVE on my life – I will gain contentment and joy.
My word for 2011 is Hope…hope for a year of good health for friends and family; hope for a year of fun and experiencing pure joy; hope for a year of learning and self-improvement; hope for a year where I can be more creative; hope for a year where the world moves more toward peace….my hopes are endless as I embark on this year. Hope.
Hope is a wonderful choice, and I really like your intentions behind it. Have an amazing, hope-filled year, Holly
My word for this year is “listen.” As I began to think about my word for this year, it just popped into my head! I pondered awhile and knew it was the right word. I am looking forward to all the places my word will bring me.
FAITHFUL
I think about it since many days now and my life right nonw drives me through it : new.
So NEW will be my word for 2011 …
and to go with it, there’s also ORGANISATION …
I am grateful for the upswing in our economy on 2010. Finally I feel as thought we can breath, like we are above water. We are definatly still having to work hard, as a matter of fact harder than ever. But my word – peace- has been a state of mind this past year. And I think it will continue to be my word. When you come to realize that there are so many things that just don’t matter, you come to – peace! Happy Nw Year.
Motivate is my word. I like the implications it holds for me as well as the potential. I also hope to inspire others to be motivated.
Got my word, I am ready! thank you so much for all of your inspiration!!
I struggled with my word this year. Each year I have known what I had to do… and I finally did it. Last year’s word was JUMP.
I’ve mulled around a few words; ONWARD, UPWARD, UP
But I think this year’s word is mountain. I need to conquer the mountain. I’ve been down, I’ve gone up. MOUNTAIN represents the ups and downs that inevitably follow all the change of 2011.
MOUNTAIN. It’s not a molehill.
It’s both good and bad. It evokes thoughts of uphill and downhill. Hiking. Mountain biking. Overcoming. Making. The trip I’ve always wanted. Struggle with accomplishment.
400 comments read and I’m not sure if I can keep going!
Anyway, my word was going to be RELAX but having read (400) posts, BALANCE is another word that sums up what I want to achieve in 2011. I originally choose RELAX because that’s what I want to do with my friends and family but also because I find little things that stress me out unneccesarily and therefore I need to not sweat the little stuff so much. Balance seems to sum that up nicely though. I think i might think about this a little more.
My word is CALM- I tend to let things, especially things I can’t change, bother and frustrate me. This year I am going to try to not let that happen. I want to realize that some things are just out of my hands and that I need to take a step back, calm down, and enjoy a life without freaking out.
Ali you are such an inspiration…I will be joining your class also. I have chosen the word STRENGTH…..for several reasons, one: building strength in a very weak back and leg from a previous hip replacement, two: building strength within my family, a blended family that needs strength to grow strong as one, three: building overall strength in my health, I am a breast cancer and melanoma survivor. I will looking for STRENGTH in this beautiful New Year!
I have two words that keep coming up. One is Revive. The other one is Believe. Still haven’t chosen one yet, they both fit!
As I read all of these posts, it struck me that what I should really espouse in my life is BALANCE. I tend to be all consuming in whatever it is I am doing, perhaps even a bit obsessive. It is time for me to BALANCE my life. That is the word I will carry with me this year.
truth- in everything. truth about my feelings, truth about my intentions, truth about my needs. floating that truth out to all that will nurture my truth.
I am so grateful to all the talented women, who through their blogs share their talent, inspiration and themselves with all of us.
Thank you,
Angel
I’m still working out my word, at the moment ‘nurture’ is really coming to the fore. Nurture my creativty, nurture my spirit, nurture my body, nurture my family. Although nourish is also on the list for conisderation.
This year I’ve chosen HEALTHY. I had mixed feelings about leaving my 2010 word PURGE, but then I realized that my emotional health was as important as my physical health, and that purging would continue this year as part of being healthy.
I primarily focused on the physical last year, but this year I’m looking inward also.
My one little word for 2011 is “heal”….. The word found me while I was listening to “My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison. 2010 was a hard year for me, both physically and emotionally. I want to work on healing and moving forward. I’m looking forward to this year long project!!
choice… we all get it… how we use it determines much about our happiness (and the happiness of the people around us)
My word is accept – like many others it found me. After being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer at 38, I thought my life was over, instead it has been the been the beginning of life – living with more purpose and meaning than I ever thought possible.
My one little word for 2011 is…. Authentic….. I want to be my true self this year, not what my mother or others want me to be, but who I truely am. I don’t want to care what others think.I want to rediscover all the little oddities that make me unique…
What great words everyone is coming up with, and the meaning behind each word is different for each individual. I am struggling to pick between partake, engage, and savor – all reaching towards the end of my racing through life, not really paying attention. Reading a book quickly just to finish it. Watching everything go on around me without getting involved. I am going to work on this in 2011
My word is FINISH. I want to focus on finishing what I’ve already started, and not taking on new things (online courses, big projects) that I don’t have time to finish.
My word for the year is ACT. Hopefully it will remind me to DO the things I want to ACCOMPLISH this year, and not just daydream about doing them
I finally picked a word
“possibilities”
I have a lot of changes career wise and I’m excited at the possibilities of the year… I think it’s a good word for all aspects of my life!
I picked nurture, but I waffled back and forth between several others. My boys are getting older (13 and 11) and need me less and less, I want to focus on nurturing a new relationship stage with them and helping them nurture themselves into kind young men. I want to nurture the relationship with my husband as we move to having a bit more freedom. I want to nurture my relationships with family and friends. Lastly, I want to nurture my professional life and make some choices there.
My word for this year is prepare, I feel as if I’m getting ready for something big this year and I need to be ready for it. For me prepare has so many meanings. I need to prepare for the future, prepare for my children’s future, prepare my house to be in order, prepare my self for what lies ahead.
My word for 2011 is PURPOSE and wasn’t even on my list of words I considered. I was fortunate enough to attend a taping of Oprah’s Australian show at the Oprah House and after the cameras finished rolling Oprah encouraged us all to live a life of purpose. Her words really spoke to me and as I searched for this years OLW PURPOSE kept creeping into my mind.
This is my first year doing this and I am so excited to see where the journey takes me. I am desperate to do your course, Ali, however my husband (or holder of the funds as I have decided to dub him) doesn’t understand the concept and what I could possibly get out of it and won’t agree to it.
I have just found out about the “one little word” challenge via a blog website. What a fantastic way to focus one’s energies and mind for the year whether it be for artistic purposes or for lifestyle choices.
I have noticed a couple of words popping up over the last couple of days (probably months really) that are my word for the year. Both words are essentially the same thing. However I have just go through an process of elimination with a number of other words to confirm that I was on the right track all the time! More about that in my blog…
So my word for 2011 is Faith. Faith or belief in myself and faith that I can achieve the goals that I have set for 2011; faith in God and the angels who can help guide me through the year ahead and beyond; faith in my family and loved ones; faith in mankind itself.
So thank you Ali for such a great inspiration.
All the best for 2011
Go.
Just go.
Go to the gym. Go to kettle bell class. Go with the dog anywhere. Go to the doctor…and don’t be afraid. Go and get stuff done. Go.
Last year my word was FOCUS and having just one word to look at and think about really helped me find clarity in my endeavors for all parts of my life. I had a little postit strip note that had an arrow printed on it plus the text ‘where I left off’ and into the arrow I wrote ‘focus’. I looked at it every day!
This year my word is going to be SMILE. Many things are going on in my life this year that could make me more serious and I want a reminder that life is better with a smile.
Thanks for introducing me to one little word. I enjoy your blog very much.
My word for this year is perseverance. It speaks to me in every aspect of my life currently. I am looking for to see where this word will take me in 2011.
My word will be BRAVE and it chose me as well.
Trust.
It has been popping up lately and really calmed at times when I’ve needed it.
This is my second year of one little word. This year I have chosen nourishment for my word. Using this one word I will tend to my body and soul’s health, inspiration for creativity, and the strengthening of relationships. Once again thank you for prompting me to focus on life.
SHINE.
Decided this works for me on a bunch of different levels.
-Flylady’s shiny sink-so clean, clutter-free, shiny house.
-Shiny happy people song–just be happy, and silly–good for me and my kids!
-Shiny soul–finding that spiritual side of me.
-Shiny body–being healthy and letting ‘ME’ shine!
This is my first year, loving it already!!
Jess
I often have trouble living in the moment. I am often focused on what I need to do next instead of being present to what I am doing now. At the same time I also struggle with being so focused on a task that I sometimes don’t even see someone I know when I am in the same isle at the grocery store. So my word for this year is AWARENESS. I want to be aware of what I am doing at any given moment. I want to be aware of what I am feeling and of who is around me and what they may be feeling – most especially my family.
My word this year is Home. As I read through the comments, I realize there is a lot of verbs. My word is not a verb, it’s a noun. A place. And although I plan on having a lot of verbs help me in my focus, my word means more than just a noun. The word chose me, and I plan on blogging my way through the year as I focus on this word, this place, this noun and what it means to me, and how I plan on acheiving the ideal of home.
intention
I have had the idea in my head, but couldn’t find the right word to represent it. And just today, on 1.1.11 it came to me. Intention: what one plans to do or achieve.
perfect.
I have dreamed, I believe in my dreams,
in myself,
but now i wish to live with intention. to take that next step.
thank you for this idea
Peace is my word.It has popped up several times here lately!!!
Peace is my word for the New Year.It has appeard several times here lately so that will be my word
My word is Balance….
Faith. I didn’t really have my heart set on this word, I was really trying hard to think of what I wanted for 2011 and nothing came to me. So I started picking words to see which might strike a chord and this was it. Not super attached at first but now I’m finding that the more I think on it, the more appropriate it is. I really want to bring my Faith to the forefront of my everyday life this year. I have so many projects in mind already!
Interesting – my word, too, seemed to choose me. And then as I read your following paragraphs, there it was again -
“You might even follow where it leads.”
My word for 2011 is FOLLOW.
Thank you for this challenge!
Express is my word. Express encompasses so many of my intentions for this year. Express – meaning to release what no longer serves me… Express – meaning to be clear, concise and exact in what I want, what I say and in my actions… Express as it pertains to the speed of manifesting my dreams… Express myself emotionally, creatively, instead of stifling myself… Express as in being definitive, decisive and direct… and to remember that I have an Express, or special, purpose for being here…