My 3 words for 2013

New Year’s resolutions have always seemed so fake to me. I am not sure that I know a single person who has set such a goal and stuck to it for the entire year. Life has a way of disrupting our schedules, injuries divert us from a workout program, and travel impedes our attempts to eat healthier. Pretty soon the resolution is out the window and it’s back to business as usual. To me, change has to be more organic in order to be lasting; because lets face it change is hard.

“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” Albert Einstein

Author/blogger Mitch Joel at “Six Pixels of Separation” turned me onto Chris Brogan’s practice of identifying “3 Words” for the year. These three words then serve as motivation and guidelines for all that you do during the year. Brogan, explains it like this, “In an effort to tell bigger stories, I've found that the concept of three words allows me to think in more dimensions about what I want to do with my life and it lets me apply lots of tangible goals instead of what most people do when they focus on just a finite task.”

Here goes nothing.

One of the dangers in posting goals like this online is that they are written down (pressure) and they are public (more pressure). Don’t get me wrong, not all pressure is bad, sometimes we do our very best work when being held accountable, but it’s pressure all the same. After two days of distilling a list, I am ready to unveil my list for this year.

My 3 words for 2013:

1.  Simplify. While serving in AmeriCorps*NCCC, I learned to live with less. For months at a time my teams traveled with little more that what could fit in a red fire pack. Both physical and mental clutter detracts from my ability to live the life I want. There is just too much stuff getting in the way: At work there are papers and memos that need to be dealt with and filed or tossed. At home boxes full of old college papers and unassembled models make our office less of a workspace and more of a warehouse. Internally, there’s a great deal of mental noise, which impedes a persons ability to concentrate, pray, and focus. By trying to simplify there is an opportunity to do fewer (quantity) things better (quality).


2.  Presence. When you get down to it, most of us are busy. So busy, in fact, that we often forget to enjoy life. I have been places and focused so much on taking pictures and journaling about the adventure that I nearly missed the experience. I live a few minutes drive from several family and friends, yet see them about as often as when I lived across the state. To be present, means to be mindful of where I am and what I am doing. To be present to those I am with, instead of thinking of all that “needs” to get done. To focus completely on the task at hand and resisting the urge to follow the squirrels of other ideas as they scamper across my train of thought.


3.  Guts. I love this word. It reminds me of the action heroes from the 80’s and 90’s. They had guts. The pushed the limits and lived with the consequences. At least that’s how I remember them. Almost everyone falls into a routine, which can lead to complacency. It’s important to continually push the limits. Having gust means: taking risks; writing with courage; saying and doing what needs to be said and done because it is right. It means committing to something and not be ashamed of what we’ve committed to. Having guts means putting ourselves out there with honesty, compassion and faith. Faith in ourselves and faith that those who love us love us.

Game on.

I mentioned this exercise to a friend this afternoon who reminded me that three words are great, but only if they inspire action. Actions give words power, just as words can inspire powerful action. Regardless of which came first the relationship between words and action is essential to progress. Now that the words have been chosen, it’s time to act.

What are your 3 words for 2013?

Here are Mitch Joel's 3 words for 2013

Here are Chris Borgan's 3 words for 2013