I’ve chosen my 2018 word of the year.
I debated writing a whole post about my “word of the year” for 2018. Back in 2016, I did a whole series about my word of the year and how it applied to my goals (check out my Be Bold 2016 posts here). Doing that series (with a few other great bloggers, to boot) helped me hold myself accountable to my goals and keeping my word of “care” in mind as I worked toward them.
I didn’t have a specific word of the year for 2017, but I think 2018 calls for one. Choosing a word of the year is a great way to center your mind on your goals and set your focus on how to make them happen. And I’ve got a lot of goals for 2018.
For my 2018 word of the year, I have chosen: inspired.
In all of its forms, my 2018 word of the year has this at its base:
Inspire (verb): to influence, move or guide by divine or supernatural inspiration; to exert an animating, enlivening or exalting influence on; to spur on, to motivate. (source)
As a creative, I’m always looking for inspiration. I like to believe that inspiration is all around me: in food, people, places, books, music, events, moments, even in whatever I’m binge-watching on Netflix. Inspiration is what keeps me excited about my work. I’m happiest when my brain is spinning with ideas that I can’t wait to further explore. The times when I have felt the lowest and least proud and excited about my work were when I felt lacking in inspiration and motivation.
That’s not a fun feeling, y’all.
What's your word of the year for 2018? Click To TweetWith all that said, I know that it’s hard to stay inspired all the time, 24/7. There has to be some time to mentally rest and recharge. With everything I have in mind for this year, those times of rest and recharging will be just as important as the time spent working toward my goals. Exhausted work is uninspiring.
I have to let myself rest and recover so I can stay inspired and create big things. Rest is, after all, one of the most important aspects of the creative process.
So, how exactly do I plan to keep inspiration going this year? Some of it goes back to my 2018 goals:
- Read more
- Spend more time journaling
- Seek new friendships and relationships
- Explore new genres in books and movies
- Listen to more podcasts (since I’m launching one…)
- Stay up to date on emerging tech
Where are some of your favorite sources for inspiration?
Last year, my friend Caroline and I made vision boards to keep us centered on our goals for 2017. Confession: I never actually hung mine. It sat in the corner of my bedroom all year, covered up by other wall art I never hung. The other day I took it out, dusted it off and decided it needed an update.
And this time, I’ll actually hang it… along with a couple of my other posters, too, perhaps. I have plenty of wall space.
Choosing a word of the year helps you stay focused and centered on your goals. Click To TweetI want to be better about physically writing and tracking my goals this year. I’m no stranger to a good, old-fashioned, paper-and-pen checklist, but I want to share my goals, inspiration and progress with all of y’all, too. So in 2018, join me on Instagram in sharing this inspiration adventure: use #inspiredin2018 in your posts on Instagram and let’s learn from one another and keep the inspiration alive.
How are you staying inspired in 2018? What’s your word of the year?