My Three Words for the Year
OK, I am a little slow. Couple that with being very disorganised, and you'll soon realise I can take a little while in getting around to things. No excuses offered, it is my own particular karma. And of course, I would love to be able to change it and become a whole different, super-organised and productive person. I'm just not there yet.
Fortunately my life's curcumstances mean that I get three New Years in which to begin my resolutions. So if I don't make January 1, I always have the Vietnamese Lunar New Year around February, and if I miss that deadline I have the Khmer New Year in April. After April I need to get serious.
I was inspired (as I often am) by Chris Brogan, who has a neat little idea to frame each year with three words. These words he uses as his lynchpin, the ideas on which he bases all his projects for the year.
If you are anything like me, certain words can become really significant over a period, can appear constantly and make you smile. These are the words I know I should be incorporating into my life's philosophy. They arise organically, and they never seem to leave you alone.
So, here are my Three Words for 2013:
Joy - This is a central focus in my life, and has been for many years. I think it is the quality I find most important, the thing I want most in my life. So this year I am elevating it to the #1 consideration. I want to be a joyful person, I want to spread joy, and I want to invite joy into my life.
Lovingkindness - I guess this word came into my life years ago through the work of Thich Nhat Hanh and Sharon Salzberg. Lovingkindness is a Buddhist quality and one of the Brahmaviharas - the abodes of the gods. When we dwell in lovingkindness we are already in heaven. So this year I need to remember to be kinder, more patient and more sympathetic. Is what I'm about to do loving and kind? If not, don't do it.
Consistent - It's exactly what I'm not, and the absence of consistence has had a real impact on my life. I need to work consistently, be consistent in my commitments, my moods and my actions. I guess I want to apply this one mostly to my work. I am kind of happy with a bit of inconsistency in other areas of my life, particularly my intellectual and spiritual beliefs, where I think consistency is often a sign of fear and can veer into inertia.
What are your three words for the year?
Comments
Organization
Acceptance