My Word of the Year
My word of the year is Simplify, and I recently blogged about it. Boy, this word has hit the ground running. At nearly every turn, I’m acting it out.
This includes cutting back on business interactions or processes that complicate where complexity is unnecessary, or trimming out personal (emotional and/or physical) clutter that jams up my day-to-day joy and peace.
Simplifying Business
This could be as ‘simple’ as a process that no longer serves my business, or my clients. Twenty-page worksheet no longer ‘serving’ my clients/me? Then, it’s time to slash the document to 10 pages!
Ninety-minute zoom interviews too lengthy, overdone and unnecessary? Well, that’s easy; just shorten those meetings to a more reasonable and effective 60 minutes!
Simplifying Personal
Personal process changes included chucking or donating an item of clothing each and every time I buy an item of clothing. I now only keep my favorite clothes – those that I’ll actually wear!
Staying on a consistent sleep schedule is revitalizing. While my husband and I have been doing that for several years now, I am determined to be even more vigilant about rest, exercise and healthy eating in order to liberate energy and simplify my day-to-day activities.
Clients, Colleagues, Friends, Family Share Their Word(s) of the Year
When I published the post introducing my 2025 Word of the Year, I requested others share theirs (whether 1 word or 3 words), and promised I would follow-up with a ‘shout out.’ So, here goes:
Tammy Shoup chose Dunamis – the Greek word for strength, power and ability, often tied to the supernatural work of God.
Tammy wrote, “This year, my focus is on disrupting with boldness and taking meaningful action that aligns with what truly matters.”
Julie Walraven chose Simplify Through Decluttering (I’m paraphrasing based on a comment she posted). In the wake of her husband, Bill’s passing, Julie (and her sons) began a proactive approach to clearing and donating many items in 2024 and hope to keep decluttering throughout 2025.
Nanette Foster chose Balance.
Nanette explained, “I have recognized my tendency toward all-or-nothing behavior; I chose ‘balance’ as a guiding principle to ensure sustainable, moderate habits that prevent burnout and create long-term consistency.”
Katherine (Kathy) DeBoer chose Embrace.
Katherine said, “I went back and forth on my word. At first, I was going to use, ‘delight.’ Delight in the goodness of the Lord. Then, ‘endure.’ Endure with a hopeful heart in the difficulties.
I chose ’embrace.’ I think that encompasses both. So, I’ll be enduring and delighting. 🙂
When One Word Won’t Do
Dawn Bugni selected Resilience (strength to blossom even in the face of adversity), added a bonus word Eluxoroma (devotion to positive spiritual growth in the midst of underlying chaos or darkness), and leaned into last year’s word, Grace (mercy, pardon, an act of kindness, courtesy, or clemency.)
Dawn wrote, “As I enter 2025, working to rebuild my life after the unexpected passing of my husband and best friend, Gary Merkle, in November 2024, little did I know how those three words would converge and carry me into 2025.
Grace to move forward with a forgiving heart after an unspeakable loss, resilience to find joy again and love life as we loved it together, and eluxoroma to remain grounded in my faith and know God knows what He’s doing, despite an ability to fully understand.”
Jay Johnson chose Endeavor to Persevere.
Jay wrote, “I adopted my 3-words / phrase back in 1976, amidst the turmoil of the racial riots and social unrest / the Vietnam War fall-out / the American hostages in Beriut…all while being an out-of-control Kid that lost his football scholarship for partying too much and not making it to class.
Then, the movie, The Outlaw Josey Wales was released featuring the Tsleil-Waututh Nation Chief Dan George who uttered that specific phrase while describing the injustices / hardships that he had experienced on the Trail of Tears.
It built a fire in my heart that if the Native Americans can overcome, so can I, and it motivated me to use the same spirit on the problems that I was experiencing in my own rudderless / uncertain future. So, I joined the U.S. Navy to garner some direction / purpose / meaning for my time on Earth and have carried that spirit with me since.
It has helped me to overcome many / many difficult times, to this day.”
Gary Fly selected Organize, Energize + Mobilize.
Gary said, “I have spent a great deal of time this past year in contemplation. As I have gotten a bit older, I have become consumed by the idea that I want to live a life centered on faith, family, service and joy. To that end, I have spent time praying, reflecting, reading, observing, and talking with friends, family and co-workers to better understand how/where I fit in the world.
My aim is to live my faith in a way that is aligned with God’s will, to be a better husband, father, brother, uncle (and friend), to be of service to my faith, to those I encounter and to my church, and to do it all with joy.
This process has led me to the realization that my talents/skills/abilities are that I have a gift to organize, energize and mobilize people/teams of people to work towards a common goal and, when I am doing this in service of something important, I feel that I am being of service with a joyful heart.
So, my words are energize, organize, mobilize, and I now use them to filter what I do, how I spend my time, and I use them in prayer to ask/discern what God is calling me to do.
CLICK HERE to read Gary’s FULL 3-Word Story, which was so powerful, I converted it into a standalone blog post.
ABOUT the AUTHOR: I am Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, Owner of CareerTrend.net, a Certified Executive Resume Master (CERM) and C-Suite Career Storyteller. I’ve written more than 2,000 C-Suite, Entrepreneur + Board Resumes, Bios and Web content strategies.
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