one little word™ 2021: FUN
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Since 2012 I've been choosing a single word to focus on over the course of the twelve month span from January through December in order to participate in what Ali Edwards calls One Little Word®. It's a personal growth project to help us live with intention, and man, do I love that!
My past words have included:
2012 - MOVEMENT // start + end reflection
2013 - MAKE // start + end of year w/ it
2014 - WORK // start + end reflection
2015 - PROOF // start + end reflection
2016 - BIG // start + end reflection
2017 - REFRESH // start, documentation, status update
2018 - LIMITLESS // blog post
2019 - FOUND // blog post
2020 - HOME // blog post
For 2021 I'm going to focus on the word FUN. Why FUN for the year 2021? Well, it has a nice ring to it. 2021: the year of FUN. I like when things rhyme, but of course, that’s not the only reason.
I was toying with the words ease and simplicity too, and the way I’ve been adding more ease & simplicity to my life lately is by asking “How can I make this more FUN?” about anything I’m doing or working on. It’s worked to reframe my approach and helped make anxiety-inducing tasks get done faster and with significantly less angst.
I want to have FUN with the activities I choose to take up my time, whether it’s paper crafting or planning or blogging or exercise or cooking or teaching, I want it to bring me genuine joy or I don’t want to waste my time with it.
Also, so many FUN plans were cancelled (like a million and one weddings) in 2020 that I’m almost daring 2021 to bring them to fruition with my word FUN. The audacity, right? Who do I think I am? I feel that a lot with my word - the audacity to declare “FUN!” when there’s so much loss and suffering to go around.
But I feel significance in that too: in exploring the antithesis of what FUN means and how I can declare “2021: the year of FUN” and still go through hard things that are NO FUN...yet, Amanda, still FUN for 2021?! Yes, FUN methinks. ‘Tis the word. Even still.
This is my 10th year choosing a word & it’s one without specific intentions attached, very unlike last year’s word HOME had. It’s a word I’m welcoming, a word that scares me a bit because of its audacity, but a word that definitely has me curious for what it will bring about. I suppose we shall see.
Oh, before you go, Kristin and I recorded our fourth one little word episode for the podcast and you can check it out and listen HERE.
Also, Tom chose a word for 2021 too: it’s HEALTH. What’s interesting is how I feel his word in connection with my word, like, if my housemate and partner’s word is health, it’s obviously going to effect me in my surroundings too. …and if HE’S focusing on health, then how can I help him with that while also having FUN with it for me? Hmmm…interesting… stay tuned! :)
