At the beginning of the year I announced that I had declared “my word for 2022”. Many times I have seen others pick a word of the year. Many times I have been asked if I had a word of the year. Just like when someone asks you if you have any New Year’s Day resolutions, but I never was into picking a word because I just didn’t get the concept.
Now I do.
This year I was asked to declare a word of the year for a blog I was going to write. A word immediately popped into my mind.
Unprecedented.
The word caught my attention after I heard Robert Hartwell the Founder of The Broadway Collective (among many many other things) talk about this word in a previous interview. The moment I heard him say the word “unprecedented” for some reason it grabbed my attention and stayed with me. Somewhere in the back of my mind that word was floating around, so when I was asked, “What is your word for 2022?” I picked the word unprecedented and something miraculous happened.
First, I went to the dictionary to look up specifically what this word means.
Never done or known before. That’s what it means.
Then the word started following me everywhere. I heard other people say it on TV and in the news. While I was washing the dishes or stopped at a light it would just float to the top of my mind. I decided to really hold on to this word- similar to how one might hold on to a mantra and it has proven powerful. The year is not even half way through and I am indeed experiencing unprecedented events in my life.
This is the benefit of choosing a word of the year- it has made me more intentional in my thoughts and in my planning. It’s not too late for you to claim yours.
What do you want to see happen before the end of 2022? Unprecedented has become my touchstone. Whenever I feel overwhelmed I am reminded that I am doing something unprecedented- it’s not supposed to be easy. Whenever I am feeling lost or pulled in other directions, I ask myself, is what you are being asked to do in line with your unprecedented journey? Whenever I need focus, direction, or motivation, I just repeat this word with my eyes closed. Unprecedented. Unprecedented. Unprecedented. And the next step becomes clear because I am guiding my steps with this word as my compass.
If it does not lend itself to my unprecedented journey I don’t have time for it. If it feels hard, well that’s because what you are doing is unprecedented. And the best of all has been the courage the word has given me. I have had to make some tough requests this year of people I have never met. When I have the phone in my hand and I hesitate, I think to myself- unprecedented- to be unprecedented you’ve got to be bold. I’ve made the calls and they have paid off.
Find your compass. Hold on to something that guides you. That moves you. That motivates you. Having trouble finding that focus? I can help you. Whatever it is that yo
u have been wanting to do in this life you should start right now. You don’t have to take big steps, but you do have to take the first step. If you want to make your dreams come true and do something that has “never been known” to you or maybe even to this world before, you are going to have to be bold. You are going to have to do something unprecedented. Write to me and tell me what your goals are. I believe in you.