#OneWord #Content

So it has taken me 5 1/2 months to finally write my blog post of my #OneWord for 2017.  I wasn’t procrastinating, I just needed the inspiration and I finally read it this morning.  Dr. Randy Poe (@dr_poe), the Superintendent of our schools in Boone County, Kentucky posted an article on his Twitter account this morning Is Happiness a Choice? An Interview with Shawn Achor & Michelle Gielan  and inspired me to finally write my explanation of my one word for 2017.

Last summer I read Shawn’s (@shawnAchor) book Before Happiness.  Shawn wrote about what I had always believed in, that you are in control of your own happiness and it is based on the decisions which you make and the outlook which you choose to have, but at the same time, there is an outside force that guides you.  Coincidentally, right now, I am about done reading Shawn’s book Happiness Advantage.

So what is a #oneword?  A #oneword is almost like a New Year’s Resolution but it takes things a step further.  A person chooses their #oneword after reflecting upon what they would like to focus on in the coming year and are normally actions.  By picking one word, it really helps you to narrow your focus and block out distractions.  I see New Year’s Resolutions more like tasks that you check off on a list, where #oneword is more of an inner intentional change.

I first started picking #onewords back in 2015 when a group of people (educators, parents, family engagement coordinators) who I met through a global virtual (via @Voxer)  book study of Henderson and Mapp’s book Beyond the Bake Sale.  To this date, this PLN (Professional Learning Network) still collaborates and supports each other on Voxer throughout the year.

So why #content for 2017?  I found over the past few years I have been struggling to focus and always felt out of control.  When I started to use some of Shawn’ practices, I realized I had a lot of distractions and needed to alleviate them.  Most of you who know me, know I have been involved in a lot of organizations over the years and to be honest, at some points in time, my home and family sometimes were not a priority.  I knew that needed to change.  I needed to pick just one or two things that inspired my passions and focus on them and my family.  I needed to have that “centering” feeling.  That feeling you get, when you have balance.  When things are in place and you go to bed at night feeling like you accomplished something, did a good job for your clients and had time for your family.  The best days include lifting others up, encouraging them to keep going and telling them they “can do it” even though they are nervous.

I started removing the distractions before the end of 2016. I stepped down from some boards which I felt like was not contributing at my full potential.  I needed to give quality not quantity.  I also needed to remove stress of juggling all these requests and pressures of various organizations.  I learned to say that nasty two letter word “no”.  I am constantly approached to help someone or something, while I am honored, I can’t do it all.   I only have so much capacity outside of running my own business and I have to pick and choose very carefully what I expend that time on making sure there is plenty for my family.  My children are growing up fast and I want them to know that I am there for them.

The interesting part is that I quickly can feel when things are getting out of control.  I can sense that feeling of contentment and centering slipping away.  As soon as I do, I reflect upon what may be causing it and determine a course of action to get things back in line.  When I do not have contentment, my attitude and disposition changes and I do not like the way I feel.  So what does contentment feel like?  To me, it is that feeling of peacefulness I get when looking at the ocean, gazing at all the blue colors and hearing the waves upon the shore.  While I may not be able to be at the ocean all the time now, I can pretty closely recover that feeling of contentment when I remove unnecessary distractions and pressures from my life.

#OneWord #Content #Happiness #ptcamp