Can you actually summarize the year with one word? Not really, but you can have a theme for the year that’s one word. That’s what we’re talking about on today’s episode. How my 2019 One Word impacted my life in ways I never would have imagined. And how you can do it yourself.
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On This Episode
Rhythm of Life – Batch It
Random Riffs – Inside-the-Box Creativity
Feature Segment – My Annual Review in One Word
Today’s Quote
I do not have one theme for each season, I just try to make beautiful clothes all year round. – Oscar de la Renta
Rhythm of Life – Batch It
I had a ton of food in the fridge just waiting to be turned into something delicious. And, on Monday morning, I made 2 kinds of muffins, Irish stew, butternut squash soup, and chicken. Whew!
(c) Kathleen Thompson
What’s so great about making all this at once? It’s batching. It’s a great way to get more accomplished. Listen to the episode to hear the benefits and some tips on how to do it.
How might batching your work benefit you? Leave a comment.
Random Riffs – Inside-the-Box Creativity
So many people say, “Let’s think outside the box.” They think that’s where all the creative thinking lies – outside the box. But what if that isn’t actually true? In this segment I talk about a study that was done with children on a playground, and comments by a famous music producer, Bob Clearmountin. Here’s a link to his interview if you want to listen to the whole thing. The part I’m referring to is about halfway through.
Bob gives an example of a song that used the technique he described. Here’s the link to that song. .
Do you have any examples of your own inside-the-box creativity? If so, please share in the comments or on my Facebook page. I might even share them in an uoming episode.
Feature Segment: My Annual One Word Review
At the beginning of every year, I do the One Word exercise that comes from Jon Gordon’s book called “One Word That Will Change Your Life”.
That One Word is my theme for the year. Something I want to focus on. Embody.
For 2019, my word was SING. I talked about it in Episode 107.
I had no idea what would happen when I chose this word. That’s the beauty of One Word. It gives guidance and doesn’t try and control the results. Not only that, but it’s easy to remember.
So what happened in 2019?
- Through my experience at a singing workshop with my voice teacher, I ended up writing and recording songs with a co-writer. I’m on my way to completing an album.
- I started putting some Psalms to music so I could sing them at my own piano. Our church ended up doing a sermon series on Psalms, and I wrote 6 more that went with the day’s theme, and taught the congregation to sing them.
- My voice showed significant improvement
- I made decisions based on whether or not the choice made my heart sing.
There’s a lot more to the story, which I describe on the episode. And there’s still plenty of room for growth in every one of these areas. But it’s time to celebrate just how much my word SING changed my life.
Heard some of story in pieces throughout 2019. Pull together in one cohesive view of 2019 through the lens of SING.
In a sense, much of this was a complete surprise. I didn’t plan to write this many songs, or professionally record them. I was just writing to see if I could do it, and to worship. So what happened was a surprise.
At the same time, it wasn’t. Because I was prepared for something to happen. My mind and heart were open. Ready. Watching for opportunity. And taking action when it appeared. All because I had my word in my mind.
Imagine what this practice could do in your life! Something amazing, I’m sure. You might want to get the book and try it for yourself. I’ve been doing it since 2013. It’s so powerful, that I’ve already chosen my word for 2020:
Did you do One Word for 2019? If so, why not look back on the year and see what happened as a result of focusing on that theme? If didn’t do this, no worries. You can do it for 2020. .
Pick a word. Meditate on it. Watch what happens.
