02 JAN 2019: “We’ll start at the front, and go around the room”. My heart rate quickens as I realize I am the keener at the front of the room, and therefore the one on the hook to start the exercise. I had no idea where to begin.

I’ll never forget my holistic nutrition program for many reasons, but this instance is one I will always remember, especially around this time of the year. We were back in class after the winter break, with the fresh start of the new year. The instructor had proposed we each pick a word – one word only – to represent what we wanted out of the new year ahead.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but what is one word worth?

Brevity is not my strong suit, and if I’m being honest, neither is decisiveness, so you can imagine my stress. In hopes of avoiding the awkward crickets of silence and mounting pressure, I blurted out the first word that came to my mind. “Happy!”

My classmates followed with profound contributions like ‘discipline’ ‘patience’ or ‘understanding’. And as we continued around the room I began to feel a certain self-consciousness because, let’s be honest, ‘happy’ sounds pretty corny. After a bit more thought, I figured a little happiness never hurt anyone so I decided to stick with it. To my surprise, and without any real conscious effort, I found this word to surface time and time again in various situations, and I found myself asking ‘how can I choose happiness?’.

It may sound trivial or even obvious, but this word became an interesting benchmark that guided my actions to achieve happiness. This one word was far more effective than any other well intentioned resolution I had set in the past. These resolutions don’t work because they are focussed on the version of ourselves that we are not happy with, versus the potential of who we could become. Sometimes the resolutions “from now on I will only eat vegetables, I will exercise five times per week, I’ll wear nicer clothes and socks that actually match, and I will lose 47.5lbs” don’t cut it. They are too specific, or too wordy that you often forget what it was you wanted to accomplish in the first place.

One word is clean and simple.

It’s general enough to be applicable in a variety of situations, but if selected thoughtfully still applicable in a way that is relevant to you. This one word inspires you to live more intentionally and empowers you to shape the life you want for the year ahead. You may agree that happiness is about as lame as they come so here are some of my other favourites that may also resonate with you:

*Adventure   *Release   *No   *Balance   *New   *Persistence   *Listen   *Truth   *Simplify   *Integrity

The list goes on and on, and the best part is that there is no wrong answer. The second best part is that with each year that passes you can integrate new skills and perspectives into your life.

Change is hard. If it weren’t, we would all be top-notch humans who never made mistakes and life would be perfect. Change is not simply a switch that we can flick come January 1st of a new year. It takes time, it takes intention, it takes a little patience, and it starts with a word.

What would you choose if you only had one word?