What’s YOUR One Word for 2021

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)

I don’t do resolutions. They are messy and usually within weeks you have forgotten all about what you were planning to do anyway.


Or… is that just me?

In 2014 I heard about One Word. There used to be a cool page called One Little Word, that had a list of words but I see now it has been removed. You can also find books on this now, and here today I found this page called oneword365.com .


But honestly, you don’t need all the bells and whistles.

It wasn’t until 2016 that my word really took hold. 2015 was, well, some of you were there with me through all of that. I was at a point in my life where I didn’t want to go anywhere. I didn’t want to do anything and I sure as hell didn’t want to be anywhere people were – especially happy people. My word for 2016 was COURAGE and honestly it changed everything. I used my word when I didn’t think I could do something. When the word “No” was right there on the tip of my tongue and then my word would come to mind… and I would instead say, “I can do this.” COURAGE was the right word for me that year, a friend gave me a key that said COURAGE on it, I had it on a bracelet and I owned it.

In 2017 my word was SHINE. 2016 gave me what I needed to feel like I could breath again, and in 2017, I really did SHINE in so many ways. In 2018 I went with Experience. I wanted to experience new things and not waste the life I was given. In 2019, my word was Spark and in 2020 it was Define.

I chose Define because I wanted to define who I was. I wanted to be the person I was on the inside as well as on the outside. One of the great things about choosing a word is what I usually think it is going to mean for me…. it tales me in a whole new direction. (2015 was Emerge – the hardest of all my word posts to read -and there was a time when I hated it, before I began to understand that it would have a different meaning then I had anticipated).
Define for 2020. Well…. who wasn’t defined in 2020? 2020 brought out true colors in people like I don’t think we have ever experienced before. You had fear, hate, anger, defiance, ugliness, cruelty, as well as hope, kindness, love, teamwork, those who rose above the chaos and looked to where they could lend a hand. While Define was not at all what I thought I was going to do with it, I feel I lived it well.

So here we are at the crossroads to 2021. I am still undecided. Choosing my word is a big deal to me. I thought I had it, and now I am not so sure. When I have it, I will let you know.
Feel free to join in. It is most definitely a personal choice and what you feel you need for the upcoming year. It can be personal. You can share it here, you can also send me a private message if you wish to share it with someone. It is entirely up to you. It is after all your one word.

Here is another great list for words – really it can be anything.

(Oh also – don’t forget First Book! I am getting excited!)

~Sheila

22 thoughts on “What’s YOUR One Word for 2021”

  1. I am definitely eager for First Book…and I’m ready to go!

    As for One Word, I used the same word every year since 2018: Connect. But I might have to pick a new one, as I need something more to inspire me.

    Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

      1. My blog has several pictures of myself. Right now, I am rebloging books from my previous reviews. I read almost mysteries and I don’t have the ability to take pictures. I do know about Amazon pictures on Amazon. I am upset with them and won’t go on their site. It has been a year now and I may relax and go back to Goodreads. I did enjoy your blog.

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  3. I told you about a month back that my word foe 2021 is PERSISTENCE. Got myself a bracelet that says “nevertheless she persisted” and a “word cog” that says PERSISTENCE that I will slide on my Med ID necklace

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  5. I plan on doing First Book and choosing a word. I don’t know what it will be yet. Hope? Change? Refresh? I’m also still thinking about it.

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  6. Two years ago, I decided on a “life” word…Onward (I have it engraved on a bracelet). So, I didn’t pick a word for 2020. Maybe that was a good thing? lol I just may pick one this year, as a hope for a better 2021. I will think on it and decide. Thanks for the reminder. 🙂

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  7. I just looked at my First Book post for 2018 where I had included four resolutions, which, of course, I didn’t keep. I haven’t ever joined in on the One Word, because I’m just not that organized, but I love reading others’ posts about the words they choose and the reasons — especially yours. Always so meaningful and well thought out!

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  8. I wear a watch that reminds me several times a day to Breathe – I always feel better after going through the short breathing exercise so that’s my word for 2021: Breathe

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  10. great post but i don’t need a list. my one word was given to me a long time ago when in Japan I was helping one of the local ladies with her spoken English. she gave me a framed Kanji word she’d chosen for me. i can remember how to say it, but don’t know how to write it–Hope. Kibō

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  12. So many great words. I love the thought everyone is putting into their word choices. I am picking my one word for the first time and have decided on the word: mindful. There are a lot of changes coming up for me in 2021, retirement, relocating and who knows what else. I want to be sure I’m mindful of all the choices that need to be made.

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