My word for 2015 – TRUST

January 6, 2015

When contemplating what word to choose for 2015 I thought back through my 2014 and asked myself some questions.

Where have the weak spots been during my year? In what areas have I struggled? In what area/s do I need more strength? Where are my bumps in the road or roadblocks? What could do with some improving?

I looked for the stand out area that came to mind and there was my cue for what my focus word for the year should be.

2014 was the first time I have chosen a word to carry with me as a guide through my year. I chose the word ‘Believe’. It was absolutely the right word for me during 2014 and I certainly did make a huge effort to believe in myself and to keep moving forward regardless of any self-doubts that would come my way (as can be seen in my 2014 wrap up).

When I scan back through 2014 though, I can see that the perfectionist side of me is still in control and causing me grief. I literally can make myself unwell due to my perfectionist traits. I even wrote a post explaining how here but in a nutshell, I set extremely high expectations on myself, can become obsessive to the point of neglecting other things (including myself) and can be very self-critical. The expectations I put on myself can be so overwhelming that I freeze and stop. It’s a form of self-sabotage.

So how do I manage this problem? How do I still set goals without letting my perfectionism take over? How do I still obtain the feeling of achievement and pride in my work without setting high expectations on myself to achieve them? How do I not get frustrated with myself when the clarity around how to achieve my goals is still not clear? How do I stop being frustrated with myself for not knowing exactly what my goals are yet?

By trusting that I am where I am meant to be when I am meant to be there and that I will know what I need to know when I need to know it. That’s how.

Therefore, my word for 2015 is:

Trust

I hope that by carrying the word ‘Trust’ with me as a guide through 2015, that it will encourage me to lay off myself, to stop setting such high expectations, to stop obsessing over getting things perfect to the neglect of everything else, and to just TRUST that I am where I am meant to be and that I know what I need to know at that moment in time. I think this will do wonders for my anxiety levels!

Thanks to this recent post by Debra Dane of Inner Compass Designs, I became aware of Susan Conway’s free eBook called “Unravelling” which is designed to help you plan for the new year. It really is worth checking out! In it Susan encourages you to pick a word for your year and to then choose four (4) words to support it and to help guide you through the year. These are the four words I have chosen to support my word of TRUST:

  1. Kindness – to myself. I would never be as hard on others as I am on myself.
  2. Breathe – I don’t have to achieve everything all at once. Take some time to breathe, life balance (remember!), not so goal focused 100% of the time.
  3. Accept – myself as I am.
  4. Confidence – continue to believe in myself.

Believe&4words2015

So bring on 2015 and cheers to always striving to be the best version of yourself possible.

Have you chosen a word for your 2015?  If you have I’d love to hear what your word is and why you chose it!  If you’ve written a blog post about it, leave the link in the comments and I’ll pop over for a read!

Ciao for now,

Min-Signature

p.s.  It’s quite ironic that my Mindful Monday post yesterday was on the ‘Attitude of Trust‘.  The timing was quite coincidental but certainly meant to be! See – I’m already TRUSTING that things are happening as they are meant to 😉

[This post is linked up with #IBOT over at Essentially Jess]

 

 

 

 

 

 

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28 Comments

  • Reply Maria @ Mummy Goes Mad January 6, 2015 at 7:01 am

    Great word! Love all the words you have chosen. I chose the motto/affirmation “Make it happen” 🙂

    • Reply Min January 6, 2015 at 5:03 pm

      Thanks Maria – all the best for “making it happen” in 2015! 🙂

  • Reply Kathy January 6, 2015 at 9:54 am

    I think trust moves you on nicely from last year’s word believe, Min. I’ve chosen breathe this year because I figure it affects everything – we can think of breathing as just being calming, meditating but we can also use it to motivate us to action, help take leaps of faith. I want to be conscious in my breathing regardless of the situation. X

    • Reply Min January 6, 2015 at 5:04 pm

      I love your word ‘breathe’ Kathy and your motivation behind it. As you would have read, it is one of my support words this year (a new concept I’m trying!). The word ‘Trust’ is perfect for me this year. 🙂 xo

  • Reply Malinda @mybrownpaperpackages January 6, 2015 at 1:09 pm

    What a great idea to have four supporting words, I will have to have a think on that and see what 4 words support my ‘enough’. I hope your 2015 is anxiety free and you trust in yourself.

    • Reply Min January 6, 2015 at 5:05 pm

      The four supporting words is a new concept to me but I quite liked the idea and thought I’d give it a go. I hope I have an anxiety free 2015 too *fingers crossed*! Love your word of ‘enough’ Malinda. Cheers to a fabulous 2015! 🙂

  • Reply EssentiallyJess January 6, 2015 at 2:19 pm

    Trust is a great word, and also a tricky concept. I have some perfectionistic tendencies, and it can be crippling. I hope you can move past those this year. Perfect is overrated. xxx

    • Reply Min January 6, 2015 at 5:07 pm

      I didn’t realize you had some perfectionistic tendencies Jess but yes you are so right – it can be crippling! I’m determined to move past all that this year and yes perfect is very much overrated! xo

  • Reply Tegan January 6, 2015 at 8:39 pm

    I could have written your parts about perfection, it’s so similar to how I feel. I often feel frozen because I can’t live up to the expectations I have for myself so I don’t even try. I started reading a book last year called The Happiness Trap and it really resonated with me. It was probably the first time in the almost 13 years I’ve been in therapy that something has just clicked for me. It talks a lot about acceptance, that we don’t have to like the things we are dealt, but that some things are out of our control. I wish you all of the best for 2015 and I look forward to hearing how your word turns out!

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 3:50 pm

      Thanks Tegan! Frozen is a good way to describe how I feel/get when I fear living up to my high expectations! I’ve heard of The Happiness Trap but haven’t read it – must look it up! x

  • Reply Maxabella January 7, 2015 at 6:25 am

    You have such great self-awareness, Min. I confess that sometimes I wish I had more of a perfectionist streak in me (i tend to be more of a “near enough is good enough” kind of person, which is fine until I’m disappointed in myself, which is often). I hope that with trust you achieve everything you set out to achieve this year.

    I quite like the ‘four supporting words’ concept, but to be honest, for me it just complicates the ‘one word’ point. One word, one thing to focus on to bring our dreams to life this year. That said, I will have to check out the ebook before I ho having opinions like that!! I haven’t come across Susan Conway before… x

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 3:56 pm

      It’s good to hear someone thinks I have great self-awareness Bron! I’ve been trying to be more self aware and present for the last 2+ years! 🙂 I wish I could be a bit more “near enough is good enough” rather than everything having to be perfect! I feel pretty confident that this year will see me progress well with letting go of my perfectionism a bit more. The word TRUST really feels good for me – particularly when I think of it terms of trusting that I am where I am meant to be at that time etc. I’m not sure about the ‘four supporting words’ yet. It was fun to think of 4 that would support my word of TRUST but I wonder if it might only complicate matters … or not. I guess time will tell! So glad to be aware now of your linky and will be looking out for it for next year! 🙂 x

  • Reply JodiGibson (@JFGibsonWriter) January 7, 2015 at 6:45 am

    I think Trust is a great word. We don’t trust our instincts enough do we? And being a recovering perfectionist I can very much relate. All the best for 2015.

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 3:57 pm

      Thanks Jodi! You’re right in saying that we don’t trust our instincts enough. Ahhhhh if you’re a recovering perfectionist than you know exactly where I am coming from. I’m really pleased with my choice of TRUST for this year. All the best to you also for 2015! x

  • Reply stephanie@stephsjoy January 7, 2015 at 7:30 am

    Trust is a great word to build on last year. There’s the element of self believe and confidence. To a great 2015 Min! x

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 3:58 pm

      I think it’s a great word too – a good fit for where I am at right now. Thanks Steph and I hope you have a great 2015 too! 🙂 x

  • Reply Nee Say January 7, 2015 at 10:00 am

    What an awesome word. I think my focus word should be “FOCUS”. Life threw so many distractions at me last year, I feel like I only half finished everything. So many things were hijacked by life’s little crises. Hope you have a wonderful year x

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 4:01 pm

      I hope you have a more focussed year this year Nee! Yes there are always life’s little crises that hijack our plans. I had plenty of those during 2014 too and I’m sure some will pop up during 2015 also. I will trust that I have the resilience and strength to navigate them. I hope you do too! 😉 x

  • Reply Zita January 7, 2015 at 1:35 pm

    What a great word and explanation Min, I love the idea of the support words as well! Here’s hoping you get the same amount of joy and guidance out of ‘trust’ that you did out of ‘believe’ last year!
    All the best

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 4:05 pm

      Thanks Zita – it’s a perfect word for me this year. It’s a first timing having the support words so I’ll see how it goes and decide whether I do that again next year. It was fun coming up with them so that is a good start! Wishing you a fabulous 2015! x

  • Reply Bec @ The Plumbette January 7, 2015 at 2:08 pm

    Well I believe in you Min and your abilities. I can always see your heart in you’re writing and I have no doubt that you will have a great 2015. Trust is a great word and one that I probably struggle to practice because I tend to rely on myself more than others. I will need to change that this year.

    • Reply Min January 7, 2015 at 4:09 pm

      Oh Bec – what a lovely thing to say. Thank you! I hope to trust in myself and my abilities a lot more this year and avoid overwhelming myself and freezing!! I hope 2015 is a fabulous one for you too. x

  • Reply Sonia Life Love Hiccups January 7, 2015 at 10:00 pm

    That is the perfect word for you Min. It seems we have more in common than just our friend anxiety. I too am a perfectionist .. I mean reformed perfectionist… *ahem* a work in progress 😉 xx

    • Reply Min January 8, 2015 at 10:10 am

      Peas in a pod we are Sonia! I think the two go hand in hand somehow! lol 😉 xo

  • Reply Chantel January 12, 2015 at 12:19 am

    My words for last year were ‘hope’ and ‘action’ and they served me very well. This year my word is Health and I am trying to focus on this in all aspects of life. I like your choice – strong word with many layers – happy 2015!

    Hello from #teamIBOT

    • Reply Min January 12, 2015 at 9:19 am

      All the very best for 2015 Chantel and I hope that the word ‘Health’ serves you as well as hope and action did last year! 🙂 x

  • Reply ann January 19, 2015 at 7:20 pm

    I love your word/words. Good luck with making it happen for you in your way.
    Aswell as my “just keep swimming”I am really adapting the kiss (keep it simple stupid) attitude this year!!

    • Reply Min January 20, 2015 at 8:59 am

      I love the KISS acronym. I need to take a bit of that (keep it simple stupid) on board myself this year! I tend to over complicate things with my perfectionist tendencies! Let’s see what 2015 brings! 😉 xo

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