I can’t help it, it’s that time of year again. Time to think through what I accomplished, my downfalls, and what I hope to do even better next year. It’s not about criticizing what I didn’t do, but seeing what more I want from myself this year. It’s not about losing a certain amount of pounds, or reading a certain amount of books, although reading is always a good thing. It’s about an overall sense of achievement.

To summarize, I found my word for 2017.

BUILD.

Last year I focused on starting a new job, living in a new city, and discovering new adventures. Now I’m settled, and loving my new city, still. But it’s time to do more.

“Build” encompasses all the things I want to do in one word:

Build my body: I exercise fairly regularly and am gluten free, and try to be dairy free when I can. But I know I can do better. I need to commit to more strategic workouts to achieve my fitness goals. I need to build a foundation for my nutrition so I can avoid stomach pains and migraines. A foundation of fresh food, and less processed food (even if they are gluten free).

Build my career: Focus on the parts of my career that make me happy and will better my career in the long run.

Build my relationships: Achieve closer relationships with the friends who choose to be there in return. We have a lot of connections these days, especially with all our “facebook friends” but it’s those who choose to text you just to say hello, and those who make time to grab a glass of wine, are the ones I want to spend more time cultivating and showing my appreciation for.

Build myself: Overall, it’s about building my happiness overall, and that starts with me and finding what makes me happy each day. I know this year I want to try to use less tech/devices in my free time, and consider trying things like meditation. Find a quiet place and time for myself, even 5-10 minutes a day.

I choose to build this year, some from the ground up, but mostly re-working the foundation that’s already been built through the years .

What’s your word for 2017?

#radiatedaily

Image source: CMU