Over the last week, Twitter has been filled with the #OneWord2017 hashtag by the many educators that I follow.  Everyone is trying to determine their “one word” to guide and shape their year.  In a sense, I guess you could compare it to the classic “New Year’s Resolutions” that millions of people adopt at the beginning of each year.  However, there is something great about the simplicity of one word.  One word.  Just one, simple word that will be your mantra for the upcoming year.  By keeping it to one word, it keeps it simple but broad.  The success of your one word is simply based upon how you feel that it affected your life after the year completes.  Therefore, over the last few days, I have been thinking to myself… “What is my one word that I want to shape my personal and professional life in 2017?” Several words came to my mind, but one word stood above the rest: strength.  In 2017, I want to focus on becoming strong in mind, body, and spirit.

Strong in Mind

Being strong in mind is essential towards a healthy life.  This is a very general statement and could be something different for every person.  For myself, I want to be strong enough to keep everything in perspective and to keep the important things first.  I want to be strong enough to be able to be a positive force for the students that I teach and the coworkers that I interact with every day.  Through this strength, I will be able to filter out the negativity and unhealthy energy.  It may still exist – but it won’t affect me as it may have in the past.  My strength will be grounded in confidence, courage, commitment, and purpose.  I will put a focus on serving others, rather than serving myself.  As I mentioned earlier, strength of mind is essential for a healthy life because it will shape the way that you interact with everyone within your life.

Strong in Body

Being strong in body will keep me energetic and motivated with the many tasks that I take on each week.  I wouldn’t classify myself as unhealthy.  Due to many health issues, I am generally very cautious about what I eat since I can become very ill if I eat the wrong foods.  However, I do think that exercising regularly needs to become a fundamental aspect of my life.  Before graduate school, I would exercise 3-4 times a week for an hour each.  Once graduate school came, I found myself skipping the gym much more frequently.  During this year, I want to become strong in body by eating well, drinking plenty of water, and exercise regularly to give me the energy that I need for my personal and professional life.

Strong in Spirit

Being strong in Spirit will help me to develop the character and integrity that is essential for creating and maintaining good relationships in my personal and professional life.  The foundation of my life is based upon my relationship with God.  Although I am far from perfect, I try to live my life in a way that honors God and my beliefs as a Christian.  Instead of being self-serving, I want my relationships with others to be about serving others.  The “servant leadership” model is rooted within my faith and is very effective when working with people within one’s personal and professional life.  Therefore, by being strong in spirit, I will be able to show the character and integrity that will help me to be a genuine person and an effective leader.

It may seem cliche that my one word is strength, but I felt that this word truly encompasses all of the ways in which I want to grow during 2017.  By being strong in mind, body, and spirit, I will be able to lead a personal and professional life that will keep myself healthy and motivated, while being a servant leader others.  As I reread through this post, I can see that these are some very lofty goals.  Thankfully, that is the benefit of the “One Word 2017” – the only person that can evaluate my success is myself.