Word of the Year
Instead of new years resolutions, I chose a word of the year. I am intentionally using this word to guide me in my decisions throughout the year.
My word of the year is “purge”.
This was inspired by Marie Kondo’s, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
According to dictionary.com, purge means to:
- to rid of whatever is impure or undesirable; cleanse; purify
- to rid, clear, or free
7 Things to Purge This Year
1. Procrastination
Truth bomb, I am the queen of procrastination. For example, I intended to write this post at the beginning of the year, but here it is the middle of February already. Also, I have lots of ideas to help people solve their health issues, but I keep waiting for the perfect moment to launch my health coaching programs. Of course, that perfect moment has yet to come!
By procrastinating, I am denying myself of my creative outlet to help other people and I’m denying the opportunity to help someone.
So, why do we procrastinate? Usually because of fear. For me, it’s fear of not knowing how to do something or doing it wrong. And there’s the fear of putting yourself out there. That’s a big one to tackle, especially is you’re an introvert like me.
My intention this year is to recognize when I am procrastinating, identify the fear behind it and kick the fear to the curb!
How does procrastination show up in your life?
Procrastination makes easy things hard, hard things harder.~Mason Cooley
2. Negative and Self-Limiting Thoughts
This is one of the reasons why I procrastinate. I keep telling myself that I can’t do something or it will be too complicated for me to figure out. I always make everything way more complicated than it needs to be, so I dread the start of every single task!
Why do we have self-limiting thoughts? Our egos invent them to keep us safe. Our egos like things the way they are. They don’t want us to learn and grow, so they create lots of stories and excuses to keep us from trying new things.
You can learn more about how your ego works to keep you safe in Eckhart Tolle’s book, The Power of Now.
My intention this year is to recognize my negative thoughts, thank them for their concerned efforts to keep me safe, then kick them to the curb!
How do self-limiting thoughts show up in your life?
Be a force of love as often as you can and turn away negative thoughts whenever you feel them surface.~Wayne Dyer
3. Things
We have a nice house filled with lots of things. We have a large, full sized basement filled with even more things. Tons of things. Things we don’t even know are down there! We have 3 growing children who outgrow their clothes and toys in nanoseconds. And it’s all piled down in our basement. I don’t think I will ever be a minimalist, but I am going to do my best to downsize the things! It is an overwhelming task, my ego is telling me it will be way too hard and I’m doing my best to procrastinate 🙂
Why do we hold on to so many things? We all have our reasons, but often times it is because of the memories attached to the things. Marie Kondo recommends thanking the thing for the pleasure or purpose it once provided, and allow it move on if it is no longer purposeful or pleasurable. In other words, it served its purpose, now it is time to move on.
My intention this year is to be very thoughtful in my purchases, not to add more unnecessary things to our home, and to find the best way to purge the things we no longer need.
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched-they must be felt with the heart.~Helen Keller
4. Extra Weight
I’m 42 and have had 3 babies. I’m no longer interested in rocking the bikini body, but I do want to feel good in my own skin. I still want to look good in my “mom suit”. In addition to looking and feeling good, I want to shed the extra weight because toxins are hanging out in those fat cells. I’m ready to send them packing!
Why do we hold on to extra weight? This is very personal and different for everyone. But generally, our egos tell us to keep the extra weight to keep us safe. Biologically, our bodies were designed to store toxins in our fat cells to keep the toxins out of our organs and blood stream, keeping us alive.
My intention this year is to thank my fat cells for doing their job, for keeping toxins out of my organs and keeping me alive. But, now it’s time to get the toxins out and send them packing!
Are you holding on to extra weight? What message is your body is sending you?
Falling out of love is like losing weight. It’s a lot easier putting it on than taking it off.~Aretha Franklin
5. Negative People and Toxic Relationships
I am fortunate and do not have many negative people in my life. I am going to be resilient when I hear a negative comment towards myself or anything important to me. One place where this is really showing up right now is all the political commentary on Facebook. I appreciate our freedoms and rights to say what we want when we want. I also appreciate how it all affects me, and I’m learning how to thoughtfully tune it out.
Why do we hold on to negative people and toxic relationships? Again, this is very personal and different for everyone, but we can thank our egos again. Our egos make us believe we don’t deserve better. Remember, our egos do not want us to change. Our egos believe we are the safest right where we are.
My intention this year is to recognize the negativity, try to understand it for what it is and let it go without getting wrapped up in it.
How are negative people and toxic relationships affecting your life?
Don’t let negative and toxic people rent space in your head. Raise the rent and kick them out.~Robert Tew
6. Brains
I need to do a massive brain dump. I have so many thoughts and ideas swimming around in there, but none of them are coming to fruition, they’re staying stuck in my head! Because my brain is so cluttered, I’m forgetting basic things.
Why do you need to do brain dumps? Just as you need to clear the clutter from your home, you need to clear the clutter from your brain. When you have a lot on your mind, you are stressed. When you get the clutter out of your brain onto paper, you can put things into perspective. You can analyze the thoughts and to-do lists, making categories and priorities. You give your brains permission to relax, you sleep better and you are less stressed. You also feel a great sense of accomplishment when you physically see a check mark or line through a completed task that has been weighing on your mind.
I am using some helpful tools to keep my brain uncluttered. I use Danielle LaPorte’s Desire Map to jot down my intentions for each day of the year. When you make your intentions known to the Universe, it goes to work to make it happen! Check out The Desire Map here.
Doing brain dumps gets your conscious thoughts out of your brain and onto paper. You can go a step further and get your subconscious thoughts down on paper using Julia Cameron’s Morning Pages. When you tap into your subconscious mind, you discover solutions to problems and limitless creativity. You can learn more about Morning Pages in Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist’s Way.
My intention this year is to write every day. I intend to write lists so I remember the basics, journals so I can get deep thoughts out and blog posts so I can share helpful thoughts with readers. I even have a book in my brain that needs to get written.
Does your brain store too much information? Do you have a hard time sorting your thoughts and taking action?
Love is like an hourglass, with the heart filling up as the brain empties.~Jules Renard
7. Pantries
Truth bomb, I am a Health Coach, and I have junk food in my pantry. Most of the cereal, cookie and cracker boxes are labeled “organic”, but a processed food is a processed food. Certainly, eliminating these will release some of the toxins in my fat cells, and I will start to shed some of that extra weight!
Why do we hold on to junk food when we know it’s not good for our bodies and our health? Because they are quick and convenient. They have been heavily marketed to us and our children. They are comfort foods and remind us of happier times.
My intention this year is to be more resilient with my food choices. I am capable of fixing a fresh, homemade meal. I am not unrealistic and know we will always have some processed foods in our house. I will continue to buy the least toxic brands and will continue to educate myself and my family why these foods are for special occasions and not the norm.
I will not feel deprived when I bypass junk food. I will feel empowered because I made the right choice.
Everytime you eat or drink, you are either feeding disease or fighting it.
What is your word of the year? How will you use it to make better decisions this year?
Do you need some support in making better choices? Sign up for a free discovery session.
Love this blog Shellie. I read Marie Kondos’ Tidying Up book last January and I continue to follow her advice. Have purged a great deal in a year.
Still considering various words for 2017- thinking “present”, as in being present in the moment, making memories count, being purposeful in planning my life’s events etc. Thanks Shellie!
I love the idea of being more present. We’d solve a lot of problems if we were all more present! I absolutely want to be more present for my family, that is why I’m working on purging right now, so I have more space to be present.
I love this idea! My eyes literally widened when I saw the word was, “PURGE.” Yes, it is so important to rid ourselves occasionally of what we’ve often accumulated in excess. I love that you mention the brain dump, too! All this purging allows for your ideas to spread more effectively. Thank you for the awesome article, Shellie!
Thank you, Cathy! Our bodies and minds can easily fill up with toxic junk. We need to be more mindful and intentional of creating a clean space in our bodies, brains, and homes 🙂