My One Word for 2023

The end is near!  No... Not in some cryptic "person on a street corner with a sign" kind of way.  Tomorrow we'll see 2022 come to an end, and then we're moving on to 2023! 

For many people a new year means a new set of resolutions. For me it means a new word.  One word which is my focus and guide for the year. 

That word for 2033 is Explore.

Explore: to investigate, study, scrutinize, or analyze : look into, to become familiar with by testing or experimenting, to search into or travel in for the purpose of discovery.

But, here's the thing...

As I began considering the word Explore and how it might take shape in the year ahead, something didn't quite feel settled. As if something was missing. At first I thought perhaps I had the wrong word.  I kept getting clues and signals that the word for the year was Explore. Yet, that feeling of incomplete didn't go away.

Then, one morning during my quiet time, I had a thought that changed everything.  

Perhaps a year of exploration isn't meant to stop at just one word. What if each month had its own word? A new word to explore each and every month.

Suddenly, it seemed as if all the pieces had clicked into place. That idea of one word for each month felt right. It was new and different. But also exciting. 

So, my one word for 2023 isn't just one word at all. While the word for 2023 is Explore - each month of the year will also have its own word.  I am not choosing all twelve words in advance. I trust that the word for each month will come to me according to where my focus needs to be and what I need to explore each month.

Do you set resolutions or make goals for the new year? Do you set a word as a focus for the year? Or do go in without any expectations, just waiting to see what the year brings?