For the last handful of years, instead of making New Year’s resolutions, I have chosen a word to focus on. I try to choose a word that will remind me to focus on the important things throughout the year.

This year I chose rest.

I struggle with living in the present moment. I worry about what I’ve done or said, what might happen, when things will happen, etc. So choosing a word that helps me focus on what I can control right now is helpful when I’m in an anxiety or depression spiral.

Last year, I left my career in education after 18 years. I left for myriad reasons (read about it here), but the two main reasons were burnout and a lack of professional respect. I found myself completely exhausted just thinking about going to work, and I like work. I like having projects, I like collaborating with colleagues, I even like meetings (I know, I’m a freak).

I knew that in order to convince myself to leave my job, I needed to move. So we packed up our life, and hit the road. Now what I need more than anything else is rest. I need to learn how to rest so I don’t end up in a burnout cycle.

I need to find ways to rest and recharge so I can give. You can’t pour from an empty cup, so this year I am learning to fill my own cup. One of my favorite quotes about rest is, “If you’re tired, learn to rest, not to quit”.

I want to be able to give my family and friends the time and attention they deserve. I want to be able to give time and attention to a job that doesn’t make me feel like I’m just there to warm a seat. I want to be able to give time and attention anywhere it’s needed. So I have a lot of cup filling to do.

My past words of the year have been: Simplify (2018), Thrive (2019), Joy (2020), Connect (2021), and Hygge (2022)

What kinds of New Year’s plans, resolutions, or other traditions do you have? Let us know in the comments.