My word ... COLLABORATE

Last year my word of the year was 'Rhubarb' - a fruity choice but not terribly conducive to following any form of set direction. In fact, I would go so far as to say that many of my goals 'crumbled' due to such a lack of binding substance.

This will not happen in 2014. No No No...

The year, albeit only two days old has already begun with a differing outlook - a barrel-load of commitment and a rolling stone of change!

My word is COLLABORATE.

Here's how I see it going:

Business
I work OK on my own, but it's when I'm teamed up with others that I shine. I love to get my teeth into new projects and sprinkle them with ideas and possibilities. I bring creativity, enthusiasm, knowledge, entrepreneurship, companionship and a bit of sparkle. Likewise, those I work with light the fire within me, give me the courage to push beyond comfortable boundaries and deliver promised results. Collaboration gives accountability and drives productivity. I want more! Are you looking for a partner to help you deliver in 2014?

Pleasure
Being a part of something special makes my soul bloom. For the past two years I have worked with other artists on collaborative projects and watched with delight as we have all put out our shoots and grown together. This is set to continue with projects underway and plans unfolding - but I dream of more! I have the germ of an idea seeding within me which I hope to share soon ... watch this space!

A word of caution to myself
I do like to say a big fat "Yes" to exciting invitations - it is, after all, the path to adventure. However, as I have learnt to my cost in the past, there are only so many balls I can simultaneously juggle. This is my little word of caution not to overload at any one time... Listen carefully Lisa and choose wisely!

Anti-
Before I go, might I share my anti work of the year - the one that I'm trying my level best to not only avoid, but fight against. I am preparing my defences against the might of the dreaded demon Procrastination. May it beaten into submission once and for all!

Word nonsense

What's this thing with having a word of the year? I mean, 2013 will be 365 days long. Why only one word when language is bursting with adjectives and adverbs, verbs and verbosity? 

True, the last couple of years I have joined the flock and chosen a few letters to set the tone for the coming 12 months, but it was all rather restrictive and, frankly I should have chosen 'forgetful' as it turned out to be far more appropriate. I had to hunt back to discover that my word for 2012 was supposed to be 'complete'. 

Pants to that. I am instead going to break with tradition while still joining in. My word for 2013 will therefore be...

Chosen initially for the delightful way it rolls off the tongue but also for its nonsense connotations and links to slapstick comedy involving Eric Sykes.

I have a whole heap of other words scribbled in notebooks outlining my ambitions for the coming months. I'm being very efficient with SMART goals and enough mind-mapping to plot a course to a parallel universe - speaking of which... Will I ever start that book?

Completing

Yup, that's my word for 2012. It was nearly completion but that had too much of a sense of finality to it - after all, I am very much a work in progress and rather wish to stay that way.

This word will set the scene for me 'getting stuff done' in 2012. It hinges a bit on my tendency to never quite finish big projects. Whenever I am psychometrically assessed (which isn't as painful as it sounds), I always score rather low on the completer/finisher side of the profile. I'm a great one for launching into new projects with the enthusiasm of a child faced with presents on Christmas morning and sparking ideas like New Year fireworks, but then I do so easily get distracted by the next big thing...

And while we're on the subject of distraction - let's jump back to this time last year. I took PUBLISHED as my maxim. I didn't write my book... but my words were in The Sunday Times. An extract from an award submission I wrote for a client took home a top prize and my prose was published verbatim. I was rather chuffed it has to be said...

So, back to 'completing' this post... 2011 saw me sign up for, commit to and begin rather a lot of projects. Don't get me wrong, they were not a waste of my time. On the contrary I learned a great deal, accomplished some marvelous creations and generally progressed pretty well. But I just didn't complete every part, or take advantage of all the opportunity that was out there.

I feel like an octopus sometimes desperately grabbing at particles that will fuel my creativity and guide my ambitions. I do recognise though that perhaps I should slow down and reap all I can from each passing opportunity. I might even get that book started in 2012... Who knows? (Surprise surprise I've signed up for a course to help me.... which I haven't even started...).

I will learn to focus on the most important, to procrastinate less and finish more. I will keep growing and ...

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You can share your word of the year here too - organised by Geri of My Heart Art.