Erica: Hey, girl. By now, you know I have Her Collective, my online community for ambitious women who are done doing it alone. Her Collective is for the women who are smart, capable, and driven, but they find themselves stuck on the sticky floors like self doubt, burnout, and waiting for permission that quite honestly never comes. Inside HER, you get more than motivation. You get real support, real strategies, and real momentum.

Erica: We work on things like clarifying what you want now and what's coming next, building confidence without burning yourself out, navigating hard conversations, career moves, and leadership moments with clarity, and surrounding yourself with women who actually get it. This isn't about hustling harder. It's about moving intentionally with the right tools and the right people in your corner. If you're ready to stop spinning, start choosing yourself, and build a career in life that actually feels aligned, I'd love to welcome you inside her collective. You can learn more and join us at www.joinhercollective.com.

Erica: Because honestly, girl, you were never meant to do this alone. You've heard of New Year's resolutions, but have you ever considered choosing a word of the year? It is like setting this powerful intention that can guide your actions, decisions, and mindset all throughout the year. And with 2024 right around the corner, I wanted to talk about the importance of setting a word of the year and how it can truly change your life. This is an exercise that I first learned probably about three years ago.

Erica: And it sounds great, right? Word of the year. But I want you to know that there is power behind choosing a word of the year. Now since I've only been doing it for three years, I only have two prior words that I can share with you. But I know already what my 2024 word is going to be, and I cannot wait to share it with you and hopefully inspire you to pick a word for yourself and share it back with me.

Erica: Today, we are jumping straight into a topic that is all about setting the tone for a fantastic year, the power of choosing the word of the year. Now this one word is setting a powerful intention that is going to carry you through the entire 2024. But here's the deal, it isn't just fluff. Studies show that people who choose a word of the year are more likely to stay focused on their goals and experience a sense of purpose. And y'all, that's what we're all here for.

Erica: Now when I first heard about this exercise, my first word was abundance. I love it. I still love that word. I was heading into this year where I wanted more of everything. And not, like, in a greedy way, but I wanted my cup to be running over with love, to be running over with laughter, with friendships. I wanted abundance in relationships, in my career, and in every cornerstone of my life.

Erica: I wanted to be very intentional in creating that abundance and I honestly fell in love with this word. I'm still in love with this word, but it felt powerful and it felt really grounding at the same time too. Now it guided my actions and my decisions for the entire year. I wasn't sure about something.

Erica: All I had to do was ask myself, is this gonna bring me more abundance? And if the answer was no, then it was a hell no. Now here's what I love. Research conducted by the psychologist, doctor Angela Duckworth, highlights the importance of having this unifying theme to drive your efforts. Now she's a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and she studies non IQ competencies like self control and grit, and her research shows that when we have this unifying theme, this word of the year, you have that constant reminder of what matters most to you and that will help align your actions with your values.

Erica: Now my second word of the year, this takes some explaining y'all, I struggled. I do not know why, but no word felt right to me. I threw out all kinds of words and, yes, they sounded great, things like family and love, but I honestly just had to give up on it for a while. And I buy this planner every single year. It's from a shop called Cultivate What Matters.

Erica: It is a fabulous local shop with these gorgeous planners. And when you buy their planner, last year, it came with a card to write your word of the year on, and mine sat blank for, like, six months. Six months. It wasn't until maybe June or July that all of the sudden I was hit with what was the word of the year for me. And it was this realization, this knowing just deep in my bones what my word was, and that word was becoming.

Erica: Now 2023 for me was all about stepping into this new level of me, a higher level of me. It was about owning that space and really taking on higher levels of speaking gigs, becoming more refined at this whole podcast thing, and really just becoming a better me. I share this with you because I don't want you to feel like you have to force a word or just pick a word just to pick a word. I don't want you to pick it because it sounds good. I want you to pick a word that has meaning.

Erica: And if it doesn't come right away, if it takes six months like it did for me, that's okay. You know, mine didn't come for half a year and I really had to give up that maybe I just wasn't gonna have one. But now here's what's wild, at least for me. 2023, it ain't even over yet.

Erica: And this year, well, I guess I should say next year, I already know what my 2024 word is. So I'm a tell you, and I'm so excited. My 2024 word is community. Now I have spent so much of my time in 2023 joining communities and being a part of communities and really cultivating the community around me. I'm in Chief, which is a group for executive women.

Erica: Shout out to all my Chief sisters who have always had my back. You know, I'm in this new core group inside of Chief, and I really wanna pour myself into that group and really show up and be present for all of our meetings. Now I'm in a keynote speaking group called Impact Eleven. I want to work on cultivating my relationships further with my fellow speakers and showing up to our Zooms, figuring out how I can collaborate and help each other. And I'm in a group called the Society, which is for ambitious women, really entrepreneurs, and I wanna focus on that group and get the most out of it that I can.

Erica: Now what is really great about community and this whole concept is it doesn't have to be these big massive things like Chief or Impact Eleven. You know? It's also about meeting one on one with my friend, Judy, who keeps me accountable for all of my digital coursework that I do. We only meet one hour a week, but we hold each other accountable. And I have so many wonderful neighbors and girlfriends and just people in my life that, as a busy working mom, I don't get to spend enough time with.

Erica: I have the community around me. Now it's time to pour into that community. Now this word is so important to me because in a world that sometimes feels disconnected, fostering this sense of community is more crucial than ever. It's not just a buzzword, it is going to be my guiding principle that I hope will transform my relationships and my life in 2024. And really, I know, I trust deep down that when I do this it's going to improve my life and I hope the lives of all of the other people around me.

Erica: So if you're ready for a game changing year, I want you to start by identifying your own word of the year. What resonates with you on a deep level? Let that guide your choices and your actions. Once you have it, I want you to take that word and put it on as many sticky notes as you have. Tape it to your fridge, to your bathroom mirror, in your car.

Erica: Make it a computer desktop, or your phone lock screen. Get it everywhere so that you see it and you can remind yourself of where you are going and what is important. Now if you're like me in 2023 and you do not yet have a word of the year and you're just kind of meh about them all, here's how you can go deeper. Make a list and write down any word that resonates with you as you kind of plan and think about your goals for the future. And I want you to keep this list for about a week and just any word that comes to your mind, pull it out, jot it down.

Erica: Don't get too serious about it, just write anything down that comes into your brain. Do it on the notes app in your phone if you prefer digital, whatever works for you. So far, what word keeps coming into your mind? Has one kind of kept bubbling up? If others haven't, cross them off as you go.

Erica: If you're not passionate about them, x them out. Next, I want you to take that pared down list for each word that you're considering and I want you to grab your good old Webster dictionary. Okay, I lied. No one really has a dictionary in their house. Okay.

Erica: Maybe some of you do. I don't know. I don't have a dictionary. Head to the Google. But I want you to go in and look up the definition of the word, and look up the synonyms and the antonyms, and I just want to see what that stirs up for you in your heart and in your mind.

Erica: And then, if you can, pick a word. But seriously, don't force it. Let it come to you. You will know what word is right, and guess what? This is all about you, really.

Erica: So if you want one word, two words, three words, you do you. Go for it. This is an exercise about what you want to keep in the forefront and there's no right or wrong answer. No one is going to judge you. Now my hope is that this simple exercise inspires you to get your ass ready for 2024.

Erica: I just feel it in my bones that this is gonna be just a super exciting and amazing year with lots of big things. And I want you to know that if 2023 was a dud of a year for you, guess what? Tomorrow is a new day, and 2024, it's right around the corner. It is the biggest fresh start of all time, and I want you to know that what you are doing is important. Even if you are just taking rest, that is important.

Erica: The work that you are doing, it makes a difference. And as my beautiful planner says that I have right here next to me, we can't do it all and do it all well, but we can choose to cultivate what matters. So friends, if you are listening, you are a part of my community and some of you've been here for years. We are heading into year three of this podcast, which is just crazy to believe, but thank you for being on this journey with me. Truly, thank you.

Erica: I would love, love, love to hear what your word of the year is, so drop it to me on Instagram, I am so excited and here to help you stay focused on all of those 2024 goals and that 2024 word of the year. So if you liked this episode, help me build this community by rating, reviewing, and subscribing to the podcast as it truly helps it land in the hands of the woman who needs to hear it the most.