My word of choice in 2015 was calm.  And I’d say I did a fairly decent job of keeping calm last year, although there were a few bumps along the way.  Even though I can’t say that I’ve mastered being a “calm in all situations” kind of person, I was able to focus because that was my word.  I’m light years from where I want to be, but I’m definitely moving in the right direction.

With that being said, instead of going down the resolution route (I prefer monthly goals instead), I’m sticking to making a word my word in 2016.

And that word is pause.

I know, I know.  Pause isn’t the most glamorous or inspiring word.  In fact, it sounds super boring.  But just hear me out.

As my longtime readers know, I’m not a “wait and see” person or a “let me think about this for a 1,000 years before taking action” kind of person.  I’m a doer.  If there’s something that needs to get done, you better believe it will.  When decisions aren’t being made and things aren’t moving and shaking, I literally feel like screaming and pulling my hair out.

Now there are definitely some big upsides to this semi-crazy personality trait of mine.  I’ve been told that I’m responsible, proactive, results oriented, etc.  Great stuff…

…but there are lots of downsides as well.  For example, I get so focused on setting things in action that I often don’t think about my behavior.  I can seem really bossy.  My field of vision narrows and it’s hard for me to consider other people’s points of view.  You get it.

Over the last two weeks of December, I realized that in my normal day-to-day life something was missing.  I couldn’t put my finger on it though.  Then as we were going to bed one night, it hit me.  I rarely ever pause.  I jump from one thing to another without stopping (and oftentimes really thinking about what it is that I’m doing).

That is why 2016 is the year of the pause.  And not just when I’m interacting with other people…the pause applies to all areas of my life.

I’m sure this whole concept will evolve, but here’s where I hope to see lots of improvement…

Pause before hitting the snooze button on the alarm clock. 

Pause before checking my email first thing in the morning (and ultimately putting my phone down).

Pause when I’m saying bye to Vishnu in the morning and savor the moment instead of just saying “loveyoubye.”

Pause between each bite of food and before filling my plate with seconds.

Pause before picking up my phone to check social media for the 100^th time (and ultimately putting my phone down).

Pause before sharing my opinion and ask “is what I’m about to say going to add value?”

And most importantly, pause (for as long as I need) before reacting to a person or a situation. 

The last one is a priority and a challenge (as in it’s hard) for me.  Not sure if you guys recall, but I started a Reaction Challenge a while back.  The first few weeks were great, and I felt like I was making progress.  And then somewhere along the way I reverted back to my old self.  Well, what I realized was that it’s great to want to change how you react to the not so good stuff, but it only works when you put in mechanisms to help you.  And for me in this moment, the pause is it.

I plan to blog a lot more about this over the next few months because from what I can tell this is something a lot of people have trouble with.  It’s not easy to open up about the less than perfect sides of ourselves, but it’s necessary.  And personally, I want to be more honest with all of you because life isn’t always rainbows and unicorns.  So expect more honest and raw posts from me about this topic in particular.

Now let me pause before saying…

…I hope your 2016 is off to a fabulous start!  Can’t wait to share more and connect with all of you this year!

Did you make a New Year’s resolution?  Or are you going the word of the year route?