2011: Peace
2012: Balance
2013 Grace
2014: Grow
2015: Content
2016: Play
2017: Connect
2018: Intentional
2019: Focus
2020: Beauty
2021: Light
This year my word was LIGHT. Here’s a recap on how this word was able to guide me in the many different areas of my life.
LIGHT in my WORK
This year we began team meetings and department meetings to help each other communicate our roles and responsibilities in order to get a balanced picture of what is happening at Cardinal Rule Press. By doing so, each team member gets to do what they do best and use their talents to help each other.
We also started a robust intern program. This allowed me to use my love of teaching to help others interested in the publishing industry get to learn the inside outs of the work we do!
LIGHT in my HOME
Our oldest daughter is on her way to turning 13. I’ve made it a mission this year to take her on a journey exploring her many passions. We choose a theme each month, read a book on the theme, watch a movie, take a field trip and sometimes we interview someone that works in the realm of that theme. Allowing her to discover what her passions are and what her many talents are has been fun to watch!
LIGHT in my RELATIONSHIPS
I used to push away new friendships. Brick wall. It’s definitely not in my personality so this year I’ve decided to explore why I am putting up that brick wall. I guess I didn’t think I had the time to grow new friendships but guess what, you make time for what you find important to you. True, deep connections are important to me and I can make the time. I’ve played hooky a few times this year to play cards with my aunts and uncles. I’ve let coffee with a neighbor friend go as long as it needs to, for both her and I. Spontaneously watching my niece for my sister, I can do that because I can move things around in my schedule. Most of all, I have been intentional about making sure Dave and I have one on one time this year. We took up a new sport, Pickle Ball! We hired a sitter for once a week to learn from a coach and play.
LIGHT in my HEALTH
Something clicked this year. It may have been learning that I have low bone mass but I have been eating healthy, lifting weights, walking dogs and feeling strong. Do I have a treat and go off the rails every once in a while? Sure. But not as much as I used to. I have a hard time calling The Faster Way a program because I feel like it was more of an education to last me a lifetime. If you are interested in learning more, click here.
2022: Rise
I read a blog post where someone defined the word Rise using the Hebrew root:
To accomplish
To confirm
To be clearer
To raise up
To strengthen
To succeed
To build
To carry out
To make good
After reading these descriptions, the word Rise feels right for me. When I choose a word of the year, I like to think of it in different areas of my life like professional, personal, relationships and my health.
This will be a year of growth for my company Cardinal Rule Press. I can’t go into all of the details just yet but we are taking what we know and combining it with something that will allow us to reach and serve even more children, families and classrooms worldwide. This will be a year where I want to look at challenges as opportunities to learn and do better.
In 2020, I had several team members but the majority of our work was centered around my speaking engagements and me profiting from that line of work as an author. I had to pivot drastically, like so many others did, when the pandemic shut down school visits from visitors like myself. It was time to focus on the book sales at Cardinal Rule Press as well as strengthening my team.
Part of the word RISE is that you can bring others along with you for the ride! There’s an old saying, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” 2022 is going to be all about taking the Cardinal Rule Press mission and vision to the next level as a team. Together, we have built a strong foundation that will allow us to build on and reach more and more!