One Word Resolutions – “Wonder”

Over the past few days the idea of the “One Word Resolution” has been popping up amongst the #SAchat community. So in reflecting, I decided upon the word  – WONDER. And I chose to look at it from two viewpoints.  The first being the idea of marvel & awe, and the second being curiosity. Simply put, I want to remind myself of two very important things.

One – I have to remember to look at the world around me more often. I think that sometimes I have the tendency to get caught up in my own little world and focus on how my own life is going.  Yet, there are so many things going on around me – things to marvel at – that I sometimes miss along the way.  Mostly seen in how much time I spend at work.  I can’t say that I am the most balanced person.  But 2011 needs to be the time in which I start to take those times to seek out the marvelous things beyond my job.  While it will still be perfectly acceptable to seek joy in my work – which I do find quite consistently – it’s important to look for that joy beyond the walls of Student Affairs.  Reminding myself why I love to take photos – which has become somewhat lost in my attempt to turn it into a career. I told myself I would do it only if it remained fun and exciting.  It’s lost some of it’s lackluster so I plan to make it fun again. Surrounding myself with marvelous people is important. I have three women in my life that know every bit of who I am, yet spending time with them falls to the wayside.  I’m already working to make sure that I make more time for them.  To recognize and be in awe of their amazing ability to always be my friend. Especially this year as I will watch one of them get married and the other work on having a baby. The same is true with my family. To continue to remind myself to be in awe of and marvel in the love they have for me on a consistent basis.

The number two part of this is the curiosity part. I plan on continue to push myself to learn. To read more than I normally do. To ask more questions. To listen when others are talking.  To connect and network and expand my circle of colleagues.  All of which will lead to both personal and professional growth. I have to look beyond myself and work at continuing to understand others.  I’m involving myself in experiences that will expand my comfort zones. I want to live a “boxless” life and have a deeper understanding of the world around me. So whether that is through cultures, academia, faith, or just simple human nature – I want to be curious and immerse myself in it.

I love hearing all of the other words that people are focusing on this year.  I hope that we can continue to support each other and talk about our words in the upcoming days, weeks, months – well, for the rest of 2011.  Because then we get to pick a new word for 2012. 🙂