One Word Can Have an IMPACT in 2022

I began the journey of searching for my One Word heading into 2017. I was a big fan of Jon Gordon’s simple but powerful messages he would deliver in his books and the One Word was next on my reading list. My first One Word was LISTEN and I will share that story in a later post but since that time there are typical moments of clarity where the One Word appears. I strongly encourage you to read the book and look back at some of my previous posts such as One Word For a New Year and then the story of my 2021 One Word, FOCUS, with Focus on One Word.
 
The One Word that I had in mind, even prior to starting the process, was IMPACT. This word has been hitting me hard the second half of 2021 starting with my good friend and mentor, Steve Moles, talking about Being a Person of Impact. He was focusing on my article writing since he was the person who encouraged me down this pathway.  He felt that my approach to writing was enabling me to be a person of impact as I tend to do these three things in each of my articles:

1. Captivate - Get their attention
2. Stimulate - Connect to the audience
3. Motivate - Move to action

 
I created a poster with this information, printed it out and hung it on the wall in my office as I felt it was a great reminder, not only when I am writing, but when I am engaging others at work and in my personal life.
 
I followed this up with writing my 3 Pillars of Impact series where I discussed 3 principles that I felt were critical to success.

• Courage to Challenge
• Expect Excellence
• Empower Others

 
These principles were established many years ago when I would talk to prospective new hires and deliver my expectations for them.  I wasn’t focused on the word Impact back then as I was describing my vision for our group and conveyed it back as simply “Making a Difference.” 
 
As the word IMPACT started to take on a more significant role in my life, of course, it started showing up everywhere! (On a side note, this phenomenon is written about in a lot of motivational books regarding positive thinking. You know the I buy a certain car then I start seeing that car everywhere I go. This is referred to as the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon or the Frequency Illusion)
 
People are using IMPACT back to me in their emails. I see it on blog posts and news feeds. I started reading the book Impact Players by Liz Wiseman which is a great book! So, while I kept waiting for the AHA moment that has occurred with my other One Word journeys, this one kept staring at me and waving saying, “hello! I’m over here…’ while I kept looking past them searching for my word. 
 
I tossed around words such as FINISH, MOVE, and ENGAGE. All these words have meanings to me and where I am in my life, and they all had merit. But they didn’t really trigger anything deep inside. They made me feel like I was trying to shoehorn (there’s a good term for the younger crowd!) it to be the one. It was then that I realized that when I would delve deeper into each of the words, I would always end up using IMPACT in the explanation. 
 
So, there it is, my One Word for 2022… IMPACT. I intend to have a positive IMPACT on my family and friends. I strive to have a positive IMPACT on those who choose to read my writings. I am committed to positively IMPACT the company and employees and those we serve. Because ultimately, when our time on earth is done, all we can really hope for is that our IMPACT will last Beyond Today.

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