Synchronicity

Having given up the traditional New Years resolution a while back, I began the practice of choosing a word for the year. Not just any word, one that inspires, guides and often surprises me. Past versions have been uplift, rise, duality (a post for another time to explain that one).

The one rule is that I don’t (and recommend you don’t either), choose a word that fixes something. As in, if you’re perpetually late, don’t choose “prompt” as your word.

This year I came across “synchronicity” and immediately went looking for some further definition.

According to Oxford, it’s described as, “The simultaneous occurrence of events which appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection.”

Other words that convey a similar concept are coincidence, serendipity, harmony and my favorite, a ‘fateful occurrence’. (Thanks, ChatGPT!)

I knew right away that this would be my word. Why does it inspire me? Because in the early days of my personal transformation journey, I learned to ask a very important question, different from what I had always asked.

Countless times I would hear a message somewhere, only to then have a friend recommend a book with a similar theme, suddenly to see someone walk by on the street with a graphic tee and a relevant motivational quote. Coincidence?

I am a believer that we have to hear things over and over (and over) to really understand them. Often the message is the same but we need to hear it from a different messenger. Once we do, we can’t look back.

As I double-down my focus on resilience, on a mission to dismantle the myths we have been taught about how to handle setbacks, I know it will be more important than ever to open my eyes and pay attention to the words, signs and messages all around me.

I hope you will, too.

In the meantime, I invite you to share your word for the year in the comments (or ideas for one and let us support you).