This past fall, I attended a conference in which the speaker shared that she chooses and focuses on one word for each year. This caught my attention, especially since I had heard about this idea from a former internship supervisor. I was excited to hear about this concept from various areas of my life and knew I wanted to choose a word for myself for the upcoming year. After some time, thought and consideration, my word was revealed to me— prioritize. I have teetered back and forth between prioritize and priorities, but keep circling back to prioritize. I have to actively prioritize my actions— I don’t simply choose priorities and then plans unfold. And I have to prioritize my choices in every aspect of my life.

3 Ways I Prioritize My Spiritual Life…. Public Religion Research Institute “found that Americans who identify as spiritual and religious or spiritual but not religious express higher life satisfaction than those who are not spiritual” (Blumberg, 2017). I personally believe that my faith is the foundation of every other aspect of my life. Therefore, I strive to grow in my spiritual life, daily, which strengthens and encourages my faith. A few ways in which I actively practice this include: 1) Spending time studying what I believe to outline and guide my personal beliefs and life principles, 2) Regularly meeting with a mentor who holds me accountable, encourages me, and guides me, spiritually, and 3) Choosing to silence and stow away my phone during growth opportunities such as my quiet time or while attending church services.

3 Ways I Prioritize My Professional Life…. As a professional, I am very excited about the many opportunities and possibilities ahead. In order to successfully reach goals with quality standards, I need: 1) Accountability through supervisors, and mentors, 2) Deadlines through my accountability, and 3) Specific and organized to-do lists to get it all done on time.

3 Ways I Prioritize My Relational Life…. Too often, I find myself task-oriented. This isn’t always a bad thing. However, I can easily miss moments with family members and friends. Therefore, I make plans to spend quality time with those that I love and care about. I have found that: 1) Planned and 2) Routine commitments— such as weekly dinners with my family, and 3) Intentional communication— such as encouraging text messages and impromptu phone calls— foster healthy, happy and growing relationships. 

3 Ways I Prioritize My Personal Life…. As much as I enjoy my work as a music therapist, and booking almost every possible minute of my time outside of work to spend with friends and family, I still need time for me, myself and I. A couple of my favorite pastimes to spend by myself include: 1) Reading, 2) Napping, and 3) Watching Netflix— or Disney+. 

I’d like to say that I have a detailed plan to implement this word— prioritize— in every area of my life for this year, but to be honest, I think that it will take me the entire year— at least, to learn what this word means to me and how to effectively apply it. 

Reference

Blumberg, Antonia (2017, November 8). Americans Who Identify As Spiritual Feel More         Gratitude And Life  Satisfaction. Huffington Post. Retrieved from                                               https://www.huffpost.com/entry/american-spirituality-survey-life-                                           satisfaction_n_59fcd75be4b0baea2631c34e