Word of the Year 2011

cour·age

noun \ˈkər-ij, ˈkə-rij\

mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.

(source: Merriam-Webster)

When I was trying to decide on a word for the year 2011, I thought of many possible words such as Create, Succeed, Live, Grow. All great words, but I would need courage to do each of those things and more.

I knew that the word I chose had to be something that could keep me going throughout the year. My word for 2010 was "Thrive" and when I was having a bad day and everything seemed although it would fall apart, I would remind myself to thrive. And so, thrive I did. It was a good word for me, and I wanted to choose a word for 2011 that would have a similar effect on me.

There are many times in my life where things could have been different had I had courage. This year, I have chosen "Courage" to be my Word of the Year in hopes that perhaps it will manifest itself and become a real part of me. I hope I will gain courage to do the things that I may otherwise not do, and courage to be who I want to be.

Christine Kane has a Word of the Year tool to help you discover your word. While I already was contemplating "Courage" as my word, I used this tool to determine that yes, indeed, this was the right word for me.

Here's to being courageous in 2011!

What's your Word of the Year?

Word of the Year 2010: Thrive
Word of the Year 2009: Survive